How to Create a Time Capsule Unit for the Classroom
Kids are fascinated by the idea of time capsules, which they see as a kind of buried treasure waiting to be excavated and investigated. A unit on time capsules can easily become a cross-curricular experience, incorporating history, geography, language arts and visual arts. Students will learn about time capsules from the past, as well as ones that are currently waiting to be opened. At the end of the unit, they’ll have fun creating their own personal time capsules.
Instructions
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Start the unit by explaining the purpose of time capsules and telling students about some famous time capsules--like the Century Safe, which was created in 1876 and opened in 1976 for the U.S. bicentennial celebration. You might also mention the Westinghouse capsule created for the 1939 World's Fair; two capsules buried on the grounds of Expo '70 in Osaka, Japan; and the New York Times millennial capsule. (See the links in Resources.)
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Contact your area's historical society or a research library to find out if there are any local buildings that house time capsules. You might also want to explain that, when new schools, churches, public buildings or other structures are built, time capsules are often built into their cornerstones.
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Read the opening of Alison Scarlett Giblin’s book, “The Children of Conygre and the Time Capsule," an intriguing novel for young people in which some children embark on a magical journey after opening a rusty old time capsule. Ask students to write a paragraph imaginatively summarizing what might happen in the rest of the book.
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Explain to students that they will be creating time capsules designed to be opened after a much shorter-than-usual period of time. These will be personal time capsules for the students to take home and open at a later date. Try to come up with a significant date for the opening; for example, fifth graders might be encouraged to put their capsules away to open when they’re 10th graders. Ask students to bring boxes that can serve as the containers for the contents of their time capsules.
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Allow the students to decorate the boxes. In addition to his name, each student might write the date on which the time capsule will be sealed and the date on which he intends to open it. The students can also decorate their boxes with drawings, cartoons and popular expressions.
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Give the students ideas for items to put inside their time capsules. They might like to put in one of their school pictures; you could take a class picture and make enough copies for every student. Some students might want to include family photos. The front page of the newspaper would make a good addition, as well as a grocery ad showing current prices. They might like to put in a TV schedule and a list of their favorite shows, a menu from a fast-food restaurant, a souvenir from a vacation or a sports event, or some school papers. They might like to include a note or email from a friend. Ask each student to write a short letter to her future self, along with a couple of predictions.
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Tips & Warnings
If you have some extra time, read the students the interesting article on missing time capsules that is linked to in Resources.
Caution the kids against including any food items, like candy or gum, in their time capsules.
