Lesson Plan
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Chesapeake Bay Fossils/Geology

For Teachers 5th - 10th
Students define and investigate paleontology, research geological history of the Chesapeake Bay, review geological time line, and identify fossils of the Chesapeake Bay.
Lesson Plan
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White Glue Fossils: Casts, Molds, and Impressions

For Teachers 2nd - 8th
Students make impressions and molds in clay and them make casts with glue. After the glue dries students remove their fossils.
Lesson Plan
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Types of Dinosaurs

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students complete puzzles of dinosaurs. They compare each piece of the puzzle to a fossil and simulate a scientist's role in learning about dinosaurs.
Lesson Plan
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Fossils

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd
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.
Lesson Plan
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Be a "Fossil Detective" an Effective Tool in Earth Science Education

For Teachers 4th - 7th
Students examine the geological time scale: the Earth is ancient; time can be divided into periods based on its fossil content.
Lesson Plan
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A Peek at the Past: Gradualism vs. Punctuated Equilibria

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students consider two sets of simulated fossils (caminalcules) that are provided as cutouts. They arrange them on two time scales. One set produces a visual example of gradualism, the other shows punctuated equilibria.
Lesson Plan
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Can You Find...on the "Progression of Life" Poster?

For Teachers 2nd - 6th
Students examine and analyze a poster that presents various types of animals throughout the ages. They determine biological classification with fossils and earth history in a game.
Lesson Plan
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Impressions in Clay

For Teachers K - 8th
Students examine how fossils are created. They make impressions of different objects in clay and compare them to examples of fossils.
Lesson Plan
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Candle-Wax Fossils: Casts, Molds, and Impressions

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Students examine and define fossils. They create their own impressions and molds in clay and candle wax, making external and internal molds.
Lesson Plan
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Fabulous Fossils

For Teachers 7th
Seventh graders investigate how fossils are formed and discuss how scientists determine the appearance of ancient plants and animals. They make fossils of everyday objects for others to identify. They make spreadsheets to display fossil...
Lesson Plan
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Fossils 1: Fossils and Dinosaurs

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Young scholars explain what can be learned from fossils and in doing so, realize the difference between fact and theory (idea). They also gain a general understanding of how fossils are formed.
Lesson Plan
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Hominid Diet

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students listen to an interview with Lucinda Backwell regarding fossil evidence that early hominids included termites in their diets. They participate in a discussion to investigate the significance of these findings.
Lesson Plan
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Fossil Hunt

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students ask questions about the nature of science as they experience a 'Fossil Hunt'. They reconstruct a book that has been literally destroyed, just as the fossil record has been changed by billions of years of geological processes.
Lesson Plan
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Utah Archaeology

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students study past cultures of those who made areas of Utah their home by exploring the artifacts these cultures left behind. Students will explore different types of fossils and learn that fossils are evidences of past life.
Lesson Plan
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How Science Works: Fossil Record - Televised Debate

For Teachers 10th - 11th
Students compare the three theories used tp interpret fossil records. In this earth science lesson, students create a production of a televised debate. They collaborate with group members to generate relevant questions about the topic.
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The Fossil Record

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers research about the animals found in Burgess Shale. In this earth science lesson, students evaluate the significance of fossils in human history. They create models of their chosen animal.
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Walking Whales

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders explore the theory of evolution of whales.  In this walking whales lesson students study a reading packet, divide into groups and respond to given questions. 
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Excavating Your Recycling Bin as a Fossil Record

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students explore how scientists examine the past and use rock layers with fossils to understand the past.  In this excavation lesson students divide into groups and complete an activity. 
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8th GRade SCience End of the Year Flip Video Review

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students explore video taping.  For this science review lesson, students create a video of an assigned science unit as a peer study tool.
Lesson Plan
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Making Materials for Parts of a Fossil

For Teachers 4th - 5th
Students create fossil books to study the process for crinoid fossilization. In this fossils activity, students color and identify the fossilization process of a crinoid. Students then create a booklet out of the information.
Lesson Plan
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Parts of a Crinoid

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Students study the parts of a crinoid. In this parts of a crinoid lesson, students look at pictures of a crinoid fossil or examine an actual fossil if one is available. They match names to pictures of the parts in the second part of the...
Lesson Plan
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Evolution

For Teachers 9th - 12th
For this evolution worksheet, students review genetic variability, gene mutations, biodiversity and adaptations. This worksheet has 22 fill in the blank and 10 short answer questions.
Worksheet
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Evolution and Geological Time

For Students 7th - 12th
In this evolution worksheet, students review the geological time scale and how evolution has taken place over time. This worksheet has 13 fill in the blank questions.
Lesson Plan
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Books for Teaching Dinosaurs

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st
Students investigate dinosaurs through books. For this lesson about dinosaurs, students read a variety of books about dinosaurs. Students become familiar with dinosaurs through reading about them. Students learn that reading is...