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Read Chapter 15: “Murder and Hot Chocolate” – Chapter 18: “A Bad Fall;” Complete Student Packet Worksheets for Chapters 15-18

Say to the class: "Tell me one interesting thing you did this week." On chart paper, write down about 10 actions students did (played a soccer game, went to the fair, visited a friend, etc). Now, ask the class to think about each activity listed and ask, "Why would someone take this action?" Write down the students’ responses and ideas for each action listed. For example, someone played a soccer game to help the team win, someone went to the fair to have fun, someone visited a friend because the friend was sick, etc. After students have thought about at least one reason for each action, let them know that they helped identify the motive, or reason, for doing something.

will write the definition of a motive on chart paper. Motive is the internal purpose or reason for making a choice or completing an action. In a mystery, a character’s motive is his or her possible reason for committing a mysterious action or a crime. Identifying a motive allows us to identify a suspect. A suspect, like we read about in the “All about Mysteries” Reading Passage, is a character who may have committed an action or a crime. For example, in Chasing Vermeer, the suspect would be any person who could have a reason for stealing the painting. A suspect has a reason, or motive, for completing an action. If a character does not have a motive, he or she may not be a suspect (i.e. Calder).

To identify a suspect, I can reference my Characters Chart, where I’ve written down all of the characters in Chasing Vermeer. Up to this point, I have identified 16 characters in the book. I will look at my Characters Chart to think about who the suspects in this case could be. Immediately, I will eliminate characters that I believe are not suspects. How do I know which characters could or could not be suspects? I must think about a character’s personality, actions, or possible motives for committing the theft. I can eliminate Calder and Petra as suspects because they are the investigators, trying to figure out the solution to this crime.

After eliminating some characters, I will think about who the suspects in the story could be. I will write the characters I believe could be suspects on my Suspects Chart. Note: See Suspects Chart for specific examples. Save for use with Lesson 4.

I will write down Ms. Hussey, Tommy Segovia, etc. on my chart. For each character in my chart, I will fill in a physical description and character traits and suspicious thoughts and actions. For example, a physical description and character traits for Ms. Hussey include: she was a teacher, she liked art, and she had a long ponytail. I’ll record this information in the “Description of Character” box on my Suspects Chart. In the “Suspicious Thoughts or Actions Box,” I can write that she bought murder mystery and art books from Powell’s, she encouraged her students to investigate the truth, she knew Mr. Watch, she helped Mrs. Sharpe get up from her fall, she broke her arm, she was carrying a thick package, and she was arrested.

I will use these details to draw a conclusion about Ms. Hussey’s possible motive. For example, what was Ms. Hussey’s possible motive for stealing a painting? By looking at a description of her, I think her motives could be that she loved art; she wanted to make a lot of money; or she wanted to engage the world in the search for the truth. I will write these as possible motives for Ms. Hussey on my Suspects Chart.

Ask: "How do I know the difference between a character who is a suspect and a character who is not a suspect?" Students should respond that a suspect is a character with a reason or motive for committing a crime. A character without a motive usually won’t be a suspect.

will review the list of characters on our Characters Chart. For each character, we will think about any suspicious thoughts or actions that could make each character a suspect.

We will eliminate characters from our Characters Chart that are not likely to be suspects. Remember, a suspect is a character that has a reason, or possible motive, for performing a suspicious action. If a character has no motive, he or she is probably not a suspect. Note: Guide your students to eliminate several characters and the reasons for eliminating them, including: Denise Dodge (she’s just a student with no real motive or clues that are associated with her), Walter and Yvette Pillay (there is no evidence that Calder’s parents said or did anything strange or suspicious), and Grandma Ranjana (she loved Vermeer, but she is dead).

We will look at the characters that are left on our Characters Chart, thinking about if they have a motive to commit the crime. If they have a motive, we can consider them suspects. We have: Ms. Hussey, Tommy Segovia, Mr. Watch, Frank Andalee, Norma Andalee, Mrs. Sharpe, Tommy’s Mom Zelda, Old Fred, and Frog. We will write our remaining suspects on our Suspects Chart and fill out information for 1-2 characters, charting their descriptions, actions and thoughts, and ultimately drawing a conclusion about their motives. Note: Continue to use the Suspects Chart that was started during the Direct Teaching. Save the Chart for use with Lesson 4.

will fill in all of the information for the remaining suspects on your Suspects Worksheet in your Student Packet. (See page 25 in the Student Packet.) You may recall information you have already read about the suspect. The more information you put on your worksheet, the more details you will have to figure out the solution to this mystery.

You will review your Suspects Worksheet, thinking about your main suspect; that is, the person in the book who you feel may have actually committed a crime. You will create a WANTED Poster for your main suspect using the WANTED Poster Template. (See page 26 in the Student Packet). On your poster, you will draw a picture of the suspect and write down any identifying information, such as physical descriptions and actions, thoughts or circumstances that make the character suspicious. You will also include the crime the character is suspected of committing. Finally, you will write down the character’s motive for the crime.

You will write down any suspects’ names on the Suspects Worksheet. Continue to add more suspects to your Suspects Worksheet as you read if you believe additional characters could be suspects in the mystery. Note: Save Suspects Worksheets and WANTED Posters for use with Lesson 4.