Some of my favorite lessons require students to work as teams to solve a mystery or open locks.

Mystery Tasks

Tasks where groups collect and assemble evidence to solve a mystery using science. None of these lessons require additional set up besides printing and arranging clues.
Can you use kinematics to solve the mystery of who is responsible for breaking a precious historic vase?
Decode secret messages that have been encoded using a variety of different methods to solve a mystery
Can you use your understanding of horizontal projectiles to convict a murder suspect?
Can you predict the products of chemical reactions to identify who robbed the chemistry department?

Breakout Tasks

Escape Room inspired challenges where groups need to solve problems and interpret answers to unlock locks and get into a box. These tasks require breakout boxes complete with locks.
Instructions on how to purchase and assemble breakout boxes without breaking the bank
Resources to help in the design and modification of a custom breakout task
A breakout task based on work, power, and conservation of energy
A breakout task based on circuit analysis and equivalent resistance.
A breakout task based on naming ionic and covalent bond
 Students work in a team of 3-4 to work their way through this google form based escape room practicing motion calculations and graphs
​Students work in a team of 3-4 to work their way through this google form based escape room practicing electrical properties and circuit analysis

Scavenger Hunts

Redesigned Breakout tasks that use the same clues but don't require breakout box materials. Instead of breaking into a box, groups solve the puzzles to gain access to new clues in a series of envelopes.
A redesigned version of the Energy Breakout that can be run without breakout box supplies. This task covers topics in work, power, and conservation of energy.
A redesigned version of the Circuits Breakout that can be run without breakout box supplies. This task covers topics in circuit analysis and equivalent resistance