Dig Site Detective

What your child will figure out

• Reveal a buried artifact carefully before making a claim about its origin.
• Use a visible material, symbol, shape, or function clue to distinguish between civilizations.
• Explain an identification with artifact evidence rather than guessing from familiarity.
• Transfer evidence-reading to an unfamiliar artifact and continue in adaptive practice with fainter clues and more choices.

The levels

1. Mask in the sand

   Predict only after revealing a gold-and-blue mask, then observe how a royal headdress and inlay support an Egyptian identification.

2. The emperor's coin

   Act on laurel wreath, ruler profile, and bronze coin evidence to distinguish a Roman artifact from other choices.

3. Threads of the north

   Explain how an oval clothing fastener and interlaced animal motif identify a Viking brooch rather than relying on object type alone.

4. Greenstone transfer

   Transfer evidence-reading to a new material and tool: connect a lashed pounamu adze with Māori craft in Aotearoa.