Archaeology


Archaeology
BSA Supply No. 35000

Archaeologists are detectives who study how people lived in the past. They figure out what happened, when, how, and why. Using the clues that people left behind, they try to understand how and why human culture has changed through time.

Requirements

  1. Tell what archaeology is and explain how it differs from anthropology, geology, paleontology, and history.
  2. Describe each of the following steps of the archaeological process: site location, site excavation, artifact identification and examination, interpretation, preservation, and information sharing.
  3. Describe at least two ways in which archaeologists determine the age of sites, structures, or artifacts. Explain what relative dating is.
  4. Do TWO of the following:
    1. Learn about three archaeological sites located outside the United States.
    2. Learn about three archaeological sites located within the United States.
    3. Visit an archaeological site and learn about it.
    For EACH site you research for options a, b, or c, point it out on a map and explain how it was discovered. Describe some of the information about the past that has been found at each site. Explain how the information gained from the study of these sites answers questions that archaeologists are asking and how the information may be important to modern people. Compare the relative ages of the sites you research.
  5. Choose ONE of the sites you picked for requirement 4 and give a short presentation about your findings to a Cub Scout pack, your Scout troop, your school class, or another group.
  6. Do the following:
    1. Explain why it is important to protect archaeological sites.
    2. Explain what people should do if they think they have found an artifact.
    3. Describe the ways in which you can be a protector of the past.
  7. Do ONE of the following:
    1. Make a list of items you would include in a time capsule. Discuss with your merit badge counselor what archaeologists a thousand years from now might learn from the contents of your capsule about you and the culture in which you live.
    2. Make a list of the trash your family throws out during one week. Discuss with your counselor what archaeologists finding that trash a thousand years from now might learn from it about you and your family.
  8. Do ONE of the following:
    1. Under the supervision of a qualified archaeologist, spend at least eight hours helping to excavate an archaeological site.
    2. Under the supervision of a qualified archaeologist, spend at least eight hours in an archaeological laboratory helping to prepare artifacts for analysis, storage, or display.
    3. If you are unable to work in the field or in a laboratory under the supervision of a qualified archaeologist, you may substitute a mock dig. To find out how to make a mock dig, talk with a professional archaeologist, trained avocational archaeologist, museum school instructor, junior high or high school science teacher, adviser from a local archaeology society, or other qualified instructor. Plan what you will bury in your artificial site to show use of your "site" during two time periods.
  9. Under the supervision of a qualified archaeologist or instructor, do ONE of the following:
    1. Help prepare an archaeological exhibit for display in a museum, visitor center, school, or other public area.
    2. Use the methods of experimental archaeology to re-create an item or to practice a skill from the past. Write a brief report explaining the experiment and its results.
  10. Do ONE of the following:
    1. Research American Indians who live or once lived in your area. Find out about traditional lifeways, dwellings, clothing styles, arts and crafts, and methods of food gathering, preparation, and storage. Describe what you would expect to find at an archaeological site for these people.
    2. Research settlers or soldiers who were in your area at least 100 years ago. Find out about the houses or forts, ways of life, clothing styles, arts and crafts, and dietary habits of the early settlers, farmers, ranchers, soldiers, or townspeople who once lived in the area where your community now stands. Describe what you would expect to find at an archaeological site for these people.
  11. Identify three career opportunities in archaeology. Pick one and explain how to prepare for such a career. Discuss with your counselor what education and training are required, and tell why this profession might interest you.

Resources

Scouting Literature

American Cultures, American Heritage, Archery, Architecture, Art, Astronomy, Basketry, Chemistry, Genealogy, Geology, Indian Lore, Leatherwork, Metalwork, Pioneering, Pottery, Sculpture, Surveying, Textile, and Wood Carving merit badge pamphlets

Books

Multimedia

Organizations and Web Sites

American Anthropological Association
Archaeology Division, Suite 600
2200 Wilson Blvd.
Arlington, VA 22201
Telephone: 703-528-1902
Web site: http://www.aaanet.org

Archaeological Conservancy
5301 Central Ave. NE, Suite 1218
Albuquerque, NM 87108-1517
Telephone: 505-266-1540
Web site: http://www.americanarchaeology.com

Archaeological Institute of America
Boston University
656 Beacon St., Fourth Floor
Boston, MA 02215-2006
Telephone: 617-353-9361
Web site: http://www.archaeological.org

Center for American Archeology
P.O. Box 366
Kampsville, IL 62053
Telephone: 618-653-4316
Web site: http://www.caa-archeology.org

Center for the Study of the First Americans
Department of Anthropology
Texas A&M University
College Station, TX 77543-4352
Telephone: 979-845-4046
Web site: http://www.centerfirstamericans.com

Crow Canyon Archaeological Center
23390 Road K
Cortez, CO 81321
Telephone: 800-422-8975
Web site: http://www.crowcanyon.org

Earthwatch Institute
Three Clock Tower Place, Suite 100
Box 75
Maynard, MA 01754
Toll-free telephone: 800-776-0188
Web site: http://www.earthwatch.org

Elden Pueblo Archaeological Project
P.O. Box 3496
Flagstaff, AZ 86003
Telephone: 928-527-3452

Foundation for Field Research
P.O. Box 2010
Alpine, CA 92001
Telephone: 619-450-3460 or 619-445-9264

Four Corners School of Outdoor Education
P.O. Box 1029
Monticello, UT 84535
Telephone: 800-525-4456
Web site: http://www.fourcornersschool.org

Mississippi Valley Archaeology Center
University of Wisconsin--La Crosse
1725 State St.
La Crosse, WI 54601
Telephone: 608-785-8463
Web site: http://www.uwlax.edu/mvac

National Association of State Archaeologists
Web site: http://www.uiowa.edu/~osa/nasa

National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers
Suite 342 Hall of the States
444 N. Capitol St., NW
Washington, DC 20001-7572
Telephone: 202-624-5465
Web site: http://www.ncshpo.org

National Park Service
1849 C St., NW
Washington, DC 20240
Telephone: 202-208-6843
Web site: http://www.cr.nps.gov

Society for American Archaeology
900 Second St., NE, No. 12
Washington, DC 20002-3557
Telephone: 202-789-8200
Web site: http://www.saa.org

Society for Historical Archaeology
15245 Shady Grove Road, Suite 130
Rockville, MD 20850
Telephone: 301-990-2454
Web site: http://www.sha.org

Southwestern Archaeology
P.O. Box 61203
Phoenix, AZ 85082-1203
Telephone: 602-697-5754
Web site: http://www.swanet.org/

University Research Expeditions Program
UC Davis Extension
1333 Research Park Drive
Davis, CA 95616-4852
Telephone: 530-752-8811
Web site: http://www.extension.ucdavis.edu


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