Thanks to Mrs. Joanna Dickert, our 8th grade
students were able to travel virtually to an archaeological dig site in the western U.S. to learn about current research on mammoths and the field of archaeology. The event was facilitated through the Denver Museum of Nature & Science and their curator & archaeologist, Dr. Steve Holen. This virtual learning experience was made possible by our IT department
through a video call set up in our auditorium.
Included was a discussion of early life forms in North Americ and research methods such as ground penetrating radar, carbon dating, and topographical mapping. Our students were able to ask Dr. Holen questions in real time, with no delay in response, and learned about his training, profession, and expeditions. One interesting fact is that we did not have many woolly mammoths in Pennsylvania due to our terrain and vegetation, but we did have many mastadons, which are not common in the west. Additionally, Dr. Holen's most exciting find was a saber tooth cat on a dig site in Nebraska, something he described as a once in a career event. Since the program went so well, Mrs. Dickert
hopes to continue the series later in the school year on different topics, providing students with similar engaging
experiences with just the click of a mouse!
For a link with a video of Dr. Holen explaining his work: http://www.dmns.org/teachers/distance-learning/scientists-in-action/bone-breaking-science/
