Detective Science: 40 Crime-Solving, Case-Breaking, Crook-Catching Activities for Kids

Patricia Morley is professor emerita of English and Canadian studies at
Concordia University, and the author of Kurlek, Margaret Laurence: The
Long Journey Home, and As Though Life Mattered: Leo Kennedy’s Story.

From its catchy subtitle to its amusing graphics, Detective Science is a
well-organized manual on forensic science that makes an amusing text for
young detectives. The author draws on real police procedures,
acknowledging the help of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and forensic
labora-tories in various universities.

The book’s projects require the simplest of equipment and materials
(most of them available in the average household) and can be done alone
or in groups, encouraging cooperation. The projects range from
“creative thinking” and careful observation, to investigating
what’s left at the scene of a crime, using chemistry and biology to
analyze evidence, and analyzing documents.

This unusual activity book will spark both imagination and hard
thinking in a wide variety of areas. Highly recommended.