SKU: CSELGEN

The Leader's Guide includes background information for each activity, suggested teaching strategies, a list of materials needed for each activity, and suggested questions to deepen youths' investigations. No prior science knowledge is necessary to successfully use the AXIS curriculum.

In this unit, the learners will be asked to use and strengthen their observation skills as they examine evidence from crime scenes. They will look at a variety of evidence including fingerprints, blood drops, soil, and white powders. In these activities, they will need to compare and contrast the suspect samples with the mystery sample. Through close observation, they will be able to distinguish clues that, at first glance, appear the same.

The youth will also develop critical thinking skills as they consider how reliable eyewitness testimony actually is. The will have a chance to be eyewitnesses themselves and test their ability to remember details. The youth will also explore several codes and see how they work. As their skills develop, they will have the opportunity to devise their own code and see if others can decipher it.

This unit will also strengthen the learners’ measurement skills. The youth are asked to use measurement throughout the unit including measuring shoe length, height, and the size of blood drops. Measuring for a purpose, such as solving a crime, enables the learners to develop a skill while doing something that they find meaningful.

55 pages