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Foraging Simulation

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WORLD HISTORY PROJECTORIGINS / LESSON 2.3ACTIVITYFORAGING SIMULATIONUnless otherwise noted, this work is licensed under CC BY 4.0. Credit: “Foraging Simulation”, OER Project, https://www.oerproject.com/1PurposeThis simulation is meant to show the relationship between the availability of naturally occurring resources and the likelihood of successful existence as a forager (someone who hunts and gathers for food). Looking ahead, this will also give you some helpful background to discuss the transition from foraging to agriculture.Process1.You’ll attempt to forage enough resources to survive. Your teacher will tell you the boundaries of the search area as well as the “resources” you’ll be looking for. You must find a total of three resources to “survive” the round. Of those three, you need to have at least one of each resource. After you’ve found these resources, you may keep looking or do what you like with the remaining time.2.After Round 1, respond to the following questions:•What were some difficulties you had finding resources?•What might account for differences in the amount of resources you and your classmates collected?
WORLD HISTORY PROJECT ORIGINS / LESSON 2.3ACTIVITYFORAGING SIMULATION23.During the second round, you’ll have less time to find at least as many resources as you did in the first round. After Round 2, respond to the following questions:•What factors made finding water and food more difficult the second time?•How does this simulation help you explain why some humans made the transition to agriculture?•How long could you survive in one spot if you were relying only on foraging natural resources?
WORLD HISTORY PROJECT ORIGINS / LESSON 2.3ACTIVITYFORAGING SIMULATION3•How does the number of people relying on the resources impact foraging?•What are the possible responses to increased pressure on natural resources?Note:This activity is based on From Foraging to Farming, an activity that appears on the National Agriculture in the Classroom website https://agclassroom.org/matrix/lesson/418/.