Thematic Units & CSI

I love teaching with thematic units! They allow for concepts and standards to be intertwined, including STEM, social studies, ELA and the arts. Thematic units force me to be creative and that creativity is what brings engagement and joy in the classroom- and I am talking for me, the teacher. Of course they are engaging for the students, but let’s face it, we are the catalysts for student engagement, so we have to be connected to the materials and lessons in order for the students to be connected to the lessons and learning. Even when you teach a thematic unit multiple times over the years, it never gets boring. Each year it is actually different because you are adding to the unit, changing aspects of it that didn’t quite work in previous years, tweaking it to make it better; it evolves every year.

One of my favorite thematic units to teach is CSI (Crime Scene Investigation). It brings in a little bit of history, a lot of science, some art, and ELA. I have taught this unit a total of 19 times over the course of my 21 years as a teacher. Each year it is different. I have taught it using my entire science block for a month, and I have taught it as a supplement to my district’s curriculum, also lasting a month.  I can teach the adopted curriculum that my district mandates while pulling in a daily 30–45-minute lesson from the CSI unit that directly links to NGSS (Next Generation Science Standards).

Let me tell you a little bit about it. The unit starts off with a lesson on observation; it immediately gets the kiddos hooked! I show a “who done it” video from YouTube that was originally published from the London Department of Transportation; you can view it here. I then show another video that demonstrates how details can be overlooked, again from London’s transportation department (found here). Then we veer into the world of forensic science. Now, you have to understand that I teach fifth grade and not high school. The unit is geared towards 10-year-olds. I have taken information from local police departments’ crime scene units and created this unit. The first true lesson is to introduce the different jobs of crime scene investigators; although in reality these investigators do all of the jobs I teach, it is easier for fifth graders to concentrate on one of the many hats an investigator wears. The jobs are: photographer, hair and fiber, blood and liquid, latent prints, sketch artist, and powder and dry evidence. Each one comes with a job description and the students have to apply for the position they want. I grade the applications and based on student scores (ELA standards come in for this part) they get their jobs, and students are separated into groups of 5-6 for the duration of the unit. They go on to learn about forensic science and crime scene investigation through science experiments and demonstrations.

One of the things I love most about thematic units is the opportunity for community members to connect with the students and give presentations. In this case, the local police department visits and gives a presentation to the students on crime scene investigation. Sometimes they even bring their CSI van and allow the students to walk through it to check out the cool equipment they use. I have even had police officers come in and teach the students how to lift fingerprints (Most of the time, officers do not have time to do this and they lend me the equipment, so I teach that lesson.). Having the officers come into the school and explain what they do mesmerizes the students. The level of engagement is really unbelievable.

Students work through the months’ worth of lessons to prepare them for their final- the crime scene where a scarecrow sadly meets his untimely demise. The crime scene can change a little from year to year, but the general idea is that a scarecrow was having dinner with his date and was murdered. There is at least one piece of evidence that is tied to the job positions: a print on an empty picture frame for the latent print officer; a mystery powder on the plate for the powder and dry evidence officer; feathers and yarn for the hair and fiber officer; blood on the end of a rake or hoe for the blood and liquid officer. They get in their groups and get to spend a set amount of time in the crime scene collecting evidence and then they go back to the classroom to process it all. Once it is processed, they come up with a logical theory and write a multi-paragraph essay on what they think happened using the evidence they collected.

Oh my goodness, some of the theories I have read are hysterical! No matter what I do or what I say to the students to explain to them that I am NOT a suspect, it never fails that I am accused of killing a scarecrow - every year! I have gotten theories that the principal, custodian, or other teachers have “done it.” The reasons, or motives, students provide are just as comical, but connected to the evidence (which is the point). I have heard that it was a date gone wrong, a disgruntled boss, crows that were mistreated during the scarecrow’s shift, an angry principal because the scarecrow was squatting on the premises…the ideas the students come up with are priceless…and the way they connect the dots are usually quite creative.

Once the writing is complete, the students get to take their collected evidence and pictures that were printed for them and they create a team poster to commemorate their experience. The posters are displayed for a while and ultimately auctioned off at the end of the school year.

I NEVER tell the students who actually committed the crime…ever. It drives the students crazy! I have students from 20 years ago still asking me who did it. One of the reasons I have an Instagram account is to keep in touch with past students; it tickles me when I post pictures of the current year’s crime scene and my former students chime in on the comments to ask who did it…but I will take it to my grave!

I hope this inspires you to give this unit a try in your classroom. I promise- it will not disappoint. You can get a preview of my unit here. Let me know what you think!