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Take Action, Save the Past
Eighth graders use their creative and critical thinking skills to find useful solutions to current and future problems concerning the destruction of archaeological sites and artifacts.
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Gridding a 2 x 2 Meter Unit
Students use the internet to examine what happens at an archeological dig site. In groups, they practice measuring a 2x2 meter square unit and gridding it out as an archeologist would do. They review the possible solutions at the end of...
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Ancient Highways-Native Byways of Salmon Lake State Park
Eighth graders investigate the concept of the trail system used by the Native Americans. They compare and contrast the trails to modern transportation roadways of today. Students also define the types of information archaeologists use to...
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Why is the Past Important?
Students explore, examine and study why it's important to study the past and connect this importance with reasons why we should learn from the past and how cultures have changed over the years. They bring an object, photograph or a...
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Social Studies: Cooking Methods - Past and Present
Fourth graders identify geographic regions (Texas' Edwards Plateau) and sequence steps in the hot rock cooking process. They compare and contrast prehistoric and contemporary cooking methods. Students conduct online research and record...
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Trekking to Timbuktu
Pupils view a television show to provide a context for conducting research into the location and culture of Timbuktu. The students complete a report on the subject in the form of a research paper.
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What Can We Learn From the Past?
Students observe items from their past, making inferences and observations about their own culture based on these artifacts. Students then share with the class what they learned about their own culture, giving all students more...
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Layers of Time in the Earth
Students are introduced to the concept of stratification as a historical and geological process. Students will read about the Richard Beene archaeological site, which lies near San Antonio, Texas on the Medina River, and watch a short...
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Modern Greece Fights For Ancient History
Pupils study the history of Ancient Greece and its society through Internet research. They investigate information about the Parthenon and its marble structures.
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The Museum as a Time Capsule: Mongolian Example
Students make defensible inferences based on observation of perceived evidence. They use observation and inference to recognize the validity of alternative approaches or solutions.
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Past v. Present: Using Geography & Anthropology
Students examine artifacts and documents from their Canadian community. They analyze early Canadian history and make predictions about the future of the country.
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Ancient Times
Students create a mural depicting modern life. For this ancient civilizations lesson, students view images of wall painting from ancient civilizations showing aspects of their daily life. Students discuss the ways our life today is...
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social Studies: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorow
Sixth graders take an Internet trip back in time to explore ancient cultures. Working in teams, they assume the roles of theologian, cartographer, economist, political analyst, and anthropologist. The same groups then create time...
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AIH-14: Changes to American Indian Cultures
Middle schoolers explore American Indian cultures and changes caused by European exploration in North America.
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How to "Read" an Artifact
Students discuss the types of information they can get from artifacts. In groups, they practice "reading" artifacts and determining their usage. They use inferences to test against official information about certain pieces. They also...
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Ceramics: A Vessel Into History
Students review a previous ceramics lesson and journal about a personal clay vessel they will create. In this ceramics lesson, students recognize various ceramic forms created in different time periods and...
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Inventions over Time
Sixth graders examine inventions, such as spear points and bows and arrows, and discuss their importance in human cultural development. They compare these early inventions with modern ones and determine the impact of science and...
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Ceramics: A Vessel into History
Students create a personal clay vessel that has a specific use or meaning in their contemporary culture, which could be discerned through study by future archeologists and art historians.
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Where is it?
Students use a coordinate grid. They investigate and discuss what caused certain objects to be in specific places. They choose a room in their home to map and place objects in specific locations.
![The Oriental Institute Museum: Life in Ancient Mesopotamia [Pdf] Lesson Plan](https://static.lp.lexp.cloud/images/attachment_defaults/resource/large/FPO-knovation.png "The Oriental Institute Museum: Life in Ancient Mesopotamia [Pdf] Lesson Plan")
University of Chicago
The Oriental Institute Museum: Life in Ancient Mesopotamia [Pdf]
Because archaeologists cannot take home all the objects they unearth, they must make detailed, accurate drawings of their finds, so that these artifacts can be studied in the future.