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In-Class Exercise: Create a Site/Interpret a Site
Learning Objectives
To apply principles of archaeology, specifically, principles of association and superposition, as well as an understanding of the interpretive process of connecting archaeological remains to human behavior. Students may also gain some understanding of site formation processes.
Materials
String, scissors, tape, representations of "artifacts" and "features" (these may be cut from construction paper, images printed from the web, teaching collections, or a combination of all three).
Activity
Students are divided into two teams. Each team is given string and tape to mark out a 1 meter by 1 meter square (with demonstration on how to triangulate). They are also given representations of "artifacts" and "features" (some cut from construction paper and others are images printed from the web). They must develop a "scenario" and lay out the material evidence in a way that reflects the human behaviors of the scenario.
After the site formation processes are complete, the instructor removes any material evidence that would not be likely to survive (organic material such as leather, feathers, some plant remains).
The groups then switch "sites" and become archaeologists investigating the other group's site. Each group discusses the evidence and proposes interpretations. After presenting their interpretations the group that developed the site reveals what their original scenario was.