My+Favorite+Genre--Mystery!

= **Mysteries**

=

My earliest memory of reading one was in third grade at Pleasant View Elementary School where I discovered Helen Fuller Orton's works. Later I graduated to the Happy Hollisters, a family with five siblings who solved mysteries in exciting localities. Even today I can see exactly where the Nancy Drew books were shelved in the old Bettendorf (Iowa) Public Library. Here's a few covers that take me down memory lane:







﻿Just seeing these book covers bring back wonderful memories of libraries and reading! 

I like this quote from Pat Miller which appeared on p. 22 of the October 2010 issue of //Library Sparks:// //"//Capitalize on that desire (to solve a mystery) to i**ntrigue y**our gifted readers, **sustain** your steady readers, and **motivate** your reluctant readers." That's a great reason to focus on mysteries for a lesson or expand your students' study to an entire unit. Here's a link to a two-sheet PDF file from Library Sparks. The first page is vocabulary words and the second sheet is the "casebook" sheet. [|Detective Kit]

Here's a terrific page devoted to mysteries from Carol Hurst's Children Literature Site. The title says it all: "//Mysteries in the Classroom: Fiction, Nonfiction and Activities for Preschool through Ninth Grade."// I recommend this website whether you are a teacher or a librarian. [|Mystery Resources]

Here's a PDF file of over 250 titles from Cary Memorial Library in Lexington, Massachusettes. I appreciate the organization of the lists: Young Listener Young Readers Middle Readers Series for Middle Readers Older Readers <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">Series for Older Readers [|Mystery PDF File]

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">﻿Picture Book Mystery Stories: <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">[|Picture Book Mystery Stories]

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">﻿Again, let me give credit to Pat Miller and the article she wrote for the October 2010 issue of //Library Sparks .// On page 27 is listed some mystery series I'd like to include on this wiki as well as other books featured from her article. The first table is for primary grades with the second table for intermediate grades.


 * <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">Book or Series || <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">Author ||
 * A to Z Mysteries || Ron Roy ||
 * Adventures of Benny and Watch || Gertrude Chandler Warner ||
 * (Detective Jeffrey) Bones || David Adler ||
 * Calendar Mysteries || Ron Roy ||
 * Capital Mysteries || Ron Roy ||
 * High Rise Private Eyes || Cynthia Ryland ||
 * Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew || Carolyn Keene ||
 * Nate the Great || Marjorie Weinman Sharmat ||
 * Short Tales Furlock and Muttson Mysteries || Robin Michal Koontz ||
 * Young Cam Jansen || David Adler ||
 * //Lucky Days with Mr. and Mrs. Green// || Keith Baker ||
 * //Alphabet Mystery// || Audrey Wood ||
 * //Joey Fly, Private Eye, in Creepy Crawly Crime// || Aaron Reynolds ||
 * //Big Hairy Drama// || Aaron Reynolds ||


 * <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">Book or Series﻿ || <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;">﻿ Author ||
 * American Girls Mysteries || Various ||
 * Carole Marsh Mysteries: Real Kids, Real Places || Carole Marsh ||
 * Chet Gecko, Private Eye || Bruce Hale ||
 * Enola Holmes || Nancy Springer ||
 * Hank the Cowdog || John Erickson ||
 * Hardy Boys Mysteries || Franklin Dixon ||
 * Herculeah Jones || Betsy Cromer Byars ||
 * Mysteries in our National Parks || National Geographic ||
 * Solving Science Mysteries || Various ||
 * The 39 Clues || Seven featured authors: Jude Watson, Patrick Carman, Gordon Korman, Margaret Haddix, Rick Riordan, Peter Lerangis, and Linda Sue Park ||
 * //We are Children// || Andrew Clements ||
 * //Lunch Lady and the Cyborg Substitute// || Jarrett J. Krosoczka ||
 * //The Puzzling World of Winston Breen// || Eric Berlin ||
 * //Ace Lacewing, Bug Detective// || David Biedrzycki ||
 * //Ace Lacewing, Bug Detective: Bad Bugs Are My Business// || David Biedrzycki ||
 * //The Case of the Case of Mistaken Identity// || Mac Barnett ||
 * //Judy Moody, Girl Detective// || Megan McDonald ||
 * The Sisters Grimm || Michael Buckley ||
 * //Closed for the Season: A Mystery Story// || Mary Downing Hahn ||


 * Ideas from LN_Net:**

1. First, start with introducing the elements of a good mystery. Then read a very short mystery (Aunt Eater Loves a Mystery, Arthur and the Mystery Babysitter, Bones and the Big Yellow Mystery, Dot and Jabber and the Big Bug Mystery) and find the elements. Then with the **1st, 2nd grades create mystery centers**--one for hearing, one for touch, one for sight. The hearing clue center requires you to put things (marbles, pennies, rocks, etc) into plastic storage containers and wrap them in construction paper. Label them 1,2,3,4, etc Student write on their Clue Sheet what they think it is and what sound clues they used (it rolls, it jingles, etc). Next center is touch. In a shoe box or even paperbag with a rubber band around the top, put items to feel (stuffed toy, twig, unsharped pencil, etc). Then they again write their answer on the Clue sheet. On the sight one, I use mystery photos from Highlights magazine and extremely close up or partial photos of school things, like our logo or mascot or item from their teacher's desk. They have to figure out what it is and write their anwer on the Clue Sheet. I use to do smell and taste, but gave those up for student allergy reasons. You can also play "I Spy" giving them multiple clues (something round, black and noisy clock). This works well when they are lined up, waiting for the teacher and usually rowdy.

2. For 3rd or 4th, I have shown an **Encyclopedia Brown movie** (23 minutes) and looked for clues.

3. For 4th/5th this year, I read a **Mysteries from History** book called The Mary Celeste. This is so great for critical thinking! I

4. **Characteristics of a mystery novel**: > suspect, victim, clues, case, detective 5. **//The Mysteries of Research//** by Sharron Cohen published by Alleyside Press. Check UpStart Books.
 * solving a puzzling event or situation
 * something unknown
 * solving a crime
 * centered around a person who investigates wrongdoing
 * centered around a person or persons employed to obtain
 * secret information
 * special vocabulary: alibi, sleuth, red herring, witness,

6. **//The Mysteries of Detection//**

Here's some ideas for writing a mystery lesson plan suitable for 3-5 graders:

[|Mystery Lesson Plan]

Also from this website is a lesson plan about reading mysteries for the same age group:

[|Reading Mysteries Lesson Plan]

This is from Sherry Shaheen of Oregon, Ohio as published in the Aug/Sept 2009 issue of //Library Sparks: "//Each week I post a "**Super Sleuth**" question on a white board in the reference section. Students may use any of our reference sources or other materials in the library to answer the question. They submit their answers to me, and I put all correct responses in a box for a drawing at the end of the month. The answers must be written in complete sentences, and they must identify the source used to find the answer, including the page number. The student whose name is drawn at the end of the month is allowed to choose a book from a box of withdrawn library books and donated duplicate titles. **Super Sleuths** has proven to be an excellent way for our students to re-sharpen their research skills after summer, and keep those skills honed all year long!