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Archaeologists rarely find a complete skeleton; bones scatter, decay, and go missing long before they're ever excavated. This activity lets you experience that challenge firsthand: reconstruct real animal skeletons from their disarticulated parts, then see if you can do it when several animals are mixed together.

Just like a map needs north, south, east, and west, a skeleton needs its own set of directional terms, otherwise "the bone above the knee" means something different depending on which way the animal is facing. This short resource gets you fluent in the language zooarchaeologists use to describe where something is.

Every animal bone tells a story — but only if we know how to read it. This resource follows that story from the moment a bone leaves the ground to the moment it helps answer a bigger question about our understanding of the past. The pipeline is divided into four stages, at excavation, followed by post excavation and in the lab, to integrating information. Each entry defines key ideas, highlighting their importance, and providing prompts for you to reflect on.

In this activity you will learn how to create your own 3D models of artefacts using open access software. This activity was created by Benjamin Steward, CBA Youth Advisor.

Field ecologist specialising in lichens and bryophytes Petra surveys lichens at archaeological places including hillforts, stone circles, drystone walls and churchyards. Her work examines not only which species are present, but how lichens interact with stone, monuments and the wider environment. In her interview, Petra shares how her interest in nature developed from childhood walks and practical conservation work into a career studying the relationship between lichens, geology, ecology and archaeology.

Author of Forgotten Forests Jonathan is an environmentalist and author with a longstanding interest in the lost and surviving woodlands of Britain. His work has included helping to protect part of London’s historic Great North Wood and researching the lost Forest of Morfe in Shropshire. In his interview, Jonathan reflects on a childhood spent exploring the woods and fields of rural Shropshire and explains how this early curiosity developed into a lifelong interest in forests, wildlife and landscape history.

Project Manager for the Countryside Code at Natural England Clare describes her role as part campaign manager, part partnership builder and part countryside champion. She works with conservation charities, National Parks, schools, community groups and land managers to help people enjoy the outdoors responsibly while protecting wildlife, landscapes and local communities. In her interview, Clare explores the history of the Countryside Code, which has helped people enjoy and respect the outdoors for 75 years, and explains how it continues to adapt as the ways we use the countryside change.