Cookie Jar Mystery

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The document discusses observation skills and memory exercises that are important for forensic science investigations.

Developing strong powers of observation and having a good memory are important skills discussed.

The document describes a memory game where students try to remember random objects placed in front of them in order to improve observation and memory skills.

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A Study in Forensic Science

Instructors Guide
by Anthony J. Bertino

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Table of Contents
Preface

.................................................................................................... iii

Introduction ..................................................................................................... v
Lesson 1:

Heads Up

Lesson 2:

Observation Skills ..................................................................... 1


Beyond the Naked Eye
Handwriting Analysis ............................................................... 9

Lesson 3:
Lesson 4:
Lesson 5:
Lesson 6:
Lesson 7:
Lesson 8:
Lesson 9:
Lesson 10:
Lesson 11:
Lesson 12:
Lesson 13:
Lesson 14:
Lesson 15:
Glossary
Appendix

Think Ink
Ink Chromatography ..............................................................19
Evidence on the Move
Locards Principle ....................................................................27
The White Stuff
White Substances and Toxicology ........................................35
Pull Some Strings
Fiber Analysis ..........................................................................41
Hair We Go
Hair Samples ............................................................................49
Follow the Grain
Pollen Analysis ........................................................................57
Make an Impression
Bite Marks ................................................................................63
Shoo-In
Shoe Print Evidence ................................................................69
Bloody Brilliant
Blood Types .............................................................................77
One of a Kind
Fingerprint Evidence ..............................................................83
Crack the Code
DNA ..........................................................................................93
Lets Talk
Questioning Our Suspects ...................................................101
Who Dunnit?
Examining & Analyzing All the Evidence ........................113
..................................................................................................119
National Science Education Standards................................123

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Instructors Guide

Introduction
Instructors note: please read this to students prior to beginning the course or, if thats not possible, at the first
lesson. This will help to build intrigue for The Cookie Jar Mystery.

The Cookie Jar Mystery

Mrs. Randall is a science teacher. She enjoys baking chocolate chip cookies and sharing
them with her students. One morning when Mrs. Randall entered her classroom, she
found her favorite cookie jar in pieces on the floor. She had baked cookies the day before,
but now only a few pieces of broken cookies were left on the floor, next to the pieces of the
cookie jar.
Mrs. Randall loves to teach, and she loves to use science to solve mysteries and answer
questions. She decided to use forensic science to solve this mystery of the broken cookie
jar, and she got her students to help her. Now she wants you to use forensic science to solve
the mystery, too!
What is forensic science? Forensic science is
science that relates to the law. The word forensic
means anything related to the handing out, or
administration, of justice. You will look at the clues
left in Mrs. Randalls classroom and use forensic
science to decide who broke the cookie jar and ate
the missing cookies.
On the morning that Mrs. Randall discovered the
broken cookie jar, she entered her classroom from
the door at the back of the room. She set some
books and papers on the work counter, then she
checked on the plants her students were growing
on the windowsills. It was when Mrs. Randall got to
the front of the classroom that she saw her favorite
cookie jar on the floor in pieces. The door to the
storage cabinet where Mrs. Randall usually kept
the cookie jar was open, and pieces of cookies were
scattered between the cabinet and Mrs. Randalls
desk. It was a mess.
Mrs. Randall stopped by the front work table while
she thought about what she should do. She knew it
was important not to touch anything that could give
clues about who had broken the cookie jar. But she
had to get ready for her class to come in. She decided
to look at everything carefully and take notes about
what she found. She took a digital photo of the crime
scene. Then she put anything that looked unusual

or out of place into a box so she could look at it all


carefully later. And she made a map that showed
where everything was.
Here is what she found on the floor: pieces of the
broken cookie jar, pieces of cookies, lots of crumbs,
a couple of pieces of broken cookie jar that looked
like they had something on them, and an old science
test. Then Mrs. Randall swept the floor and looked
at everything in the dustpan carefully. She noticed
some hair and maybe some threads or tiny, tiny
pieces of material. She put it all in plastic bags to
analyze later.
When Mrs. Randall went to her desk with the box,
she found something else: a note and a half-eaten
cookie! She put the note and the half-eaten cookie
in the box, too. Who could have done this, she
wondered. Later, she decided it had to be one of four
suspects. The suspects are #1_____________(male),
#2____________(female), #3____________(female)
and #4_______________(female, sister of #3),
students who had the opportunity to be in her
classroom while she was out.
You will be a Crime Scene Investigator to help solve
this mystery. Your instructor will be your Chief. Are
you ready to solve this mystery?

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Instructors Guide

Lesson 1

Heads Up!

Instructors Guide

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Lesson 1

Heads Up: Observation Skills


Objectives
Students will:
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accurately describe an event
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t %FNPOTUSBUFUIFJNQPSUBODFBOEWBMJEJUZPG
eyewitness reporting
Materials
Instructor:
t TFUPGiQSBDUJDFQJDUVSFTwQFSUFBN
t The Cookie Jar Mystery crime scene photo
Students (per group of four):
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t SFEQFOT
t QFODJMT
Preparation
1. Prearrange to have a non-class member,
preferably an adult, visit your class (see details
under Activity 1).
2. Prepare student supply bins (1 per team) with
materials.
3. Have photo of The Cookie Jar Mystery crime
scene ready to display where the group can see it.
4. Organize students in teams of four.
5. Place practice pictures #1 and #2 face down on
the table in front of each team of students.
Notes for the Instructor
As consumers of such popular television programs
as Law and Order and the old Perry Mason
mysteries, adults are well acquainted with the notion
that eyewitness accounts frequently differ from
person to person. How is this possible?
As an introduction to The Cookie Jar Mystery,
Lesson One is focused on observation skills. This
lesson lays the groundwork for understanding the
role of eyewitness testimony and suspect statements
in solving a mystery. Eyewitness testimony is very

unreliable because people often have their attention


focused elsewhere and miss events. Further, peoples
fear or anger can often interfere with their ability to
make shrewd observations.
In the first activity in this lesson, students will have
the opportunity to witness a crime in the classroom.
Because the appearance of the criminal will be
unanticipated, students may not realize that they are
expected to notice details about the visitor in the
classroom. This is the same position witnesses may
find themselves in when a crime takes place in front
of them.
The subsequent activities will lead students to think
about their observation skills. What strategies might
they employ to become more effective witnesses?
You will guide them through observations,
discussions and an analysis of two different
photographs. Further, students will be introduced
to The Cookie Jar Mystery when they study a photo
of the cookie jar crime scene. These activities are
provided to stimulate your students abilities to
recall and accurately describe various situations.
The students will begin to understand that there are
many different sources of information in a crime
scene investigation.
Notes for the Students
We are often in a hurry. Many situations occur around
us daily that we do not notice. Much of what we think
about a person is based on appearance and gestures
how a person looks, walks, stands, positions his or her
head and moves his or her hands. With just a quick
glance at a stranger, how much do we notice? How
well do we really observe events?
One tool in crime investigation is the statement of
an eyewitness. An eyewitness is someone who was
at or near a crime and saw something happen that
may have to do with the crime. Perhaps the witness
saw someone running from a crime scene. Perhaps a
witness got a license plate number. Perhaps a witness
is a crime victim. Normally, investigators try to talk

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Instructors Guide

Lesson 1

Heads Up: Observation Skills

to all kinds of witnesses to begin to understand what


happened.
People who think they can help the police solve a
crime often provide valuable details of what they
think they saw or heard. But many witnesses to
a crime can provide different details: one person
might remember a smell or sound, another might
remember the way someone said something. These
reports dont always match. In many crimes, witness
reports conflictthey dont match. One person
might say, The man was six feet tall! Another
person might say, Oh, no. The robber was very
short!
Lets test our observation skills by looking at some
pictures.
Vocabulary
Eyewitness: a person who was at or near a
crime scene when the crime took place and tells
investigators what he/she saw.
Forensic evidence: any physical thing that may be
used in a criminal court to convict or clear a person.
Observation: the act of perceiving the environment
through one or more of your senses.
Suspect: one who authorities think may have
committed a crime.
Activity 1: Eyewitness Reporting
20 Minutes
1. Prearrange for a non-class member, preferably
an adult, to knock on the classroom door. Ask
your visitor to alter his or her appearance slightly,
perhaps by rolling up a pant leg, putting a shirt
on backwards, or wearing an unusual hat.
The visitor could also display a distinguishing
characteristic, such as a tattoo or limp.
2. Begin reading Notes for the Students section
to class. While you are doing so, you should be
interrupted by the prearranged visitor.
3. Once you have opened the door, the visitor
should engage you (the teacher) in conversation
briefly and follow you to the desk or lab bench.
2 Instructors Guide

When you are distracted by retrieving something


such as a stapler, the visitor should
surreptitiously steal something from your
desk (perhaps an apple, a bag of cookies). The
entire encounter should last about 30 seconds,
and no longer.
4. After the visitor leaves, ask the students to record
in their activity books on page 2 under Activity
1: Eyewitness Reporting all the details they
noticed about this individual: size, hair color,
clothing, mannerisms, walk, actions, etc.
5. How closely were students paying attention?
They were not prepared to be paying attention,
just as an eyewitness would not be prepared for a
crime about to happen.
6. Students may add in red pen all the details that
they personally missed but have learned from
their partners.
7. Ask one student in each group to share
something that most learners missed. Did the
students notice that the visitor took something?
8. Be sure to finish reading Notes for the Students.
Activity 2: Practice Pictures
15 Minutes
1. Ask students to position themselves so that
when photos are turned over for viewing, all
group members can see clearly.
2. Ask one student to turn over photo #1 for 20
seconds. All students should examine the photo
carefully. After the period of study is complete,
ask students to turn photo #1 face down and
answer questions on Activity 2: Practice Pictures
found in their activity books on page 3. Allow
time for students to answer questions before you
move onto the next photo. Repeat for photo #2.
3. Ask students to compare their responses
for photo #1. Allow some time for discussion of
responses. Are the students more observant now
that they have been asked to be?
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Lesson 1

Heads Up: Observation Skills


4. Using a red pen, students should place a line
through any errors they made. Repeat for photo #2.
5. Display or pass around The Cookie Jar Mystery
crime scene photo so everyone can see it. Ask the
students to observe the photo for clues. After a
few minutes, take the photo back and ask
students what they saw that may be pertinent to
solving the mystery. Read the introduction to the
mystery on page v if you havent already done so.
6. Conduct a discussion centered on the question,
How valid are eyewitness accounts of an event?
7. Ask students to list the areas of criminal
investigation that were discussed today:
eyewitness reporting and forensic evidence.
Which of these methods is most reliable?
8. Refer to the crime scene photo during future
lessons as needed.
Clean-up
10 Minutes
1. Make sure the room is back in order.
2. Collect and store all materials.
Other Directions, Discussions
and Destinations
1. To make The Cookie Jar Mystery more fun and
exciting, you can mock-up a crime scene in your
room. Locate a cookie jar, cookies and catsup
or red dye. Carefully break the cookie jar on the
floor so that it looks like it was knocked over
Drip a small amount of artificial blood on a piece
of the jar. Now for the fun part partially eat
a few cookies and drop them around the broken
cookie jar to look like a thief did it. If you want to
make it even more realistic, you can add some
hair and black fabric threads taken from the
materials in the upcoming lessons. Let the class
look at the crime scene for a few minutes and
then see what they can recall later.
2. Developing our powers of observation often
starts with improving our memories. Heres an
old parlor game thats still played today:

Memory Story
1. Gather together 15 or 20 items from around
the house or from around the classroom (or from
the supply box): a pencil, a key, a comb, a spoon
or a cup could be among these. The 15 items
should be random. Put these items together on
a tray and cover them. Then gather in small groups
around the tray. Remove the cover for 30 seconds
and ask each member in the group to try to commit
to memory all of the items. After 30 seconds, cover
the items, and ask each person to write down as
many items as they can remember.
a. Some wont remember every item, and some
will. Ask the people with the best memories
how they remembered the itemsoften
youll discover that theyve constructed a
memory story to help them remember
what theyve seen.
b. For example, Karen told the following story:
I just put it together like this when I saw
the items: I thought to myself, I need a key
(key) to open the door to the kitchen, where
I would go to the drawer and get a spoon
(spoon) to stir my coffee (cup); as I drink
my coffee I often make a list of the things I
need to do (pencil) which include combing
my hair (comb), etc.
2. Have a group discussion of witness reporting
based upon students personal experiences. For
example, consider two students describing to the
principal their own account of what transpired in
a cafeteria incident.
3. Inquire if any students or parents ever witnessed
a car accident. Did they provide a report for the
police? What was the result?
And try these observation skills tests on the Internet:
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this picture? www.orderofthewhitelion.com/
Miscellaneous@/Observationpowers.html.

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Instructors Guide

Lesson 1

Activity 1: Eyewitness Reporting


What did you just witness (see)?

Approximately how tall was the person?

What color was his/her hair?


Describe the clothing this person was wearing.

What other details did you notice?

How did the person walk? (fast? slow? big or little steps?)

What did this person do in your classroom?

What else did you notice?

Student Activity Book

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Instructors Guide

Lesson 1

Activity 2: Practice Pictures

Look at a picture for 20 seconds and then answer the following questions:
Picture #1
1. What did you see in the picture? .............................Two firefighters extinguishing a burning golf cart
2. How many cars are in the picture? ..........................1 car, 1 SUV
3. How many trucks are in the picture?....................... Possibly 1 truck
4. How many people are in the picture? .....................2 firefighters and 7 other people
5. Was anyone in danger? .............................................. No, the situation looked under control and the
people were standing far away
Picture #2
1. What is happening in this picture? .......................... A parking enforcement officer is writing a ticket
2. Where is it taking place?............................................A parking lot possibly in a warm climate because
of the officers hat
3. How many vehicles are in the picture? .................... 4 cars, 1 SUV
4. What was the person wearing? .................................Dark blue broad-brimmed hat with a double redstriped hat band, a light blue short-sleeved shirt, red tie, sunglasses, a watch, navy pants and hiking
boots
Enlarged photo of Cookie Jar Crime Scene
1. What do you notice in the scene?

2. What do you think will be important to remember?

Student Activity Book

6 Instructors Guide

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