Back to Top Use the following three-point rubric to evaluate students' work during this lesson. Students should be able to work well in groups, follow the directions to make fingerprints, identify their fingerprints accurately, and record their data accurately. Back to Top Forensics and History Forensic scientists are still trying to determine the details behind the assassinations of U.S. presidents Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy. Have your students pick a famous figure and research the circumstances surrounding his or her death. In addition to Lincoln and Kennedy, other examples include Robert Kennedy, John F. Kennedy Jr., and Martin Luther King Jr. Suggest that students focus on what evidence forensic scientists have had available, how they have analyzed the evidence, and what conclusions they have drawn.
Students can present their findings as a short report or as a poster display.
The Lincoln Murder Plot Karen Zeinert. Linnet Books, 1999. This book closely examines the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, the arrests and trials of the conspirators involved, and the reaction of the American public. Photographs and profiles of all those involved and the use of courtroom testimony, letters, and diaries bring the case to life nearly 150 years later. Facts on File, 1995.