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MATERIALS NEEDED:
Compass
Tape Measure
Protractor—Full Circle, Not Half Circle (for each student)
Ruler (for each student)
Pencil (for each student)
Eraser (for each student)
Graph Paper (for each student)
Spike or Long Nail
Colored Ribbon
Hammer
Six Pennies (each with a different year printed on it)
Students should begin to familiarize themselves with the compass. Divide the class into 5 or more groups of roughly equal size. Take one group at a time outside into an area that is covered with grass or dirt. Hammer a spike or nail into the ground, leaving at least half of its length above ground level. Tie a colored ribbon around the part of the spike/nail that is exposed. This will be the datum. Pick out a number of landmarks in any direction (such as a flagpole, a tree, a telephone pole, etc.) that equals the number of students in each group. Have each student stand over the datum and shoot a bearing to one of the pre-selected landmarks. As one student shoots a bearing, have another student record the bearing for that landmark. Once the group is finished, take them back into the classroom and repeat the process using the same landmarks with another group until all groups and students have used the compass to shoot a bearing. Have each group plot the bearings for each landmark they recorded. This is done by placing a small triangle (the symbol for the datum) in the center of a piece of graph paper. Then set the protractor on the graph paper with the center of the protractor squarely on the datum, aligning the 0 degree line on the protractor with the top of the paper (all maps are drawn with north pointing to the top of the paper). Once the protractor is set, a pencil is used to make a small mark indicating the bearing for each landmark. The protractor is removed and a ruler is placed on the graph paper so that a line can be drawn connecting the datum point with the bearing mark for each landmark. Each line must be properly labeled for the landmark it represents. The final task is to have the students draw an arrow indicating the direction of north in the bottom right corner of the paper. Because the map should be drawn with the top of the paper signifying north, the arrow should be pointing straight up. The students should then write the letter ‘N’ next to the arrow. If the class as a whole did very well, the mapped bearings for the landmarks should look roughly the same.
EVALUATION:
Students should be evaluated as a group on the accuracy of their plotted landmarks. You may use the following three-point rubric:
Three Points: All plotted landmarks are accurate; lines are straight and clear.
Two Points: Plotted landmarks are accurate; lines are a little sloppy.
One Point: Plotted landmarks are slightly inaccurate; lines are either clear or sloppy.
Divide the class into 5 or more groups of equal size. Take one group outside where the datum point was set in the first exercise. Take the six pennies and randomly toss them on the ground no more than ten feet from the datum point. The students should record the positions of the pennies, labeling each according to the year of print. To do this, pennies may be turned over so that the year is facing upward, but may not be moved from their position. Students should work in teams with some students using the measuring tape to measure the distance from the datum point to each penny while others record the bearings from the datum point to each penny. Make sure each student has a turn at both measuring and shooting bearings. Once the group has recorded the distance and bearing for each penny from the datum point take them back into the classroom and have each remaining group record the location of the six pennies. Once a group returns to the classroom, have each member of the group record the information they gathered onto their own sheet of paper. Each student should then draw his or her own map on a piece of graph paper. You might need to help the students with setting a scale appropriate for the exercise. Younger students should be able to round off measurements to make creating a map to scale much easier. Remind students to label all plotted pennies on their maps with the date that was printed on them, and remind students to erase all lines connecting the datum point to each penny. Once the location of the penny has been plotted, the bearing lines are no longer necessary.
EVALUATIONS:
You may evaluate each student’s map using the following three-point rubric:
Three Points: Accurate placement of each penny on the map; every penny is clearly labeled.
Two Points: Accurate placement of most pennies; pennies are clearly labeled.
One Point: Three or more pennies are inaccurately plotted on the map; some pennies are not clearly labeled.
EXTENSION:
Have the students use the tape measure and the compass to record the distance and bearing to a set location on campus, such as a post, a flagpole, the corner of a building, etc. Once the distance and bearing to the set location has been recorded from the datum point, have students add this to their maps. This set location should be plotted using the same scale they had used to plot the pennies. If you are going to use this extension, be sure an appropriate point from which to tie in the penny maps is within ten feet of the datum point. Students should draw a line connecting the datum point to the set location. They should then write down the measured distance from the datum point to the set location.
This homework exercise is designed to make students become aware of the associations between everyday tools and objects. Each student should imagine they are an archaeologist in the distant future excavating their home. They should imagine they do not know what ordinary tools, furniture, or appliances are or how they are used. Within this context, they should pick out two objects that are not near each other and describe in detail what other objects they appear to be associated with. From these associations, could they piece together some information about the former inhabitants of the home? Can they figure out what the objects are or how they were used? Each student should address these questions and more in a written report.
An example you can present:
A television and a computer monitor might look similar enough to an archaeologist working in the future who was not familiar with either one. But through a deduction of the objects closely associated with each, the archaeologist might begin to understand that they had different uses. The computer would be associated with a funny box that seemed to spit out paper (a printer), a rectangular box with wires (a hard drive), a funny flat pad with markings that can be individually depressed (a keyboard), and, perhaps most importantly, a single, centrally located chair from which all these objects are within reach. The television would be associated with a flat rectangular box (either a VCR or a DVD player) and would be located in front of several chairs. This should make it clear to the archaeologists that each object had a different use and was therefore not the same. Further examination of other associated objects would reveal even more information.
Student papers should be evaluated based on creativity, the amount of detail, and the relevance of each associated object with the object they are trying to investigate.