Odyssey of the Mind
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Odyssey Open House & Information Meeting
- October 24, 2018 from 6-7 pm at WSWHE BOCES in Saratoga
Odyssey Coaches Training
- November 8, 2018 from 6-9 pm at WSWHE BOCES in Saratoga
Spontaneous Saturday
- January 19, 2019 from 10 am -12 pm at Queensbury Middle School
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- February 12, 2019 from 6 - 9 pm at WSWHE BOCES in Saratoga
Odyssey of the Mind Region 6 Tournament
- March 9, 2019 at Queensbury Middle School
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Digging for Clues
Objective: Learn about archaeology and dating methods through humor and team activities.
Students will learn: archaeology, dating methods and critical thinking.
Teacher Prep Time
30 minutes
Grouping
-- Class
-- Small groups
Materials
Art supplies - paper, markers, colored pencils, modeling clay, etc. Everyday objects to be used as props and costumes.
Activity 1
Learning about the past can be intriguing. Scientific archaeologists use creative thinking to devise dating methods in order to learn from their discoveries. Ask students to research archaeology. Then, as a class, create a list of qualities it takes to be a successful archaeologist. For example, an archaeologist has to be curious.
Discuss the importance of using context clues and statistics in archaeology. Also, relative vs. absolute dating. Then have students research the various methods and tools archaeologists use to determine the age of their discoveries. What were beginning tools and techniques? What are modern techniques? What things are still in use? Discuss the benefits and limitations of each of these methods.
Activity 2
Divide the class into 3 groups in order to create their own archaeological discovery. Research objects from a historic time or place, for example, ancient Egypt, and then recreate them in drawings or models. Each group should choose five and present their drawings/models to the class. They should also choose an archaeological method to determine its age. The rest of the class can use this information, along with context clues to guess the object's purpose.
Were the guesses correct? After the true purpose of the object is revealed, try to think of the most creative alternative use for it.
Activity 3
With all of the technological advances in archaeology, it is still possible to make mistakes when it comes to finding the true purposes of ancient findings. As a class, create a play about archaeological identification and dating. It should be set in the future, where the characters discover ruins and remnants from today and misinterpret their use and/or purpose. The class should think of humorous misinterpretations for objects of their choosing. They should also incorporate the skills learned in the previous activities.
Have the class perform the play as an assembly for the school and create a playbill. The playbill should list the characters and their job/duties as an archaeologist. On the back, include a list of ten important methods, tools or qualities involved in the science of archaeology that the class has "discovered." It should show that the characters in the script complied with these methods, but still misinterpreted the uses for the objects. This illustrates the differences between scientific research and actual interpretation.