The original Once Upon a Crime Reading Mystery Series follow a 'crack the code' format to reveal the clue. This has worked well for many students in many different classrooms. However, since no student or class is the same, recently I decided to develop a new structure that will give teachers the option to change the way these reading mysteries are delivered to best suit their students.  In this post, I will explain this new
​'B-Edition' structure and the new addition of word banks added to the original Once Upon a Crime Reading Packets.  

I developed math mysteries to be versatile in their use. After being in a teaching role that involved seeing 220 different kids a week across K-6, I initially made this math mystery range to be something that I could quickly prepare, engage, teach,  be mostly self-correcting, and quick to pack up before heading onto the next classroom.. So, if you've seen these math mysteries and ever wondered what you can use them for, keep on reading. 

We've listened to your feedback and decided it was time to give the Case of the Divided Dragons video hook a fresh new makeover. We think this new introductory video will help engage and motivate your students to use their division and problem solving skills to find the guilty dragon in this math mystery! Read on to check out the new video for the Division Skills focused math mystery - the Case of the Divided Dragons.

Math Detectives, we need your help!
If you are looking for a winter themed math activity that will engage and motivate your kids to do math this chilly season, the Case of the Snowman Army will capture their attention and educate along the way! Ideal for a seasonal math spiral review, continue reading to take a sneak peek what's inside this C.S.I. packet that will require your math detectives to save the day!

Last week I wrote a post explaining 'What are Once Upon a Crime Reading Mysteries?' In this post, I aim to give you some implementation ideas and suggestions for using these reading mystery resources in your classroom.

The Reading Mysteries - Once Upon a Crime™ series are a unique design I created to encourage and develop skills in:

• reading, 
• finding text evidence,
• vocabulary,
• spelling,
• comprehension, and
• critical thinking skills.

The stories in these packets are my original work, set in a place called Tale Town. I've drawn inspiration from fictional characters found in children's literature, with my own twists and quirks added along the way. For example, a popular character you might see popping up in these mysteries from time to time is Bert, the Big Bad Wolf. In the 
​Forest Grime packet, we find out that Bert, is the boss of the Wolf Manufacturing Co. on Tall Street. See sample snippet below from the start of the reading passage in Clue 4: