Case for Good Reading Solved

As Frostproof Middle School students discovered recently, a detective's finest tool is his brain. More specifically: his ability to reason using facts he has discovered and read.

On Feb. 27, students got the chance to show off their detective skills through the "Mysteries in the Middle" (MnM) program, an expansion of the Families Building Better Readers (FBBR) program offered by the Florida Department of Education's Just Read, Florida! initiative.

ESE teacher Lori Hutto brought the program to Frostproof and worked with FMSHS Reading Coach Simone Aldrich to invite all Reading and ESE teachers to participate as actors or helpers within the MnM program.

According to Hutto, the program was geared toward teaching students to use specific reading strategies and the importance of practicing reading skills every day.

Altogether there were eight scenes, which included a director (Hutto), Detective Miller (Aldrich), and seven witnesses/suspects acted by "popular Hollywood stars," which were played by various FMSHS teachers and high school students.

For example, Custodian Carol was played by the famous Angelina "Moley" (also known as ESE teacher Jennifer Regling). Paris Econolodge (senior Kati Hutto) stepped right into her cheerleading outfit without a hitch and Maven (ESE teacher Kris Hearn), from the TV show "That's So Maven," added quite a splash of excitement as the coffee-loving pet expert.

Middle schoolers in attendance were wowed by the singing and dancing art teacher, played by that Blues Clue's Guy (ESE teacher Jan Mann). Following each of these scenes, Hutto asked students to use specific reading strategies in order to uncover hidden clues.

Students learned how to use their new-found facts and transform them into possible inferences. Each fact and inference was recorded in a graphic organizer, within the student's own personal "casebook."

Yet, by the end of the seventh scene, characters "discovered" that the only page that contained the solution to the mystery of Hometown Middle's stolen mascot was missing! Students were then asked to use their final reading strategy to come up with a solid conclusion for the mystery; namely, they synthesized all of their previously gathered information, and together, deduced who the culprit was, why he did it, and how he got away with it.

"Although its fundamental purpose wasn't to be strictly an FCAT practice, it did allow these beneficial reading strategies to be fresh in the minds of the students before FCAT testing," said Aldrich.

Jordan Coleman, a seventh-grader, said. "As far as our thinking and knowing what we had to look for and highlight, it did help us out right before we took the FCAT."