On some days, my son was finding the plain old alphabet worksheets a bit dull. Motivating him to practice these important skills became tough. So, to help keep his interest and keep him learning, I decided to design a set of alphabet mysteries for him to develop early foundation skills involving:

• letter recognition 
• letter sounds
• handwriting
• cutting and pasting
• counting
• number recognition
• reading
• and a very easy way to introduce deductive reasoning

Keep on reading to learn more about the new A-Z Letter Detectives series and grab a free Letter Mystery Resource Download too! 

Since late 2017, I've been creating a new set of mystery teaching resources to target reading comprehension and finding text evidence.  I've been meaning to give away a free Reading Mystery of the Once Upon a Crime Series TM,  to give teachers, homeschoolers, parents, and tutors a chance to try out one of these resources with their kids. So, finally, here's a chance to grab Once Upon a Crime, Twinkle's Lost Shine FREE for a limited time! Read on for notes, tips, and a word of caution for when using this mystery resource!

Adding some fun background music while completing a math or reading mystery can create a positive working atmosphere in the classroom. Your student detectives will feel more immersed in the mystery task and, hopefully, be more motivated to persevere through the more challenging questions and puzzles. Like a workout, the type of music you choose to go with the rhythm of the activity is important. So, in this blog post, I've rounded up some music track suggestions, from YouTube, for you to readily find and play when doing a mystery activity at home or in the classroom.