Crime Scene Investigations: Real-Life Science Activities for the Elementary Grades

by Pam Walker; Elaine Wood

• ISBN13: 9780130842503
• ISBN10: 0130842508
• Edition: Spiral
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1999-07-01
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass

Summary

Turn your elementary students into super sleuths with the 60 exciting lessons and worksheets in this unique resource! All provide complete teacher background information and reproducible activity sheets that challenge students to observe carefully, organize and record data, think critically, and conduct simple tests to solve crimes ranging from theft and dog-napping to vandalism and water pollution. Organized into four sections covering Inquiry & Technology...Earth Science...Life Science...and Physical Science.

Author Biography

Pam Walker (B.S., M.Ed., Ed.S.) has taught science in grades 9-12 for the past 16 years.

Table of Contents

About This Book	ix
SECTION 1 INQUIRY, SCIENCE, AND TECHNOLOGY	1	(66)
Grade Tampering (Collecting and Comparing Fingerprints)
Teacher Information	3	(4)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes to the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	7	(4)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
To Code or Not to Code (Interpreting and Writing Messages in Code)
Teacher Information	11	(6)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	17	(6)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Corroded Cans (Using Data to Relate Evidence to Explanation)
Teacher Information	23	(6)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	29	(3)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Being Hip to the Chip (Paint Chip Analysis)
Teacher Information	32	(4)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	36	(4)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Tricky Tools (Comparing a Tool Mark Cast to Suspect Tools)
Teacher Information	40	(3)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	43	(3)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Handwriting Hoax (Handwriting Analysis)
Teacher Information	46	(3)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	49	(3)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Putting the Wrong Foot Forward (Comparing Shoeprints)
Teacher Information	52	(4)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	56	(5)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Disorganized Data (Organizing Evidence in Sequence)
Teacher Information	61	(2)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	63	(4)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
SECTION 2 EARTH SCIENCE	67	(54)
The Soil Evidence (Finding Evidence From the Soil)
Teacher Information	69	(4)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	73	(3)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Pointing Out Pollution (Collecting and Using Data to Detect Water Pollution)
Teacher Information	76	(5)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	81	(4)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Dirty Clues (Comparing Nitrogen and Phosphorus in Soil Samples)
Teacher Information	85	(3)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	88	(4)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Dirty Dave (Comparing Soil Samples from Different Locations)
Teacher Information	92	(4)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	96	(3)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
The Sand-Trap Blues (Detecting Pure Sand or Sand Mixtures in Soil Samples)
Teacher Information	99	(4)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	103	(4)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Digging Up Clues (Comparing Locations of Soil Samples)
Teacher Information	107	(3)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	110	(3)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
The Truth Is in the Proof (Comparing Heat-Retaining Qualities of Various Materials)
Teacher Information	113	(3)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	116	(5)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
SECTION 3 LIFE SCIENCE	121	(70)
A Hairy Situation (Hair Analysis---Human or Animal?)
Teacher Information	123	(5)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	128	(3)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Learning From Lipstick (Comparing Lip Print Patterns)
Teacher Information	131	(4)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	135	(4)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
``Leafing'' the Crime Scene (Comparing Characteristics of Leaves)
Teacher Information	139	(4)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	143	(4)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
A Spooky Crook (Assembling a Human Skeleton)
Teacher Information	147	(4)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	151	(4)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Pharaoh's Femur (Using a Bone to Determine a Person's Height)
Teacher Information	155	(4)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	159	(8)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
One Bite Too Many (Comparing Teeth Marks)
Teacher Information	167	(5)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	172	(4)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Leery of Labels (Determining Fat Content of Margarine)
Teacher Information	176	(4)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	180	(3)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
DNA Net (Using DNA Evidence to Identify a Suspect)
Teacher Information	183	(4)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	187	(4)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
SECTION 4 PHYSICAL SCIENCE	191	(56)
Where Is Herman the Hamster? (Making a Rough Sketch of a Crime Scene)
Teacher Information	193	(5)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	198	(2)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Candy Capers (Separating Water-Soluble Food Dye Into Colors)
Teacher Information	200	(3)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	203	(5)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Stepping Into Crime (Analyzing Footprints to Determine Sequence of Events)
Teacher Information	208	(3)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	211	(5)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Fibers Don't Fib (Comparing Fibers)
Teacher Information	216	(4)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	220	(4)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
You're in Deep Trouble (Conducting Tests on Synthesized Urine)
Teacher Information	224	(4)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	228	(3)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Guilty of Graffiti (Separating Colors of Water-Soluble Inks)
Teacher Information	231	(4)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	235	(4)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
The Baffled Baker (Identifying Unknown Powders)
Teacher Information	239	(3)
Purpose of Investigation, Notes for the Teacher, Background, Materials, Answer Key, NSTA Objectives that apply
Reproducible Student Investigator Pages	242	(5)
The Crime, Procedure, Conclusion Questions
Glossary	247