Scientists dig history

Teaching Pre K-8, Nov/Dec 1997 by Thorp, Carmany

Here's what happened when sixth grade archaeologists delved into the past

Our team of four teachers and 112 middle school students were invited to conduct an archaeological dig at a suspected camp site along the Smoky Hill Trail, which had been used by adventurers during Colorado's Gold Rush days. Part of the trail runs through Cherry Creek State Park, just south of Denver.

The park is also the site of an old residence-turned-hotel known as the Twelve Mile House (12 miles being its distance from Denver). Fred Bowman, the park ranger, was interested in investigating the possibility that people might have camped along the trail instead of paying for lodging at the hotel.

I had called Fred seeking permission to conduct a simulated dig at a beach area as part of a unit we were doing on ancient cultures. I had collected bones and various pieces of junk to bury in the sand. The idea was to have the students dig them up and then interpret their finds.

Because we asked When Fred invited us to do a real dig, I thought he was crazy. Why us? Why not real archaeologists? Why not high school students? The answer and lesson to be learned, is that he invited us because we asked. True, when I called I had a different project in mind, but that request sparked Fred's imagination. So many people in the community are eager to support education.

Fred Bowman, the ranger, introduced us to Fred Jeffries, an historian, who toured the site with me and discussed the logistics of creating enough jobs for our 112 students. We planned four dig sites, each measuring 15' x 3' and set stakes and string to form individual digging stations. Each section was labeled and baggies were provided to hold whatever objects might be found.

A major concern involved how we could return the site to its natural state once our dig was finished. In our high and dry climate, vegetation does not replace itself easily. We decided to lay tarpaulins next to each hole so students could sift each shovelful of dirt over them. That way, we'd avoid contaminating the surrounding grasses with layers of dirt.

Finding parent volunteers was no problem at all. Parents who couldn't come supported us by contributing shovels and trowels. Those who did join us rearranged work schedules and other commitments well in advance.

Legal questions. After Fred's invitation, I called the Colorado State Historical Society for some advice on how to conduct a dig properly. Legal questions regarding the digging of state land or historic sites came up. In both cases, we'd need a permit, a qualified archaeologist and a year's more time of planning.

Eventually, it was determined that the land had not been previously designated as "historic" and that the park management could grant permission, so we were able to proceed. My advice to teachers interested in having their own class dig: Get the legal questions cleared away before you say anything to your students.

The weather caused one big problem. We had planned on four days of digging, but on the night of the first day, the temperature dropped, the wind blew and white stuff fell from the sky. We had to cancel the next two days, which wreaked havoc with the bus company and disappointed many parents who couldn't shift their schedules again.

We were able to return on the fourth day, but the clay in the soil had set itself into unbreakable clumps. Digging and sifting were out of the question. We decided to take turns digging only the area where we'd found an 1890 nickel, while other groups repaired the other holes. Happily, Keith Neilsen, our science teacher, had designed a backup plan and took the non-digging students on a nature walk Lesson planning. Although there were many hours of discussion and planning leading up to the actual dig, three events stand out as being very valuable. The first is a video, "Digging for Data," produced by the education department of the National Live Stock and Meat Board. The video illustrates how the scientific method can be applied to archaeology by following a student investigation of how the food we eat is partially responsible for our adult height

This video inspired our science teacher to create a lab report around the dig. From that came language arts teacher Cindy Benson's suggestion that we make the lab report part of an archaeologist's journaL Mike Fudjack, our math teacher, asked us to include measurements and site drawings.

Second, Fred Jeffries, the historian, came to school and presented a lesson on the history of the area. He brought artifacts from another site to show the type of evidence we might find that would support our hypothesis that Gold Rushers camped along the trail.

Trial run. The day before the real dig, I conduct.ed a practice dig in the long jump pits on our campus. I came to school at 5:30 one very chilly morning and buried a skeleton and junk from my basement. The students were assigned a section to dig, and after they exposed an object, they brushed away the sand with paint brushes. Then they made a drawing of what they found while it was still in the sand. The drawings were transferred to a mural to which we referred during our discussion of how archaeologists interpret their finds.