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5th Grade Science Word Search Puzzle
In this 5th grade science vocabulary word search instructional activity, 5th graders will find and circle nine words or phrases such as "organism" and "fossil".
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History Theory of Evolution
Learners identify fossils. They identify evidence of change over time when given pictures of fossils to determine the proper sequencing. In addition, they determine evolutionary relationships by comparing embryonic structures.
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"Making a Good Impression"
Students are shown how fossils are formed and to learn how extinct organisms lived based on their remains and surroundings. They are shown TAKS review problems on the overhead related to evolution and fossil evidence. Students discuss...
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Fossils
First graders write a brief informational description of a real life object, person, place or event using information gained from observations. They create their own fossil imprints and write a brief description about the fossil that...
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Geology of Connecticut
Students examine the geology of Connecticut, including plate tectonics, glaciation, and fossil formation.
After reviewing past lessons, they write essays about what life may have been like in the Mesozoic Period. Following a field...
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Excavating the Past
Young scholars discover how palaeontologists conduct a dig for fossils and how they interpret the age of the fossils. In small groups, they prepare a "dig site" consisting of bones, rocks and soil layered in a cardboard box. They switch...
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Science: Down Home Dinosaurs
students participate in hands-on activities to discover the different types of fossils. Using teacher-provided materials, they make models of cast and trace fossils. After writing essays describing how traces are formed, students plan a...
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Making Tracks
Fifth graders examine the fossil footprints of two and four legged dinosaurs. Using this information, they try to determine how the dinosaurs lived their lives. They use their own walking pattern to compare it to the dinosaurs and...
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Making Tracks
Young scholars participate in groups to show how two legged and four legged dinosaurs walked. Using fossilized footprints, they identify the two and four legged dinosaurs shown. They use the internet to determine what happen by a...
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Curse of T. Rex
Learners debate ownership by researchers and commercial dealers of fossils found on public land. They research and collect information on collecting, buying, and selling fossils from public land. They suggest ways to enable the...
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Where Should We Place Archaeopteryx?
High schoolers classify Archaeopteryx using pictures of actual fossils and scientist representations of how the animal might have looked. They compare Archaeopteryx's characteristics to those of the five extant vertebrate groups to...
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It's All In The Rocks
Students think critically to determine fact or inference when examining sedimentary layers with embedded fossils. Geology and evolutionary biology are introduced. They individually write a story about various diagrams and share their...
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Studying Fossils
Students study the Evolution in the Light of Fossils. Activities in this lesson range from quantitative measurements of hominoid skulls to the comparison of hominoid bone structures. They hypothesize dinosaur size and speed by looking at...
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Investigating Erosion in an Outdoor Classroom
First graders observe the effects of erosion. They work in groups to simulate erosion in a streambed, participate in class discussion, read books about fossils and rocks and then go on a fossil hunt.
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Dinosaur Detectives
Students examine amphibian evolution by comparing fossils with a modern-day skeleton. They experience the scientific thought process of drawing conclusions from limited paleontological data. Student groups align the figures with the...
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Fossil Guide
Young scholars produce a "Fossil Guide" that covers twelve fossils and includes a drawing and written description for each fossil. The written description should include such things as size, shape, and general appearance.
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Dig It!
Second graders complete various activities about dinosaurs and fossils. They conduct Internet research, participate in a sandbox dinosaur fossil dig, and create a computer slideshow presentation using information they found on various...
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Make a Cast of a Tyrannosaurus rex Fossil
Second graders examine the formation of fossils and list the different types. They make cast model of a dinosaur fossil. They write about conditions that are necessary for fossils to form and create a model of a buried fossil.
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Dino Fossils
Primary paleontologists discover the information they can gather from examining fossils. They place pictures in the correct sequence showing how an animal becomes a fossil. They discuss which sediments would preserve fossils better as well.
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Paleoecology of "Fossilized" Owl Pellets
Students examine fossilized owl pellets to determine how a species environmental preferences allow us to reconstruct probable past environments. Differences in anatomy are used to identify species in this lesson.
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Dino Traces
Young scholars are introduced to the type of evidence that is found at a typical dinosaur dig. They create rubbing casts of bone impressions on paper and, using bones, identify dinosaurs.
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Dino Detectives
As students examine maps of Utah, 4th graders search for clues about what prehistoric life was like in Utah.
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Dinosaur I Finding And Dating
Students investigate how long dinosaurs lived on Earth and how that compare to how long man has been on Earth. They discover how scientists excavate fossils.
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Insects Preserved in Amber
Students examine and discuss amber and fossils in amber. They simulate the preservation of an insect in amber using glue, a dead insect, and food coloring, listen to a poem about amber, and view real amber under a magnifying glass or...