Southwest Archaeology with Kids

Our 5th graders study the archaeology of the Southwest during the spring semester as part of our integrated studies. As their science teacher for a dozen years, I worked along with my colleagues in Humanities, Math, Art, and Technology to help our students learn about the history and culture of the ancestral Puebloan people. In addition to learning about the daily life and history, the 5th graders learn about the geology of the Southwest and the science of archaeology.    We spend a week at Crow Canyon Archaeological Center in Cortez, CO, a working archaeological center with a residential education program.  They have an amazing hands-on curriculum to introduce students to archeology and the ancient Puebloans of the Four Corners region.

We begin the week learning about the major periods in history of these Puebloans through handling and learning to classify characteristic artifacts from era.  As you might expect, in learning about another culture and how it developed, our students reflect on our own culture and values.  Students visit archaeological sites from each of the major periods and become familiar with the hallmarks of each.  As a way to study the lifestyles of the Puebloans, our students learn how to make fiber cordage, attempt to start a fire with a bow drill, and practice “hunting “with a rabbit stick and a spear-thrower called and atlatl.  They also get to try on replicas of Puebloan clothing, learn games the Puebloan children played, and weave on an upright loom.  

In the archaeology lab, they learn about techniques used by professional archaeologists to find sites, unearth artifacts and entire villages, classify the artifacts, analyze data to answer questions, and archive the artifacts.  Students see how archaeologists apply geology, chemistry, physics, and biology in their investigations, using simple tools, such as small brushes and dental picks to digital tools and satellite images in modern archaeology. 

 This NYT article, ScientistTries to Connect Migration Dots of Ancient Southwest, discusses University of Colorado archaeologist Steve Lekson's theory of the linkage between Chaco Canyon and Puebloan sites in Mexico as part of his unified theory of Native American population movements. I used this article to help students get a bigger picture of the Puebloan migrations, and some historical context, as well as perspective on one of the current controversial ideas in the science of archaeology.  Our students love this trip and learn so much.  Even after a dozen years, I always find something new.