Center for Public Archaeology

Field School

Field Schools are for-credit learning opportunities for students looking for hands-on experience in archaeological research and excavations. Participating in one of the CfPA’s summer field schools guarantees students will learn the fundamentals of planning and preparing archaeological projects, and investigating archaeological sites, including

Site survey and identification
- Pedestrian/Reconnaissance
- Aerial and satellite imagery
- Mapping
Site preparation
- Establishing a site datum
- Grid layout
Subsurface sampling
- Shovel test pits (STPs)
Controlled excavations
- Area and vertical
- Stratigraphic and arbitrary-level techniques
Data recovery
- Macro artifacts (0.6 cm sieves)
- Micro artifacts (< 0.6 cm in size, heavy and light fractions)
Documenting and recording
- Field specimen system
- Piece-plotting (point provenience)
- Plan and profile drawing
- Field photography a videography
Laboratory procedures
- Artifact processing
- Identification and cataloging