Two weeks into quarantine, I created an activity plan with daily goals to get us outside and away from the house. Hiking, creek hiking, artifact hunting, and Geocaching were already on our list. Andrew’s fascination with treasure increased as we become more involved with Geocaching. I decided to splurge and buy a White’s Coinmaster metal detector. Covid isolation was less annoying when we ha a list of activities to choose from, and digging for treasure moved to the top of the list!
Homeschool Class in a Beep
I grew up metal detecting with my parents so treasure hunting was not a new idea. When I was a pre-teen, metal detecting increased my love of history. I learned about the civil war by digging for treasure, artifacts and visiting battle fields. It is a unique dimension of investigation when you can hold a button from a soldier’s uniform as opposed to just reading about it. One of my first finds was an 1875 French coin. It was large, heavy and felt OH, SO good in my palm!
Focus and Patience
I’m not going to say that detecting was an instant hit. It takes awhile to learn the machine and develop an awareness of the beeps and blips. My eldest started Andrew out with a seeded search. He tossed some change off the back deck and sent Andrew out to find the coins.
I watch as Andrew worked through his realization that he had to focus even when an instant payoff didn’t happen. Surprisingly, as we learn to discriminate different metals and pinpoint where to dig, Andrew has maintained an excitement even when just a piece of copper wiring popped up out of the hole.
Andrew’s First Find
We have found our share of aluminum foil, pop tabs, and wire. Even though the metal detector’s discriminator tells us what kind of metal lies below and how deep, Andrew hates to leave anything unearthed. So we practice Trash Unearthed/Trash Out. What we dig, gets recycled or tossed. Andrew’s first find, was this little dog tag. He was thrilled!
Not Just About Treasure
One thing that bothers me about detecting is the complaints from landowners, park rangers, and grounds keepers regarding some detecting hobbyists who leave behind unsightly holes and trash. This is rather unfortunate because it ruins the sport for everyone. It has given me the opportunity to teach Andrew about the environment, and to think of the landowners and workers who try to maintain the areas where we detect. Andrew has yet to master keeping dirt in a tidy pile, he’s more like a turtle flipping dirt in all directions. But, he is getting there. We make sure the dirt is scraped back in and we add grass seed to the scar. Pleasing the owners and workers makes sure you are allowed back.
Metal Detecting accomplishes the goal!
Digging for Treasure
Andrew’s goal is to fill his own treasure chest. There is a whole arsenal of unknown trinkets and treasure beneath our feet. Digging for treasure just takes patience and persistence. Of course, there is also the added homeschool dimension. No complaints there!
Sign up for our monthly newsletter and find out about our latest finds!
