Archaeologist in Training! Learn How to Excavate Your Own Site.

Do you dream of being an archaeologist? In this hands-on class, you will learn about the field of archaeology, (literally) dig up artefacts, process them in the lab, present your findings, and play an archaeology game!  This class will help you experience what it's like to be a real archaeologist!

Week 1: On the first day we will cover what archaeology is, the process of archaeology, the tools we use and the types of jobs archaeologists do.  This will be in an open discussion format with slides where students can talk about the types of archaeology that interests them - from field to underwater archaeology, and more!

Week 2: ***Parents, instructions for the dig box and trash day activity are provided below.  This box must be ready for Week 2 as your child will use the materials up to the end of the class in Week 5.***   
Our young archaeologists will begin a dig of their own sites.  Using spoons and soft brushes, they will slowly uncover the dirt just like real archaeologists do.  I excavate along with them and they can see me excavating as they work on their own boxes.  They will share their finds as we dig.  Each find will be cataloged (a worksheet will be provided) and bagged.  Students will also be encouraged to draw a diagram of their trench if there is time.

Week 3: Trash Day!  On trash day, students will look through some of their recycling, as parents will have prepared a bag filled with clean and safe objects from their house.  We will use this exercise to understand how archaeologists piece together the past and find information about people who lived a long time ago.  We will look at our artefacts from Week 2, talk about what can and what cannot be washed, and why.  Have a small bowl of water ready as we may start washing our own finds.

Week 4:  Lab day!  Our future archaeologists will process their artefacts in the lab.  They will clean, measure, and analyze their artefacts.  They can also take a closer look at them by using magnifying glasses and note down whatever they see!  Then, they will prepare for their interpretation and presentation the following week.

Week 5: Presentations and archaeology game!  Our archaeologists will share their results with their peers, just like archaeologists at conferences, presenting their artefacts and telling us what they think their site is all about.  Students will be virtually awarded a certificate of completion at the end of the class.  

A clarification for parents: archaeologists do not study fossils, and I have almost no expertise in them.  Archaeologists study artifacts left behind by ancient humans.  Dig boxes are welcome to have fossils/dinosaurs, but I will not be able to provide much expertise in this area of study. I use slides from my own collection for each class as I believe visual materials are inspiring and help the learners in all the steps of their activities.