Third+Grade+Mysteries

1. Students will apply their understanding of the essential elements of a mystery to write their own original mystery. 2. Students will continue to develop their skills in writing fiction, to include creating believable characters, writing with descriptive words and formulating a cohesive narrative with a beginning, middle and end as well as a problem and solution. 3. Students will utilize their deductive reasoning skills to identify clues, develop hypotheses and come to a conclusion about who stole the missing book (as described in the weekly, anonymous letters).  Lesson 1 - What is a mystery? **
 * Goals:

1. I rush into the room, in the midst of a mystery - share my story with the kids and clues; see if they can help me solve it. Debrief experience - what is a mystery? (see Lucinda Landon's definition in the small booklet) How did we solve it? 2. Read Aloud Meg Mackintosh mini mystery and put a copy on the overhead for kids to see the picture. Discuss elements of this mystery as well as others they've heard - what are the parts of a mystery? (make a class list; once kids brainstorm, share Lucinda Landon's "elements of a mystery" from the small booklet) 3. Brainstorm - guidelines: piggybacking, freewheeling, quantity, no criticism; use the 5 W's and 2 H's to drive the brainstorming (as individuals or in pairs)


 * Lesson 2 - Create your own detective **

1. Look at familiar detectives like Encyclopedia Brown, Nancy Drew, Penny from Inspector Gadget, the gang from Scooby Doo.... - what makes them good detectives? what characteristics do they have? RA Encyclopedia Brown mystery [|Cam Jansen] Look at "Why did you decide to write Cam Jansen books?" answer [|Meg Mackintosh] Check out "Who is Meg?"

2. Use the character profile sheet to create your detective - details are a must! Sketch your detective/get a pic from a magazine or Internet.


 * Lesson 3 - Elements of a mystery: design a mysterious setting **

1. What is the setting of a book? Look at pictures in books of various settings. What makes a setting mysterious? Does mysterious=spooky? 2. How could you use adjectives to describe your mysterious setting? (show, don't tell!) 3. Less is more - focus on one or two settings for your story - don't move the characters around to too many settings! 4. Transitions aren't top secret! Tell the reader when the characters move from one setting to the next.

Lesson 4 - Elements of a mystery: strange thing happens - look back at the //WHAT// of your 5 W's Lesson 5 - Elements of a mystery: suspicious people with motives (creating other characters) Lesson 6 - Elements of a mystery: clues & investigation - look back at the //HOW did it happen//? Lesson 7 - Elements of a mystery: "Red Herrings" - creating misleading clues; Harder clues Lesson 8 - Elements of a mystery: Evidence & Deductions - look back at //HOW is the detective going to figure out how it happened?// Lesson 9 - Elements of a mystery: Solution to the Mystery - look back at //WHY//
 * Share the rules of mystery writing from LL's little book