🦁 Where did the mountain lion go?!

During a field trip to the natural history museum, the third graders from Mount Michael are stunned to discover the mountain lion exhibit is empty! Determined to crack the case, your students must use their math skills to uncover the culprit behind The Mystery of the Missing Mountain Lion.

This engaging and standards-based math mystery activity blends academic rigor with storytelling fun—perfect for reviewing key math concepts in an interactive and memorable way!

🔍 What's Included:

Your students will solve five math-based clues to eliminate suspects and find the mountain lion thief:

🔢 Standard Form & Number Forms – Determine if the culprit is a student, parent, or teacher

🧮 Rounding to the Nearest 10 – Discover if the culprit was wearing a backpack

📈 Expanded Form Comparisons – Find out if they were wearing glasses

🕒 Word Form of Large Numbers – Uncover whether they had a watch

💇 Place Value Riddle – Use number rearrangement to determine hair color

📚 Math Skills Covered:

Writing and interpreting standard, word, and expanded form

Rounding numbers to the nearest ten

Comparing values using place value understanding

Problem solving and deductive reasoning

Arranging digits to form the largest possible number

✨ Why Teachers Love This Resource:

📄 No prep – Just print and go

🧠 Encourages critical thinking and collaboration

✅ Includes a clear suspect chart and full answer key

🎯 Aligned to 3rd grade math standards (place value, number forms, rounding)

🎒 Perfect For:

Math centers or rotations

Morning work

Sub plans

Early finishers

Test prep or spiral review

Engaging end-of-unit activities

🔎 Can your students solve the clues and figure out who snuck off with the mountain lion? This creative activity turns your classroom into a scene of curiosity, deduction, and rich mathematical thinking.