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Read Chapter 24: “The Pieces”; Complete Student Packet Worksheets for Chapter 24

Set up “The Case of the Missing Stapler.” Send students on a mission to find a hidden stapler or other common classroom item. The spoiler: the stapler is actually in its usual spot, but the clues are used to confuse the students and send them on a futile hunt.

Cut out the four clues from the Clue Cut-Outs Worksheet. Hide Clues 2-4 in specific spots around the classroom, as follows: hide Clue 2 near a window; hide Clue 3 near a door or exit; tape Clue 4 underneath a table or desk in the back of the room. Read Clue 1 aloud to the class and release the students to search for the next three clues in order. When a student finds a clue, ask the student to read it aloud to the class. One clue will lead them to the next.

After students get to the final clue, have everyone sit down. Ask if anyone found the stapler. Announce that you had the stapler on your desk all along. You sent the class on a wild goose chase using misleading clues—you knew where the stapler was.

will explain that in mystery stories, authors often play tricks on readers to fool them into making a wrong prediction about the story, just like I played a trick on you when you were trying to find the stapler. I know that mystery stories contain clues that lead to a mystery’s solution. I will explain that not all clues help the reader solve a mystery; not all clues are useful and some clues may be misleading. These kinds of clues are called red herrings. Red herrings are purposely meant to stop the reader from figuring out the solution quickly or easily. By identifying red herrings in the text, we can become better readers of mysteries. We can see how an author tries to deceive us, and we will be able to differentiate useful and misleading clues.

Now that I have finished reading Chasing Vermeer, I want to find the red herrings that the author used in the story. I will do this by looking back at clues that lead me to the wrong prediction. I will check my Clue Tracker from Lesson 2 for clues. One of my clues states that the man with the bushy eyebrows in Delia Dell Hall was suspicious. I will skim Chapter 24 to see if he was mentioned in the last chapter. I see that he was a publicity man for the University. I realize that this clue and this character were put in the story to confuse me and to lead me to the wrong solution, so it must be a red herring. I will circle this on my Clue Tracker with a red pen.

Ask: "How can I find a red herring?" Students should respond that they can look at clues and their wrong predictions to identify information that leads them away from the solution.

will continue to look for additional red herrings. First, we will check our Clue Tracker (from Lesson 2), WANTED Posters (from Lesson 3), and Predictions Worksheet (from Lesson 4) to find two clues we identified for Petra’s dad. Our clues state that Petra’s dad talked about receiving a letter. Another clue states that Petra’s dad had been carrying a package with him in Delia Dell Hall. 

We will skim Chapter 24, looking for information that was revealed about Petra’s dad. Chapter 24 states that Frank Andalee was at Delia Dell Hall to deliver an old print. It also states that Vincent Watch had received the letter from the thief, so that means he was the male recipient out of the three letters—not Petra’s dad. On our Clue Tracker, we will circle these two clues with a red pen to signify that the author used these clues as red herrings. They misled us as we read the story.

will look for additional red herrings. You will choose a character to focus on. You may choose the character you created a WANTED Poster for, or another character of your choice. You will check your Clue Tracker, WANTED Poster, and Detective’s Notebook to identify the clues and information you wrote down about this character. You will skim Chapter 24 to see what information was revealed about your chosen character. On your Clue Tracker and Predictions Worksheet you will use a red pen to circle the clues about this character that mislead you as you read. Record the red herrings you find on the Red Herrings Worksheet in your Student Packet. (See page 34 in the Student Packet.)

You will also record the solution to the main mystery, using the Solution to the Main Mystery Worksheet in your Student Packet. (See page 35 in the Student Packet.)

will share the red herrings we found. Were all students misled by the same clues?