For the past 5 summers, I have participated in the Archaeology Field School through the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. It has given me an opportunity to do field based science. I have had the chance to work on a village site on Sandusky Bay that has 3 settlement periods spanning a time frame of more than 4000 years. This summer, I am working on the Burrell Orchard site in Sheffield Village. We are finding evidence of occupation that dates to the middle archaic period, which means that people were occupying this site more than 4,000 years ago. I have learned to identify different lithic (stone ) artifacts and different pottery styles by analyzing the style, material and form of the artifact. I have had a chance to excavate burials and study human remains to learn more about their life including their diet and diseases that may have had an effect on them. Soil is important to archaeologists too. It is changes in soil color and texture which can give an archaeologist a clue that there may have been a midden (garbage pit), fire pit or structure at that location in the past. I have learned how to classify soil and map features and unit profiles. Archaeology is also a lot of hard work. It is not for someone who wants quick results. I have spent an entire work day scraping down the floor of a two meter by two meter unit 5 cm with a trowel and hours working around a bone or important artifact with a bamboo pick removing tiny fragments of soil one piece at a time.
So, how does this have an impact on being Teacher of the Year? I believe that all teachers need to be patient. Sometimes it takes a student a lot longer to grasp a concept than we have allotted for grasping that concept. That is OK. I also believe that all teachers should be life long learners. In order to have fresh ideas in your classroom, you have to be open to experiences that will help you grow outside the boundaries of that classroom space. I didn't know anything about how to be a field archaeologist when I started. But, I did have a strong science background in biology and geology and that has certainly helped. While working with the field school, I have had the chance to meet someone who has had 3 new organisms named in his honor and who has helped to investigate shipwrecks in Lake Erie and the Atlantic, including the USS Central America, the richest wreck found in the United States. I have never been to the North or South Poles, but at the dig site, I had the chance to work with someone who had, 5 times! I have worked with teachers, postal workers, historical researchers, professors, college students, engineers and printers and I have learned something from all of them that has helped me to grow as a teacher and a person. Take the opportunity to try something new when it is presented to you. Don't hesitate to try a class that is outside your subject area or your comfort zone. Go to the workshop that looks interesting. Read, explore, ask questions, take risks and you will become a stronger teacher who has more to offer your students.
Would you like to learn more about my dig site: http://www.cmnh.org/site/ResearchandCollections/Archaeology/BloggingArchaeology.aspx
Would you like more information on professional development ideas:
- Online Professional Development Videos http://www.learner.org/
- Ohio Teachers Continuing Education http://www.ohioteacherscontinuingeducation.com/
- eTech Professional Development http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/os/technology/plan/2004/site/stories/edlite-Columbus.html
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