Serial Killer Cereal Box: A Free High School Forensic Science Project

Is there anything as classic in a high school forensics class as the Serial Killer Cereal Box? I took high school forensics over a decade ago (gulp) and I completed this project way before the days of 1:1 Chromebooks and fancy equipment in classrooms. The Cereal Box Project has withstood the test of time and has hooked forensics students for years.

One of the best parts of the Cereal Killer Project is that you can complete a real, tangible project in class (or assign as a home project) with minimal materials. So many activities and projects in forensics require equipment and gear, but here, all your students need is a large cereal box, construction paper, glue, scissors, markers, and colored pencils. You can even assign the Cereal Killer Project digitally and have students make a Google Slide deck to represent each surface on their cereal box, if time/supplies/space are an issue for your class.

The Cereal Killer Project doesn’t stop at simply studying a single criminal - students apply concepts they have learned in different forensics units to explain types of evidence found in the criminal investigation of their assigned killer, modus operandi observed, and write a narrative about the totality crimes committed. The project also requires that students consult reliable sources, so students practice searching for and assessing the validity of sources as well. On top of all the science-related elements, students are tasked with creating some type of riddle or game and developing a cereal box prize - students get to dive in and get super creative with this part of the project, and they always deliver some incredible results. All in all, the Cereal Killer Project is definitely in my top two or three projects that students love every year, and I have no plans to stop doing it with my class - it’s just that good.

If you would like to implement the Serial Killer Cereal Box as one of your projects, then this freebie is for you! Click here to download a copy of the assignment sheet that I give my students for this project - I’ve included it as both a PDF and a Google Doc! Have fun with your cereal boxes!