The New Haven Public School system has made literacy its top priority. Through the use of the balanced literacy approach, the system plans to increase the reading competency of all its students.
Detective fiction, mysteries, and suspense stories lend themselves as an excellent source of literary work through which to capture the attention of children and adults alike. Through the use of detective fiction this unit will attempt to motivate the students to read and listen for detail, for pleasure, and will develop the skills necessary to become critical thinkers and analyzers.
Children and adults alike love to participate in the singing of the song, "Who stole the cookie from the Cookie Jar?" the mystery of the missing cookie when sung by children and adults is most times left unanswered. The final person in the round of singing usually ends the quest for the answer by passing the blame back to the originator of the song. I've chosen this favorite song as the plot for the mystery to be developed and solved by the kindergarten children in my class. Though this unit is being prepared for children of kindergarten age, it can be easily adapted to meet the needs and interest of children of a variety of ages and abilities.
(Recommended for Reading and Language Arts, grades K-2.)