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No Bones About It
Students act as paleontologists, examining pictures of dinosaur skeletons and applying their knowledge of the relationship between skeletal features and survival, to create 'Paleontology Reports' about their perceptions of the lives of...
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Prehistoric Discoveries
Students agree or disagree with several statements about ancient animals, then read a news article about recent prehistoric discoveries. In this earth science and current events lesson, the teacher introduces the article with a...
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Fabulous Fossils
Students investigate how fossils are formed. They read the book, "Digging Up Dinosaurs," examine fossil samples, create a fossil imprint using play-doh, and complete a Fossil Questionnaire activity sheet.
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Fossils!
Learners conduct Internet research about different types of fossils, the animals they are from, and some famous paleontologists. They also participate in some interactive activities and hands-on lessons in which they create their own...
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Fossils
Young scholars discuss the work of a paleontologist and examine several fossils and books on paleontology. They use clay and Plaster of Paris to create a cast of an object and compare this activity to the formation of fossils in nature.
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Dinosaur Detectives
Young scholars 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...
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Animal Tracks - Walking and Running
Learners, using paper and water, make tracks and record the time needed to make them. They compare tracks made walking and running to determine the speed of the animal.
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Paleontology: A Field Experience
Students go to a dig where they prospect for bones which simulate fossils. They encase the bones in plaster and transport them back to school for further investigation.
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Dinosaurs - Creatures Of The Past
Students use the Internet to search for dinosaurs, then distinguish between meat-eating and plant-eating dinosaurs. They explore theories about the extinction of dinosaurs and create illustrations of dinosaurs using Kid Pix or other...
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Studying Fossils: Dinosaur Tracks From Stride to leg Length to Speed
Students explore dinosaurs. Students determine the relationship between leg length, stride length, and speed in humans and bipedal dinosaurs. Students analyze collected information. Based upon the data, dinosaur tracks, and fossils,...
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The Dinosaur Body
Students investigate how body design affects balance. They make simple models of dinosaur bodies using straws and marshmallows. Before making their models, they discuss the effects of gravity and the importance of balance in body shape.
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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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What Killed the Dinosaurs?
High schoolers demonstrate how scientists use evidence to formulate hypotheses. They write an essay describing the Cretaceous and Paleocene time periods from the point of view of someone living in that time. In addition, they formulate...
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Fossils
Learners act as paleontologists to discover who a mystery guest to the classroom was. They do not know the identity of the guest but infer the identity from items left behind in the classroom. They make inferences from dinosaur fossils.
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Learning about Fossils
Students explain the difficulty that paleontologists have in assembling fossil bones. Hard cookies are used to simulate dinosaur bones/fossils. They research the Apatosaurus and discuss paleontology.
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Fossil Inferences
Fourth graders use their knowledge about fossils to arrange fossil pictures in sequence from oldest to youngest. They explain how fossils can be used to make inferences about past life, climate, geology, and environments and discover...
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T-Rex
Students examine the differences between a scavenger and a predator. In this predator lesson students research an animal and study its physical traits.
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No bones About It -A Mosasaur
Learners model a paleontologist's activities. They identify dinosaur bones and reassemble them into a skeleton of an extinct reptile.
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Be a Paleontologist
Students search for fossils in a simulated archeology site and explore how paleontologists mark out a dig site.
American Museum of Natural History
Layer of Time
Dig through the layers for a better understanding of fossils. Scholars learn that fossils form in layers of sedimentary rock. Pupils arrange virtual layers to show the fossil record of different species. Once the layers are correct, they...
American Museum of Natural History
Identification Adventure
Put all the pieces together. After a skeleton is put together, pupils play the scientist to determine the type of animal they have by using a classification tree to narrow down the identity. After each decision, they gain advice from an...
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Dino Traces
Students 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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Dig This
Fifth graders explore the work of paleontologists and the life of dinosaurs and create a sculpture of the bones of a Stegosaurus. The sculpture was then buried and used by other classes for a dig.
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Excavation Dig
Learners engage in a role-play of a dinosaur excavation dig. They dig through sand to locate buried bones and then discuss the ethics of destroying buildings and other property to get at the fossil remains.