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 It had all the elements of a classic who-dunnit. There was a missing dog, a worried family and assorted shady characters, along with all sorts of clues.
The event was the Thursday morning program at Spring City Free Public Library. About two dozen children gathered to solve the mystery, using clues they had collected over the previous weeks. The children received one of the seven clues with each book buck they earned by reading at least 30 minutes a day for five days.
Volunteer actors introduced their characters to the children, who listened intently as five suspects revealed possible motives for the crime. Then, special guest detective Craig Clueless, portrayed by Ted the Fiddler, arrived on the scene.
Clueless walked the children through the clues they had collected, asking children for possible interpretations of the clues. The first clue revealed the gate to the family’s fenced-in yard was still closed, but the dog Emmi was gone. How could she get out?
As the children offered suggestions, Clueless provided additional information. A dog biscuit and Emmi’s dog tag were found by the fence. What could that mean? Again, the children applied their imaginations and developed several theories.
The second clue dealt with when the disappearance occurred – on a Wednesday in July, between breakfast and lunch. The children’s theories included such ideas that people might be busy with other things, and that no one expects anything to happen in the middle of the week.
The third and fourth clues, where and how, offered more details about the backyard, and children deduced even more theories of how the dognapping could have occurred.
The fifth clue, why, looked at motive. Clueless informed the children that motive is very important in helping detectives solve a crime.
Finally, in the sixth clue, Clueless talked to the five suspects. Each seemed to offer reasonable motives, as well as having opportunities to steal the dog. The children (and grown-ups who were in attendance as well) were amused by the detective’s marker scribbles on his giant flipchart notepad, as Clueless drew lines and arrows connecting suspects to various clues.
Clueless stepped back from solving the crime for a moment, asking the children what they had learned about detective work. The youngsters responded that detectives have to use their minds.
While Clueless was talking with the children, he received a “ransom call.” The caller demanded that book bucks be collected in a paper bag, which should then be placed behind the library. The caller promised to return the dog in exchange for the book bucks.
Clueless and the children proceeded outside the library, where they took up positions to watch for the dognapper. Before long, one of the five suspects appeared with the dog, and Clueless and the children surrounded him. Clueless snapped on the handcuffs, and the whole ensemble returned to the library for snacks and a door prize drawing.
“Kids, you can do some detective work on your own,” Clueless told the children, noting the library has lots of mystery books. Reading mysteries, can “teach you to use your minds,” he concluded.
Librarian Anita Regester described the mystery morning as “a subliminal learning experience.” The children learned about setting, characters, plot and more in a fun way, she explained.
The Thursday morning programs will conclude Aug. 9 at 10 a.m. with a visit from a real-live detective.
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