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Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Dig it Up – Outrageous Archaelology: Past/Present/Future

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Discover how large and small things are in the universe, then travel through time to the year 4022 when archeologists excavate The Motel of the Mysteries. Help us imagine what someone from a different planet or a different time would decide the objects in your house might have been used for!”  Geared for grades 2-6.
Resources:
Internet Videos:  Powers of Ten – Charles & Ray Eames http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fKBhvDjuy0 & Cosmic Voyage: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxXf7AJZ73A
PowerPoint slide show based on Book: The Motel of the Mysteries by David Macauley (contact clevin@sclibnj.org for a copy)

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  • Display (Kids read as others entering): Books about King Tut, Ancient Egypt archeology
  • Introduction: In 1976 (Bicentennial) Air & Space Museum opened in D.C. – included was the film Powers of Ten.  About the same time, a big King Tut exhibit opened across the mall in another Smithsonian museum.  Today, we are going on a similar journey through space and time, different ways of looking at things.
  • Show video: Powers of Ten (and the relative size of things in the universe) – Charles & Ray Eames http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fKBhvDjuy0
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  • Question: What is archaelogy?  Familiar with Tutankhamen?
  • Introduce book:  Author/Illus David Macauley asked “What if someone excavated something from our time?  How would they interpret their discoveries?”  The result was The Motel of the Mysteries.
  • Show PowerPoint slide show based on Book: The Motel of the Mysteries by David Macauley including items: “Internal component Enclosure”(Ice Bucket), “The Sacred Collar” (Toilet Seat), “Musical Instruments”(Shower Heads and Toilet Plungers), “The Great Altar”(TV Set) , “The Sacred Urn” (Toilet) 
  •  …now their turn!  Kids (in teams if they wish) write a description of an object in their house as if someone from another time/planet has found it and is guessing what it would be used for. 
  • Guessing Game: As each description is read aloud, the others try to figure out what the object actually is.
  • Finished with Cosmic Voyage: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxXf7AJZ73A (more recent IMAX version of Powers of Ten)
"Awesome!" -- comment by several kids at the end of this program.

8/2013

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