Cultural Anthropology Teacher Resources

Many are aware of the mummies found in the tombs of Egypt. But in addition to the mummified bodies of the ancient pharaohs like King Tut, archaeologists also found cat mummies, dog mummies, and alligator mummies. In a video interview,...

Sixth graders present a PowerPoint presentation on Greek columns. They realize that Greek culture is centered around religion. Students create a model of one of the columns. Also they find examples of Greek architecture in major Greek...

Sixth graders explore the ancient trade routes of the Silk Road with a focus on a province in China to identify artifacts and research how these items arrived in the city of Turpan.

Students examine careers that are not traditional to their gender.

Students view a PowerPoint about Tibetan monks to help them explain the culture's world views, myths and religious beliefs. They investigate Navajo sand paintings and compare how they are similar to the Tibetan monks' artwork.

Seventh graders analyze and synthesize information about major historical developments by interpreting data, evaluation sources of information, identifying and comparing experiences and perspectives from multiple cultural perspectives.

Is the progression of human complexity due to eating meat? The 14th video in a 16-part series attempts to answer this and other thought-provoking questions. It relates the process of human evolution and innovation to our ability to learn...

Students construct a timeline of four major culture periods in Native American history from studying archaeological evidence cards.

Scholars join a field expedition team to unearth a plethora of treasures from Central America. Artifacts listed in alphabetical order come with an informational blurb and a picture designed for participants to color. Activity pages...

"Waiting to Move," a photo essay by Ciril Jazbec, brings into sharp focus the threats posed by climate change. Class members examine images of Shishmaref Island and the Native Alaskan Inupiate coastal villages that are impacted by rising...

After watching the documentary Dark Water about a traditional Chumash ceremony and reading a Chumash origin story, viewers are asked to create a coat of arms and to craft an essay that details a family tradition or their own origin story.

Twelfth graders identify women who have excelled in anthropology. They present their findings which are compiled with other students' research to produce a list of women anthropologists.

Sixth graders examine the life, travels, and cultural experiences of Margaret Mead. They participate in group work and inquiry activities about the qualities that Margaret Mead possessed and the places she traveled to. They distinguish...

Pupils examine the combined subjects of anthropology and sociology and explain how the disciplines would study the same issue. On poster board, they locate or draw pictures related to the two subjects. Once this is completed, students...

Students study the four main subdivisions of anthropology and how they overlap. They explore the careers of several contemporary anthropologists and their fieldwork, comparing the methods and applications of their work.

Students critically evaluate cultures according to their artifacts. In this Random Strategies in Archaeology lesson, Students interpret evidence in order to better understand ancient societies. Students watch films that affect their...

Fourth graders present information of people, places, and environments. They collect, organize, and analyze date to use with these representations.

The excavation of a cache of artifacts found on San Nicolas Island, a part of the Channel Island chain, is the focus of a documentary that shows how archaeologists uncover artifacts and use these finds to attempt to understand the past....

Students participate in various activities that help them build esteem, and explore racism. In this multicultural lesson plan, Students increase their awareness of, and appreciation for, cultural differences and similarities. This...

Learners explore the images and idioms related to love in their own culture. They examine new rituals recently created in Japan by reading and discussing "Osaka Journal:Japanese Date Clubs Take the Muss Out of Mating."

Students, working in groups as cultural anthropologists, research harvest festival around the world. They design a Harvest web page based on their research.

High schoolers locate and analyze clues about ancient Greek life. In this ancient Greece lesson, students look at art, architecture, and artifacts to determine what was important to the Greeks and discover details about their culture....

Young scholars create a timeline that explains how ancient cultures used artifacts. In this Relative Dating in Archaeology lesson, students examine artifacts and draw conclusions about their origins. Then young scholars analyze...

Students are introduced to the characteristics of ancient Indian, Chinese and Aztec cultures. They consider what was valued by these cultures and compare the cultures' values to their own. They write an essay on their reflections.