Learning kitGrades 4-5
Investigation and logic
Detective school: clues, codes and a mystery
Sharpen your observation, send and decode Morse code with a light and a tap key, take your fingerprints, try detective science, and solve a mystery from the clues. Ages 9 to 11 or grades 4 to 5.
- Time
- About 90 minutes, in one or two sittings
- Steps
- 5 steps
- You need
- A computer, Chromebook or tablet, a pencil, tape, white paper, and a friend for the mystery. Printing is optional: every step works on screen. No account needed.
The 5 steps
- 1Practice the power of observationLook closelyDetectives notice what others miss. Read each scene slowly, then answer.
- 2Communicate in codeCode stationMorse code sends letters as short and long signals: flashes, beeps or taps. Ships, pilots and spies have used it for over 150 years. Decode two words, then send SOS.
- 3Fingerprint for funTry itNo two people have the same fingerprints, not even twins. Take yours and find your pattern.
- 4Try out detective scienceRead and quizReal detectives use science to read evidence. Here are a few of their tools.
- 5Follow the clues to solve a real mystery!Solve itThe group's trophy is missing from the shelf. Three people were nearby. Follow the clues.
Work on a computer. The apps need a keyboard and a bigger screen than a phone: a laptop, desktop or Chromebook. You can pay here and open the emailed link on the computer.
One learner
Unlock the kit, $5
- All 5 steps, worked on screen, with a lesson you can print if you like paper
- CryptoLab activities that check the work as it is done
- A numbered certificate with a page of the learner's own work: your observation notes, your fingerprints and your solved mystery
Have a discount code?
Co-ops and classes: unlock it for a group
One payment and one code. Each learner types the code to unlock the kit on their own computer, and gets their own certificate at the end. Your pack page shows who has started and finished.
See a sample certificate (PDF) · Already paid? Find your link