For 2020 online curriculum, please refer to the Level 1 and Level 2 tabs.
Meet the Director
Laura Bryant is a graduating senior at Santa Fe Christian High School and will be attending Vanderbilt University in the fall where she is planning on double majoring in Applied Math and Computer Science. This will be Laura's sixth year directing this detective themed camp. Every year builds on the last and gets better and better. She loves everything about being a camp director from planning the curriculum, to organizing the counselors, to being with the campers. She enjoys being a Girl Scout, and has earned her Gold Award by planning and teaching lessons on values to the elementary schoolers at The Evans School, which she attended from kindergarten through sixth grade. Laura has also been a Girl Scout troop leader for the past four years and has arranged many events from typical troop meetings to a weekend trip to San Francisco. |
At Clued In Detective Academy when held in person, young detectives have gotten to experience workshops with guests who have professions related to forensic science, perform hands-on demonstrations of how forensic science is used, and participate in games that build skills in completing detective missions and working with a team. Below is a list of activities that have been included in the past.
Forensics:
extract DNA from a strawberry dust for fingerprints decipher messages analyze handwriting samples learn what it's like to budget different tests for a forensics firm document a crime scene use ink chromatography solve challenging riddles make and match tool mark impressions solve puzzles to unlock locks and "escape" a room |
Agent in Action:
make it through a maze of "lasers" guide your blindfolded teammates to complete missions secretly follow a counselor to obtain their briefcase take on challenges with a team follow clues to a treasure hunt get the clues to solve a riddle by running a relay scout out items on a scavenger hunt work with your teammates to make it through a maze complete the physical fitness test designed by the FBI for its agents |
Special Guest Workshops from Past YearsProblem Solving with Tasha Moyer As a teacher at the Art of Problem Solving Academy in Carmel Valley, Ms. Moyer has helped develop Beast Academy curriculum. The Beast Academy is a math program designed to teach students in grades 2-5 how to think critically and understand the concepts behind the math calculations they're performing. In their textbooks, engaging comic-book style illustrations keep kids coming back for more, even as they grapple with some of the most rigorous math problems available anywhere. Through an engaging, hands-on lesson in combinatorics, Ms. Moyer exposed campers to the resources that the Beast Academy has to offer and got them excited about the process of problem solving. Fiber Analysis with Karen Butland, MS from UCSD in Chemistry As a Chemistry professor at Grossmont College, Mrs. Butland teaches a course in Forensic Chemistry. At Clued In, she taught the campers about the makeup of various fibers and cloths. Students saw that since each fiber is different in its chemical makeup, threads of identical colors can be identified by observing how each sample behaves approaching a flame, while burning, and after ignition. While participating in the fiber analysis, campers learned about lab safety and got exposure to exciting identification methods that are used by forensic scientists. Fraud with Keith Bryant, MBA from NYU in Finance Back by popular demand, Mr. Bryant gave his presentation on forensic accounting. Campers learned about the motives for fraudulent behavior and acquire the tools to recognize when fraud has occurred. In this workshop, students combined math and reasoning skills to catch culprits based off of data and employee profiles. Introduction to DNA with Allison Meade, MS in Biomedical Sciences As an associate scientist for Illumina, Mrs. Meade has worked with DNA sequencing machines. She has taught about the makeup of DNA and explains how that makes it an ideal piece of evidence in a crime lab. |