Our job is to solve the mystery of whether monsters actually exist.  If the creature is real--is it a monster?  What skills can we use to figure out what's real, what's legend, and when people are simply trying to hoax us?

FOR PARENTS: This course gives kids a taste of science-based skepticism while they explore a fascinating topic.

Each day in this course the instructor will:
-Present students in each class with a fascinating historical account of a 'monster'.
-Engage students in learning historical detectives skills--the methods cryptozoologists use in academe to develop theories about animals that haven't been proven to exist.
-Guide students in each class through critical thinking exercises in an attempt to develop a healthy sense of skepticism so they can separate fact from legend and hoax about a particular monster.
--Help students practice how to logically argue for whether a creature they've studied was real not. 

Classes 1 - 4:  Monsters we know and love from history: Ancient Greek Monsters, Loch Ness Monster, & Dragons 
In addition to this we will master a cryptozoology method used in academe to find alternative answers to monster sightings.

Classes 5 - 8: More classic monsters: vampires, Frankenstein, and werewolves. We'll learn their fascinating historical origins.  We'll also compare and contrast interesting monsters from around the world to monsters in western culture. 

Classes 9 - 12: Modern hoaxes & Urban Legends: Before moving into modern monsters and urban legends on the internet we'll focus on understanding the flaws of anecdotal evidence, eye witnesses, and even multiple eyewitnesses. We'll then go on to examine monsters and legends such as Slender Man, Moth Man, the Jackalope, the Bloop, and Godzilla.