Valentine's Day Close Reading Mystery Inference Activity - Stolen Love Letter

This Valentine's Day close reading inference mystery activity is a fun way to engage your students and challenge them to look for text evidence, infer information, and read more closely. The resource includes everything you need to facilitate the activity in your classroom. This works well as a Valentine's Day activity, but there are no specific holiday references so it can be used within any classroom at any time of the year.

Amanda absolutely loves Jack, but she is far too shy to tell him how she feels. In an effort to rid herself of the heartache, she writes him a love letter. She has no intention to let anyone (let alone her crush) see what's written in the letter, but when she sits down to do her homework at night, she realizes the love letter she wrote that day is missing from her pencil case! It's up to your students to use their close reading and inference skills to figure out who has it!

This is included in our best-selling full-year program:

>>> Reading Mysteries Program

Included In This Valentine's Day Close Reading Activity:

➡️ PowerPoint Presentation: This 15-slide PowerPoint presentation guides the mystery with the backstory, evidence, and detailed explanations for why each suspect is innocent and why the person is guilty of taking the letter.

➡️ “Who Has the Love Letter?” Classroom Poster: Put this poster up on your classroom door or somewhere visible so that when students come in, they are hooked into the activity.

➡️ Original Narrative Backstory: Use this short story to set up and initiate the mystery, with clues hidden within the text!

➡️ A Variety of Clues and Evidence: These require students to close read and use their inference skills. There is a class attendance list, a seating chart, a note passed between friends, an email, the love letter, a text message, a postcard, an online gaming chat room, and a detention sign-in sheet.

➡️ “Who Stole the Love Letter” Graphic Organizer: Students can use this to keep track of their findings that support or refute different suspects in the mystery.

➡️ Teacher Answer Key: This is made available in print format and within the presentation slideshow to make reviewing students’ work a breeze.

How The Valentine's Day Close Reading Activity Works:

• Start by putting up the poster on your door to build anticipation when students enter the room. When students enter, put them in small groups, so they can work together to try to solve the mystery.
• Use the presentation slides to guide you through each element of the activity. The slides will help you introduce the story and evidence to each of the groups.
• Hand out all the evidence to students and allow them time to make their predictions and inferences and solve the mystery.
• Once each group has made their final prediction, use the presentation slides to reveal the culprit and go through each of the suspects to show the evidence of their innocence or guilt.

What Teachers Are Saying About This Valentine's Day Close Reading Activity:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ My students thoroughly enjoyed this resource!!! Loved how easy it was to use! Just print and it is ready to go! Led to some really fantastic discussion! Great collaborative activity.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ During Valentines Day I had the kids work through this love letter activity. They thought it was hilarious and a fun activity to do on Valentine's Day.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ My students absolutely loved this resource! It very engaging and it got them so excited about ELA. I will definitely be using this in years to come!

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If you like this resource, you'll also like this reading mystery:

>>> Who is the Secret Admirer?

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