Murder & Mystery: Digital Science Instruction During COVID School Closures
Help me give my students site licenses to complete virtual biology lessons and interactive Forensic Science crime lab simulations to help understand class content during online instruction due to COVID school closings.
Ohio schools have been closed since March 16, 2020, as a result of the COVID-19 global pandemic. We found out on a Friday afternoon that by Monday morning we were expected to provide online instruction to our students. We will end our school year with digital goodbyes on May 28th and the start of the next school year is still uncertain. It is likely that at least some portion of our instruction will remain online because our classrooms are not set up for social distancing.
Science is meant to be experienced; it is difficult to replace in-person lessons, demonstrations, and labs with at-home, digital instruction.
I want to do everything I can to prepare for digital science instruction by providing relevant and engaging science lessons and simulations to my students, while still keeping our school community healthy and safe.
My Project
In order to prepare for continued social distancing in the upcoming school year, I hope to acquire digital science tools to help replace some of the in-person science experiences students will be missing out on. This project will provide two site licenses for my students to access digital science content over the internet from the safety of their homes.
Forensic Science students will engage in digital crime-solving using the Murder at Old Fields virtual simulations, based on the actual details of a double murder that took place on the Smith Farm in Old Fields, NY in 1842.
Forensic Science students will enter a digital crime scene to collect and process evidence. Through the class pack of online simulations, students will step into the role of a forensic investigator and laboratory technician to complete blood typing, blood spatter analysis, fingerprint analysis, hair comparisons, and shoe impressions. Students will use their evidence to then solve the mystery.
Biology students will be able to engage in self-paced science lessons that cover DNA, gene regulation, cell division, evolution, ecology, and many other important biology topics. Students will use the eMind program to learn and practice how to use a microscope and other science equipment when it isn't possible to be using them together in our classroom.
More than a third of students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
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