Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Pam Walker, M.Ed., has twenty-three years of experience in teaching science and was named 2007 Georgia Teacher of the Year.

Elaine Wood, M.S., has spent thirteen years teaching science. Both Walker and Wood teach science in Douglasville, Georgia. They are coauthors of several resource books including Hands-On General Science Activities with Real-Life Applications, Crime Scene Investigations: Real-Life Science Labs for Grades 6-12, and Crime Scene Investigations: Real-Life Science Activities for Elementary Grades.

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If your students enjoy solving mysteries, they'll love the activities in Science Sleuths. Forensic science is an ideal vehicle for teaching the nature of science as well as basic science concepts. Besides teaching students to think like scientists, forensic science activities also help them understand, master, and apply science concepts. In addition, forensic science relies heavily on science process skills, manipulative skills, laboratory skills, and interpersonal skills, all emphasized by the National Science Education Standards.

Science Sleuths is an easy-to-use guide that will help you teach students how to unravel forensic science mysteries while improving their critical thinking skills. What your students won't realize is that by solving these mysteries they are engaging in problem solving, application, and synthesis. The activities and experiments in Science Sleuths vary widely, covering topics that range from techniques for sharpening observation skills to recipes for extracting DNA, and they can all be completed without specialized lab equipment. By putting the focus on skills related to critical thinking, the book helps students:

• Identify questions that can be answered throughscientific investigation
• Collect and analyze data
• Explain scientific concepts and make predictions
• Make logical deductions and develop explanationsbased on evidence
• Share findings with others clearly and logically
• Integrate math and writing skills with science

Each chapter in this helpful teaching aid contains eight in-class experiments and activities plus two homework assignments that will engage the interest of young, budding scientists. The activities all include a teacher briefing section, clear activity preparation steps (with lists of materials needed), background information to familiarize students with the topic, detailed procedure descriptions, and conclusion questions.

Help your students become confident, accomplished thinkers and solve the mystery of making science fun with Science Sleuths!

Praise for Science Sleuths

"Science Sleuths is a great book for the teacher who hopes to engage middle school students in science investigations that build upon high interest topics related to mystery, clues, and intrigue."
—Dr. Gail H. Marshall, Ed.D., Assistant Professor,College of Education, University of West Georgia

"The teacher briefs, notes, prompts, and tantalizing topics make Science Sleuths an invaluable resource. These sixty activities are intriguing and the procedures are easy to follow."
—Diane Matthews, Assistant Principal, Fairplay Middle School, Douglasville, Georgia

"What a great tool for new teachers! Everything is provided to conduct authentic instruction and investigation with a format of high interest for students."
—Ann Otwell, science coach, Chestnut Log Middle School, Douglasville, Georgia

Aus dem Klappentext

If your students enjoy solving mysteries, they'll love the activities in Science Sleuths. Forensic science is an ideal vehicle for teaching the nature of science as well as basic science concepts. Besides teaching students to think like scientists, forensic science activities also help them understand, master, and apply science concepts. In addition, forensic science relies heavily on science process skills, manipulative skills, laboratory skills, and interpersonal skills, all emphasized by the National Science Education Standards.

Science Sleuths is an easy-to-use guide that will help you teach students how to unravel forensic science mysteries while improving their critical thinking skills. What your students won't realize is that by solving these mysteries they are engaging in problem solving, application, and synthesis. The activities and experiments in Science Sleuths vary widely, covering topics that range from techniques for sharpening observation skills to recipes for extracting DNA, and they can all be completed without specialized lab equipment. By putting the focus on skills related to critical thinking, the book helps students:

• Identify questions that can be answered throughscientific investigation
• Collect and analyze data
• Explain scientific concepts and make predictions
• Make logical deductions and develop explanationsbased on evidence
• Share findings with others clearly and logically
• Integrate math and writing skills with science

Each chapter in this helpful teaching aid contains eight in-class experiments and activities plus two homework assignments that will engage the interest of young, budding scientists. The activities all include a teacher briefing section, clear activity preparation steps (with lists of materials needed), background information to familiarize students with the topic, detailed procedure descriptions, and conclusion questions.

Help your students become confident, accomplished thinkers and solve the mystery of making science fun with Science Sleuths!

Praise for Science Sleuths

Science Sleuths is a great book for the teacher who hopes to engage middle school students in science investigations that build upon high interest topics related to mystery, clues, and intrigue.
--Dr. Gail H. Marshall, Ed.D., Assistant Professor, College of Education, University of West Georgia

The teacher briefs, notes, prompts, and tantalizing topics make Science Sleuths an invaluable resource. These sixty activities are intriguing and the procedures are easy to follow.
--Diane Matthews, Assistant Principal, Fairplay Middle School, Douglasville, Georgia

What a great tool for new teachers! Everything is provided to conduct authentic instruction and investigation with a format of high interest for students.
--Ann Otwell, science coach, Chestnut Log Middle School, Douglasville, Georgia

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Science Sleuths

Jossey-Bass

Chapter One

Using the Five Senses in Forensic Science

The power of observation, using the senses to gather information, is a detective's most important tool. Observation is a fundamental skill and the basis for every thorough investigation in both forensics and science. Through systematic observation and documentation, detectives and scientists identify problems, collect evidence, and develop theories. In this chapter, students are encouraged to use their natural curiosity to learn how to become careful, methodical observers. The ability to observe depends on the five senses. These senses have natural limitations, and students find out how simple instruments and techniques can give them an edge in scientific thinking.

Activity 1.1: Trained Eyes

Teacher Briefing

In this activity, students begin to develop skills of systematic observation by looking closely at a familiar place. The activity allows you to choose between using your own classroom or exchanging classrooms for the day with another teacher so that the setting will be familiar to students but not exactly what they are used to. If you do exchange classrooms, make sure that you and the other teacher tell students to take any valuable items with them. Also be sure to let the principal and support staff know about your plan.

Activity Preparation

Optional preparation: Gather this optional equipment:

Magnifying glass

Tweezers

Envelopes to collect evidence

Make arrangements to switch classrooms if you choose that option. If you have decided to use your own classroom, determine how you will divide it up into search areas and plan ahead what items you will change in each area at the end of the exercise. For example, you might add a new picture to the bulletin board, turn a desk at an angle, or erase something on the chalkboard.

Make copies of Science Sleuth Activity Package.

First, Tell Your Students ...

When detectives arrive at a crime scene, they quickly put their skills of observation to work. Observation is the first step in every investigation because the place where a crime occurred has a story to tell.

Smart detectives look at everything. That's why they often see things that others overlook. Here's a classic case in which keen observation solved a case. It happened almost a century ago, in 1910.

A midnight burglar broke into the home of Clarence Hiller, his wife, and four daughters. The perpetrator woke the family, scuffled with Mr. Hiller, and then escaped. The police were called, and detectives were quickly dispatched to the Hiller home. In spite of a thorough search, they turned up little evidence. However, one sharp-eyed detective noticed that the paint on the porch railing was still wet and found out from Mr. Hiller that he had painted it on the afternoon of the break-in.

A thorough check of all the railings revealed that the intruder had left four clear fingerprints in the fresh paint. Back then, fingerprints were not always collected for evidence as they are today. But the detectives collected them anyway, just in case they might be useful.

By coincidence, police in another part of town had arrested a man that same evening. Thomas Jennings was found wandering around a neighborhood, acting confused and lost. His clothes were torn and dirty, so officers suspected that he had been up to no good. Officers had Mr. Jennings sitting in the local jail by the time the detectives finished their investigation of the Hiller home. Jennings's fingerprints were compared to those from the porch railing and found to be a perfect match.

Good eyes-the kind that spot little pieces of evidence-are as essential in solving crimes today as they were in 1910. All detectives need good observation skills. Start training your eyes to see it all.

Activity Procedure

1. Distribute the Science Sleuth Activity Package, magnifying glasses, tweezers, and envelopes.

2. If you are switching classrooms, do this now.

3. Divide your students into groups, and give each group an area to search. For example, one group might search the chalkboards and displays, while others search in cabinets and bookcases. You can divide the student desks into different sections for searching. If you are using your own classroom, make sure that students search an area where they don't usually sit.

4. Tell students to follow the directions in the Science Sleuth Activity Package. Let them know that they'll be asked some questions later, so they need to observe carefully.

5. Give students a fixed amount of time, about ten minutes, to do their search. 6. If you are using your own classroom, have students stand in the back of the room and close their eyes while you make your planned changes in the room's environment.

Summary and Discussion

If you use another teacher's classroom, ask students: How is it different from their own classroom?

What is the other class studying?

How many boys and how many girls are in the class? (The groups will need to collaborate on this answer.)

Was anyone in the classroom eating recently?

If you use your own classroom, ask students what they noticed about the classroom that was new to them.

Systematic strategies help make searches more successful. Ask the students if they have any ideas about such strategies.

Science Sleuth Activity Package: Trained Eyes

Background

When detectives arrive at a crime scene, they quickly put their skills of observation to work. Observation is the first step in every investigation because the place where a crime occurred has a story to tell. In a way, the crime scene is like a jigsaw puzzle that hasn't been put together. Pieces of the puzzle are lying around, right in front of your eyes. Some are stuck under other pieces, and some are turned upside down. With a little patience, you will be able to put each piece together to make a picture that can help solve the crime.

Wise detectives look at everything. That's why they often see things that others overlook. Observant eyes-the kind that spot little pieces of evidence-are essential in solving crimes. Like all other skills, you can develop your powers of observation by practice. In this investigation, you'll get a shot at observing with detective eyes.

Activity Directions

1. Join your group in the area that the teacher has assigned you to search. You may want to discuss with your group how to conduct the search, dividing up the space or the tasks.

2. Look at the area as a whole. Make notes or draw a picture of the main things that are in the area. _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________

3. Now take a closer look. What was happening here most recently? Was a class working on a project? Was someone reading? Has anyone been eating? How can you tell? _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________

4. What does this room say about the people who spend time here? Is there sports equipment in sight? A novel? A CD? _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________

5. Now, get on your hands and knees and look closely at the floor. Peek under and behind the furniture. What has gotten lost back there? Are there any hairs or threads? What could they tell you? _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________

6. Join your group, and review your findings as you prepare to answer the questions your teacher will ask.

Activity 1.2: Up Close and Personal

Teacher Briefing

This is an extension of the previous activity, with students learning to observe things about their personal clothing and their possessions. Students are paired to work with a partner. Depending on the age and maturity of your students, you will need to consider whether the pairs should be same-sex or not and what limits you should set on the search.

Activity Preparation

Decide how you will pair students.

Consider any limitations you want to put on the search. For each student, provide:

Magnifying glass

Tweezers

Envelopes to collect evidence

Plastic bag or newspapers

Make copies of the Science Sleuth Activity Package.

First, Tell Your Students ...

When detectives check out a scene, they really check it out. To find tiny clues, they get up close and personal with a magnifying glass.

One of the best places to discover clues with a magnifying glass is on clothing. Hairs, threads, and tiny specks of dirt will cling to clothes. These tiny messengers give a detective hints about where those clothes have been.

Some of the most important evidence in a case may not be out in plain view-it could be in a bag or a purse. The more that detectives can explore a crime scene, the more they can learn about what happened. A personal possession like a backpack, purse, suitcase, or wallet often holds clues that tell a detective something about its owner and that person's habits.

Activity Procedure

1. Distribute the Science Sleuth Activity Packages, magnifying glasses, tweezers, and envelopes.

2. Following your plan, assign the students to their partners.

3. Tell the students to inspect their clothes and shoes for possible evidence, following the guidelines in their Science Sleuth Activity Package. Depending on the age and maturity of your students, you may want them to inspect themselves rather than their partner.

4. Tell students that they are going to search each other's backpacks or purses. Give them a few minutes to place any personal items in their desk. You may also want them to place their wallet or any money or valuable items in the desk.

5. Now tell students to search each other's belongings, following the guidelines in their Science Sleuth Activity Package.

Summary and Discussion

Ask students if they found anything surprising in their search of their own clothes and shoes. Were they able to identify the source of any threads or hairs on their clothes? How about stains on their shoes?

Ask students what they found in their partner's backpack. Can they tell what their partner likes to eat? to read? to listen to? Were there any materials with dates showing where their partner had been or is planning to go?

Ask students to imagine they are assigned a case involving a missing person. Where is the first place they would search for evidence? What kinds of things would they hope to find?

Ask students to imagine that they searched a woman's purse and found three receipts issued on the same date. One receipt was for the purchase of gasoline in one town at 9:00 A.M., another receipt for lunch in a town two hundred miles to the north, and a third for a hotel located another two hundred miles down the road. What could they conclude about her activities? Student answers will vary but might suggest that the woman has traveled four hundred miles by car on this date and that she stopped for only one meal.

During the 1997 robbery of a convenience store in Conroe, Texas, would-be thieves Michael and Lisa Morrison held up the store and then ran out with their pockets full of cash. They would have made a clean getaway except for one mistake: Mrs. Morrison left her purse at the store. What kind of useful information might the detectives find in her purse?

Science Sleuth Activity Package: Up Close and Personal

Background

When detectives check out a scene, they really check it out. To find tiny clues, they get up close and personal with a magnifying glass.

One of the best places to discover clues with a magnifying glass is on clothing. Hairs, threads, and tiny specks of dirt cling to clothes. These tiny messengers give a detective hints about where those clothes have been. Use your magnifying glass to check out the clothes that you're wearing. See what they reveal about your activities today.

Some of the most important evidence in a case may not be out in plain view; it could be in a bag or purse, for example. The more detectives explore a crime scene, the more they learn about what happened there. A personal possession like a backpack, purse, suitcase, or wallet often holds clues that tell a detective something about its owner and that person's habits.

Activity Directions

1. Start at your feet and inspect your shoes. Look at the tops of them first, and then check out the soles. Do you see any soil? How about bits of plants? Where could they have come from? Use this space to make notes about what you see. _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________

2. Inspect your clothing inch by inch. Look in the hems, cuffs, and pockets. Do you find any threads, hairs, or stains that might tell something about where you've been or what you've done? Make notes on what you find. _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________

3. Review the list of things you found on your person. Can you explain where each clue came from? _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________

4. Using the plastic bag or newspapers your teacher provided, spread out the contents of your partner's backpack. Make a list of the things you find. _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________

5. Do you see any schoolwork? Does it tell you what classes your partner is taking? _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________

6. Is there a calendar or notepad in the book bag where your partner writes down assignments and dates? Does it tell you where your partner has been or is going? _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________

7. Is there any food in the bag? ________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________

8. Are there any clues in the bag to what your partner does for fun? Books? CDs? _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________

(Continues...)

Excerpted from Science Sleuthsby Pam Walker Elaine Wood Copyright © 2006 by Pam Walker. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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