​Do you diffuse in your classroom? Have you ever considered it as a way to help promote a healthy and positive classroom environment?
Essential oils can clear unpleasant odors, calm students, assist with behavior management, plus boost mood and focus.  While the desired effects of certain oils may not always be the same for everyone (I cannot make any promises that this will solve all of your classroom problems), it will still keep your classroom smelling lovely and  improve the general mood.

All he wants is to be human again . . . 

​Use this mystery prompt to see what ideas your students come up with about 'what could have happened?' 

Prep: Print and laminate the image below into a card to use for an early finisher or writing center activity.
OR
​Display on the board for a whole class writing activity. 

There are plenty of ways you may wish to use this prompt. If you would like some ideas, please keep reading below the image prompt.

Word searches have a long history of strong opposition  - and equally strong support. After hearing both lovers and haters, it made me question whether word searches are a waste of time in the classroom. ​

A few of the mysteries in my Math Mystery range are structured differently by following a 5 W's Case File Format. These are particularly useful for younger students or special needs. In this post:

• I will be showing you the new little 'logo' marked on these packets so that you can easily identify that a particular math mystery packet follows this 5w's structure.
• A quick guide on grade levels and suitability.
• I will also outline how these math mysteries work and differ to the other math mysteries in my range..
• Plus, I will show you where you can download one for free to check out and try.

NEW 5 W's  LOGO LABEL ON COVERS
To enable you to quickly identify if a math mystery follows this 5 W's structure, I've added a new little logo somewhere on the covers. If this is the type of math mystery structure you would prefer to use with your kids, keep an eye out for this little image below:

GRADE LEVEL GUIDES

The grade levels are marked for recommended age ranges because of the math involved within the mystery packet. Unlike the regular math mystery range, because these tend to focus on early learning skills, they can be used across K-2 depending where your students are at. For example, in the Case of the Great Zoo Escape, the packet focuses on addition and subtraction within 20. This is a skill that would be useful for both first and second graders to practice and build fluency. The packets marked for Kindergarten, contain basic numeracy skills, and would be great for the early part of first grade too. Even with the grade guides, I still recommend checking the math skills required in the product description to determine suitability for your students since no class is the same. 

For some younger students, the elimination process in my regular math mystery range is a little bit too much. This is where these packets come in handy; if you still want the fun element of a mystery, but in a less stressful format for your little detectives. 

Instead of the usual list of suspects/locations/scenarios, in the 5 W's series, that page is replaced with a case file with five questions to be answered - Who, Where, When, What, and Why?  (see image below). 

Each clue requires some math work and some ELA work to solve which of the options at the bottom need to be cut/pasted to the Case File. 
​Below is an example from the Case of The Super Bad Superhero:

As you can see in the clue example page above, there are five options at the bottom of the page. Students must complete the math activity to figure out what is the super power of the super bad superhero. Once solved, the student must cut out the super power and paste it onto their Case file page in the 'What - Clue 2' box.

Reading and explaining the instructions at the top is recommended for the early years, especially if using with Kindergarten.
​
Tip: Guide them through each clue to keep the whole class at the same pace. 

CHECK OUT A FULL MATH MYSTERY IN THIS 5 W's FORMAT FREE!

I like to offer samples of my work to help you know whether it is something that you are interested in, or if it works for your class.
CLICK HERE to find where to download the 'Case of the Super Bad Superhero' for Kindergarten, using this 5 W's format. 
If you've found the other math mystery structures too difficult for your students, then you may prefer this alternative. 
​

Your feedback on this structure would be most appreciated. I will be making more using this 5 W structure for the early years too. If you prefer this format, keep an eye out for the little logo on the cover to know that it follows that format. 

All of the graduation items have been stolen from the school hall! Almost, nothing has been left . . . almost. 

​Use this mystery prompt to see what ideas your students come up with about 'what could have happened?

Prep: Print and laminate the image below into a card to use for an early finisher or writing center activity.
OR
​Display on the board for a whole class writing activity. 

There are plenty of ways you may wish to use this prompt. If you would like some ideas, please keep reading below the image prompt.

Lesson Suggestions:

• Present the image above to your class. Either show on the Interactive Whiteboard, or print and hang somewhere. If using as an early finisher activity, print and laminate these images as cards. 
• Either brainstorm as a class or instruct students to think about what could have happened in the image scene. Setting a timer for 'thinking time' is recommended. 
• Invite students to share their ideas with the rest of the class. Remind students that there are no 'right' or 'wrong' answers. This prompt is to invite creative thinking.
• Set a writing task to follow the discussion. Instruct students to pretend they are detectives and must write what they think happened. 
• A simple print and go template for this writing task can be downloaded below. Otherwise you could just use plain lined paper or workbooks to carry out the writing activity. ​​

Remind everyone that there's no right and wrong, otherwise there would be no room for creative thinking in this task.

• To develop this as a writing activity, you could extend it by having your students work towards writing a full story around this crime scene. 

Now, I think it is only fair for students to find out what actually happened. 
The below video is my original story that goes with this prompt. This is in no way a 'correct' answer, just an example of a possible story that works with this prompt.
​You may wish to skip this option.

• After viewing the video, discuss if anyone had any similar ideas in their stories. Do a compare and contrast session with the story above and what students wrote.
• Further extend this mystery activity by instructing students to rewrite their mystery story using the ideas from the video. 

You may have noticed the 'Math Mystery' tag in the video, and that is because this case can be further resolved and integrated with a math activity if you wish. 

Solve the case! Where are the gremlins hiding with all of the graduation items?
If you are interested in extending this mystery activity by integrating it with your math lesson and giving your students lots of math practice and review, click on your grade level below to find the file case  on my Teachers Pay Teachers store. Each of the five math pages will require students to complete math i to unlock clues. Be sure to check out the product description to see the specific math skills covered in that grade version. 

Not sure what a math mystery is? Do you want to know more about how to use them? Check out the video below. ​​

You may also like to read this blog post
'Five Easy Ways to Use Math Mysteries in your Classroom.'

Still not sure if a math mystery is something you want? Try a full FREE math mystery available to download from my TPT Shop. The link will redirect you to where you can download the multi-grade bundle.  It is free to register if you don't have a login with TPT.
CLICK HERE to find in my TPT store. ​Find more Mystery Prompts HERE Subscribe to my newsletter to find out when new mystery prompts are added to this section of my website. The newsletter will also announce any special giveaways, flash freebies, sales, free stuff, plus other marketing communications such as new blog posts and resources. You can unsubscribe at any time. 

I'm really enjoying venturing into making mystery logic puzzles and am excited to share with you my latest creation this week. For this new puzzle, I've increased the difficulty by making it a 4 X 4 puzzle grid. The clues require careful reading too (and probably re-reading) to solve. 
These are handy to use when you have some time to spare but don't want to waste. I think these are a fun way to exercise the brain.

Prep

• Print and go!
  
• Save paper by laminating and using washable markers to reuse
  
• Use on a tablet with an electronic 'pen'
  
• Or just display on your Interactive White Board to try and solve as a class​

Download your free copy of this puzzle HERE!