Digging in the dirt is a rite of passage for all Hyla students. Divided into groups and sworn to secrecy, 6th grade Humanities students invent an imaginary culture (in secrecy!), create artifacts (also in secrecy!), and bury the artifacts for classmates in another group to unearth. And so begins this annual tradition of inquiry and analysis known as “the dig”. As archaeologists, students take on the roles of a real dig: crew chief, recorder, measurer, washer-bagger, and dirt sifter. Using scientific methods and techniques, students excavate artifacts, record observations, and begin to piece together what each artifact might mean and represent. In the next few weeks, our archaeologists will write an analysis of the excavated artifacts, using evidence to support their thinking. Later this spring, both the artifacts and the analysis will be on display at Hyla.  From culture creation, to excavation, to analysis, the dig requires teamwork, collaboration, and communication. While students practice logic and creative thinking to determine the function of each unearthed object, they must work collectively, looking at all of the artifacts together, examining different possibilities, and discussing opinions. “They need to listen to each other,” teacher Jennifer emphasizes, because “a collaborative group comes up with better ideas.” Though digging into the past, students are preparing for their futures.