Creative Dad CompanyCreative Dad Company
StorytellingHistory

True-Crime Ethics Studio

Log in to save
Grades 9-122-3 hoursSource: Creative Dad Company

Students produce a true-crime style podcast episode about a resolved case, working through how to handle real uncertainty and human tragedy without slipping into sensationalism. It's a thoughtful way to practice storytelling craft alongside media ethics.

Choose your version

Every level teaches the same core idea — pick the one that fits your time, budget, and energy today.

Prep: 10 minActivity: 30 min1 session~$2/groupOne table for the True-Crime Ethics Studio evidence and prototypeBeginner-friendly

Setup

Print or handwrite the four True-Crime Ethics Studio challenge steps and place common paper supplies on one table. Prepare one small sample, dataset, scenario, or recycled-material model drawn directly from the project description; no device, paid tool, room decoration, or purchased kit is required.

Activity

  1. Read the True-Crime Ethics Studio challenge aloud, then research a resolved historical case using only public records and predict which details are important to the facts versus just sensational.
  2. Use paper, index cards, recycled objects, or facilitator-provided sample data to draft a script that presents the case clearly, flagging every place where the evidence is genuinely uncertain.
  3. Run one tabletop trial and read the draft aloud and discover a section that sounds exploitative or unfair to real people involved, then rewrite it with more care.
  4. Finish by record and share the final episode, including a short statement on the ethical choices the team made and why; record the evidence that supports the decision.

Done when: The group completes a defensible True-Crime Ethics Studio solution, records at least one test result or comparison, changes one claim or design in response, and supports its final decision with that evidence.

Materials

USB microphone, reporter notebook, index cards, headphones

Shown for the Quick Start version — switch tabs above to see what changes.

Disclosure: Materials links below go to Amazon. As an Amazon Associate, Creative Dad Company earns from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

Steps

  1. Research a resolved historical case using only public records and predict which details are important to the facts versus just sensational.
  2. Draft a script that presents the case clearly, flagging every place where the evidence is genuinely uncertain.
  3. Read the draft aloud and discover a section that sounds exploitative or unfair to real people involved, then rewrite it with more care.
  4. Record and share the final episode, including a short statement on the ethical choices the team made and why.