Tip: Solving crimes before you have grown up is good practice for a detecting career later in life.
Step 1: Collect needed gear, such as:
- A magnifying glass for magnifying items,
- A microscope for getting a microscopic view of items,
- A pair of gloves for not getting your fingerprints on anything so nobody thinks you are the one who committed the crime,
- A first-aid kit for safety,
- A phone, walkie-talkie, or iPad to call your friends or family to let them know about anything concerning the crime,
- A lie detector (a real one or your own homemade one),
- A pair of handcuffs to make sure the one who committed the crime does not get away,
- Numerous disguises so you can be with the suspects without them knowing that there is a detecive in their presence,
- A notepad and pencil to write important information down and to draw suspects (a camera can be used instead if you are not a very good artist),
- A set of colored pencils to color in the suspects you drew,
- An empty can so you can hear anything through any substance,
- And last but not least, a bag to put all this stuff in!
Step 2: Go to the scene of the crime and write down all the information you get from it that is essential in describing the crime scene (where and when the crime scene happened and anything else about it).
Step 3: Collect clues from the crime scene.
Step 4: Analyse your clues.
Step 5: Figure out how the crime was committed using the clues you collected earlier.
Step 6: Think about anybody who you think is a possible suspect and draw them (color them in!) If you are a bad artist, take a picture of them.
Step 7: If you know anybody that looks like one of your suspects, do a lineup, which is a routine police officers and detectives use. In a lineup, a group of people that look similar to each other are shown a photo (or drawing) of a suspect. A detective asks them lots of questions in order to find out if one of the people at the lineup is the suspect in the photo or drawing.
Step 8: Ask your suspects for their alibis.
Step 9: Make your own search warrants and issue them to your suspects. (NEVER issue homemade search warrants to police officers or detectives. Only issue homemade search warrants to other kids as permission to search their houses or in a game you are playing with other kids).
Step 10: Figure out who is the one who committed the crime.
