Peeples class cracks the case

Mrs. Strain’s students are super sleuths. When one of their teachers went missing, they got working and cracked the case. 

When a 3D printing lesson with technology specialist Angie Foerster had to be cancelled so she could stay home with an ill child, Peeples Elementary teacher Noel Strain’s creativity kicked in. Inspired by the classic children’s book “Miss Nelson is Missing,” she crafted a mystery for her 4th graders to solve. 

“When we entered the Launch Pad, they saw tables moved, chairs knocked down, Mrs. Foerster's drink spilled on the floor, a nurse form written out with her son's name on it and symptoms, 3D bunnies on the ground in front of the 3D printer, Mrs. Foerster's ID badge outside along with bandaids, a nurse's stethoscope, blood pressure cuff, and gauze,” said Strain. “I explained to my students that a crime had happened, and they needed to use their inferencing skills to solve the crime. I even called the office on the walkie talkie asking where Mrs. Foerster was and told them the Launch Pad was a mess.”

Students had about 40 minutes to examine the crime scene and write down all the clues they thought were noteworthy. 

“Most of them cracked the case with the medical items left as clues and realized Nurse Lisa Powers kidnapped Mrs. Foerster. They said Nurse Powers took her in a rush to her son who was sick at Rising Starr Middle.”

The project that focused on inference skills and included writing a paragraph about the clues and what they meant was a hit with Mrs. Strain’s students. 

“They absolutely loved this activity and begged me to do it again!”