This quarter I took an inside look at the Forensics courtyard case. Forensics is a series of scientific tests or techniques used in connection with the detection of crime. The annual courtyard case is now taught by Ms. Jones. The purpose of this courtyard case is to give students the practical hands-on aspect of Forensics in the early months of the year. “We take what they’ve learned in the textbooks and practice what to do, and ultimately figure out what not to do,” says Vice Principal Callahan who pioneered the courtyard case in her years of teaching forensics.
Mrs. Callahan taught forensics for 20 years before handing it off to Ms. Jones, who also teaches 8th grade Living Environment. Over the years Ms. Jones has had time to think about what to change in the courtyard case. “This year I decided to incorporate my Living Environment students into the mystery. They analyzed Pat Panther’s (the victim) stomach contents for macromolecules to determine where/what he ate prior to death,” Ms. Jones explained.
The Courtyard case takes place in Babylon High School’s courtyard. In the middle of the yard lies one deceased victim with various pieces of evidence scattered along the courtyard. “Mrs. Callahan developed an amazing curriculum for this course. She had all of the supplies and materials ready to go for me. Developing the sequence of lessons that goes along with the courtyard crime scene must have taken a lot of time and shows her dedication as an educator,” says Ms. Jones after revealing it only takes her 45 minutes to set up.
The students really enjoy the case. They make very careful observation of the evidence within the crime scene. Their favorite part is discovering a piece of evidence that is not particularly easy to discover. But the students are not the only ones who enjoy the case. “My favorite part is seeing my students’ reactions to the crime scene,” says Ms. Jones, along with Mrs. Callahan stating, “The initial reaction is always my favorite.”
In a recent interview Mrs. Callahan gave me a rundown of what goes on before the case. She explained that about a week before the set-up, she gathered her materials such as evidence, objects people donated, etc. She also explained that she likes to use different types of evidence that students would later learn how to analyze. She would then, the morning of, go out into the yard to set things up. Hilariously, she sometimes got caught by some students who were attending school early.
Overall, this activity has had a tremendous amount of thought and detail put into it and you can thank the face behind the case!
