Lesson Plan
Coin ArcheologyMain Subject Area: Mathematics Additional Subjects: Science Duration of Lesson: Other minutes Keywords:
Brief Description:
National Standard(s):
Additional Subject Area Standard(s):
Objectives:
Materials (online): Materials (offline):
2 Metal Detectors Small spades (one per team) Clipboard / graph paper / pencil(s) (one set per team) 75 to 100 Flag markers (either commercial or sections of hangers with flagging material tied to each) Metric Rulers (one per team) Overhead Projector Transparency (with matching graph paper grid) Sharpie Markers (8 color set) Coins Used in Lesson:
Grade Level(s): 6-8 Procedures (online): Procedures (offline):
1. Using 2 metal detectors (pre-checked for compatibility), locate coins in the search area and have a team of students place small flags representing "hits" for subsequent digging. 2. Students are pre-assigned a part of the search area to dig up and record information (date, depth, precise location) about each coin found. All finds are catalogued by the teams and the locations are marked on their graph paper.
In the Classroom: 1. Each team's search grid is placed under the transparency and identifying symbols for each type of find are transferred to the grid with different colored Sharpies (during the data transfer, students compare their finds with others in the class). 2. Hypotheses can be made at this time and analysis of the data follows. 3. Analysis takes place on different levels; social/ geographic: patterns of coin loss in an area, circulation/economics: wear on coins versus time in the ground, soil science: depth of coins versus date, etc. 4. Conclusions can be drawn after small group and whole class discussions - each student is responsible for his or her own written conclusion and the conclusions can be assembled into a poster which provides an overview of the project. Assessment / Evaluation:
Differentiated Learning Options:
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