Puzzle-solving Workshops

The Very Best of our Puzzle-Solving Workshops

Over the last decade, we have supported schools throughout the North West and further afield with the implementation of innovative, creative, engaging and above all educational puzzle-solving workshops which enrich the curriculum across all subject areas. We’d be lying, however, if we claimed we didn’t have our favourites.

Naturally, as we role-play our way through a gritty CSI crime scene or the landing point of a UFO, we have to allow ourselves some creative freedom to really chew the scenery.

And more often that not, that’s exactly what we do!

First up, we have Manhunt, a session which packs a dramatic punch; incorporating deceit, criminal investigation and even betrayal, all into one package. We usually start with two hi-impact consultants, one being the teacher, leading the lesson, and one role-playing as a police officer!

Our hardened, maverick cop is usually played by PC Dionne Thomas, you may know her from videos such as this, but rest assured, reader, that this is simply an act! The kind facade fades eventually, with the mask slipping entirely when she’s granted access to her hi-impact approved walkie talkie and fake police badge. In a flagrant abuse of power, she will lie to the children, telling them that one of their teachers has been a victim of identity theft. Throughout the day, the class will work with the evidence provided from the station (photos, CCTV footage, social media posts etc.) to decipher the clues and catch the culprit.

It’s only at the end, when the criminal has been apprehended, that PC Thomas will reveal the whole thing was a ruse to teach them about the dangers of identity fraud. I think we all know who the real villain is here!

In second place, arriving from the horrifying abyss of outer space, we have an alien invasion! (Also known as Breakout Edu). Much like Manhunt, the children are once again called into action to assist with an investigation, only this time, the stakes are much higher…the fate of the world is in their hands!

An unidentified alien aircraft has navigated its way to earth, slaying our extra terrestrial specialist, Officer Elliot Hayes, in the process, and leaving us leaderless. Luckily, before his brave sacrifice, Hayes left clues throughout the classroom to help the children intercept and break the alien code; thus allowing them to foil the invaders’ plans and save the world before time runs out.

Involving puzzle solving, teamwork, use of technology and some of our worst dramatic acting, this workshop more than delivers on both entertainment and educational value!

Squeezing into third, we have a new arrival. The Dark Horse of the race…CSI. For this puzzle-solving lesson, we hit the gritty tarmac of the school playgrounds, as we consult the country’s finest and most promising young cops in schools throughout the North West to solve a perplexing homicide case. Using multiple, real life investigative techniques, our team of super sleuth detectives will rule-out 19 of the 20 suspects until they finally get their killer.

Covering the origins of criminal science, this workshop will incorporate forensic tools and techniques into its activities; analysing/comparing fibres with microscopes, using tape to lift fingerprints, and examining witness statements.

I’m sure we’ve all fantasised, at some point in our lives, about taking on the role of a no-nonsense, noir detective with a trilby hat and a long, beige overcoat, as we pursue a criminal who always seems to be one step ahead. Right?

Well, this workshop provides that opportunity.

Are you looking to enrich the classroom experience with some of our puzzle-solving workshops? Contact us here: https://hi-impact.co.uk/contact/ and we’ll run through all your options!