Mrs. Brandon's Classroom Edit display name

Past projects 6

• The Staten Island Tech Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death

  Funded Mar 26, 2023

  Thank you for providing materials for the students to create their own miniature death scenes, or nutshells.

  These miniature death scenes were inspired by Frances Glessner Lee's Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death. Students were required to create a case scenario, work with a medical examiner to write a realistic autopsy report, and construct the scene in the school's makerspace.

  Students consulted with various outside experts, including experts in forensic anthropology and blood spatter, in order to make their scenes appear realistic. The students learned so much from this experience, and we couldn't have done it without your generosity.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Brandon

• Menstrual Hygiene Management

  Funded Apr 20, 2023

  Thank you for helping my students to make a variety of quality menstrual products available to our school community.

  The products were distributed in restrooms throughout the building, and the students in need of those products were delighted to have them available, along with information about which products are appropriate for specific needs and at different points during menstruation.

  The awareness campaign the students launched, along with the products made available to students in need of these products, helped to educate students and to meet their needs.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Brandon

• Introduction to Human Osteology

  Funded Jul 20, 2019

  Thank you for your generous support of this project. The students now have the opportunity to see first-hand the changes that take place in the skeleton over time as we grow, and due to traumatic injuries such as blunt force injuries and gun shot wounds. The students are able to examine the beveling of the bone in order to determine whether a gun shot is an entrance or an exit wound. The next topic we discuss is the process of decomposition. Later this year, students will conduct an experiment observing the process of decomposition and how these observations can be used to estimate post-mortem interval.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Brandon

  This classroom project was brought to life by Google.org and 23 other donors.

• Forensic Anthropology: Analysis of our Classroom Skeleton

  Funded Mar 29, 2019

  I am writing to express my sincere gratitude for your support of our Forensic Analysis of a Human Skeleton project. The students were so excited when our calipers and bone casts arrived, and they couldn't wait to get started on the facial reconstruction.

  In this activity, students conducted research on human osteology, decided which measurements and observations were important in creating a biological profile, and collected data in order to estimate the ancestry, sex, age at death, and stature of our classroom skeleton. Each team of students was in charge of a different topic. The fifth team carried out the facial reconstruction: I took our classroom skeleton to a local radiology facility to have a CT scan, and our CAD teacher was able to use these images to 3D-print a replica of the skull. The students then used the tissue depth markers and modeling clay from the facial reconstruction kit, provided through our Donors Choose grant, to "put a face on" the skull. Now that their biological profile is complete, I will be sending their findings to a forensic anthropologist to verify their conclusions. We closed out this unit with a presentation by a forensic archaeologist.

  Thank you again for your continued support of my students!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Brandon

• The Staten Island Tech Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death

  Funded Mar 8, 2019

  I wanted to take a moment to thank you once again for supporting the Staten Island Tech Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death. The students were so excited to see the dollhouse furniture when it arrived. They knew that their projects would be realistic miniature death scenes, and that they could not only display their knowledge of forensic science but could make attractive, aesthetically-pleasing houses that reflected the time period when the crimes took place. In addition to their miniatures, the students generated documents, such as autopsy reports and ballistics reports, to give additional information about the case. After completing the projects, the students showed off their work at a Science and Technology Showcase, where students, parents, and teachers had the opportunity to view the nutshells and try to "solve the case." The students were proud of their finished products, which were the culmination of almost five months of research, building, and polishing. As an added bonus, two of my students produced a documentary about the project, complete with a blooper reel. This will soon be shared on Staten Island Tech's social media outlets, so please stay tuned. In the fall, the completed nutshells will be used by my new forensic science class as an introduction to crime scene investigation, impacting even more students! Thank you again for your continued support.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Brandon

• Create Your Own Body Farm: Research in Forensic Anthropology

  Funded Feb 25, 2016

  Dear donors,

  Thank you for the supplies for the Forensic Anthropology Research Project. My students and I set up an experiment by placing roasting chickens in the enclosed dog kennel under varying conditions and observing differences in decomposition. Our observations included physical changes in the "bodies," differences in insect activity, as well as collection of data such as soil and air temperature and humidity. This was an inquiry based learning activity in which groups of students designed their own experiments and collected data over a six week period. For example, one group of students compared a body left on concrete with one submerged in water. We observed that the water seemed to preserve and "bloat" the body, and there was no visible insect activity. The body on the concrete, on the other hand, lost a significant percentage of its body weight, was discolored, and was covered in maggots after about four weeks. We did have unusually cold weather this past April and May, which contributed to a slowed rate of decomposition for all of the "bodies."

  The students will certainly never forget this experience. Though it was not always pleasant (it did get smelly and slimy out there!), they learned an invaluable lesson about science as a process. Science requires patience, creativity, and persistence; science does not always look or smell pretty, and the results of an experiment are not always exactly what one expects. I will definitely do this same project with my Forensic Science classes next year, and another teacher wants to have his research students conduct a project as well. Your impact will be felt for many years to come.

  Thank you again!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Brandon

  This classroom project was brought to life by Orkin and one other donor.