Why students are helping Colonial Heights police catch the thief who stole their school mascot

COLONIAL HEIGHTS, Va. -- The Science Club is one of the most popular clubs at Tussing Elementary School in Colonial Heights.

Science Club membership jumped from 15 students last year to 80 students this school year.

One of the things that grabbed students' attention was the opportunity to partner with local police to help solve pretend school crimes — like the mystery behind who stole the school mascot Tussing Tiger.

"We need women, we need men in STEM careers and so we’re building little scientists here," Science Club sponsor Dr. Kristin Acchione said.

To help find the stolen tiger, Science Club students worked with Colonial Heights Police to investigate.

"We have all of our equipment that we would use in the department here, so we don’t have to go back and forth from the crime scene to the department," a Colonial Heights Police detective told the students while showing off some tools of the trade.

The students seem to appreciate the hands-on learning.

"We’re learning about all their equipment and what they can do with their drones and like what they can do with their van," fifth-grade student Finnian Kapinskis said.

The fourth and fifth graders are also taking the science they learn in the classroom and putting it to use.

“We use all the Scientific Methods that are taught to these kids, we use it every day," Colonial Heights Detective Darrell Aleshire said.

The teachers said this approach seems to be working.

"They’re confident in what they are doing, they’re asking great questions, taking great notes and they’re thinking," Acchione said.