This colorful 32-page book offers a collection of fun, easy-to-use detective cases for Grades 3-12+. This book—unlike the later books in the series—includes some crime cases that involve simple maps. Some cases may be more challenging for younger students, but teachers and parents can always provide hints when needed. These crime cases develop critical thinking skills by requiring students to carefully read to determine what information is legitimate evidence, and what is just opinion or irrelevant information. All of the cases require students to synthesize information from different sources to determine which suspects are innocent or guilty. They also develop observation skills, reading comprehension, and deductive and inductive thinking skills. The focus of these activities is to teach students to identify and evaluate evidence--the very heart of critical thinking.