Curated OER
Paleontologist: Can You Dig It?
Students investigate what a paleontologist does. They participate in a dinosaur dig, write a story, and explore the Dinosaur Dig website to view and discuss photos of a real dinosaur dig.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Human Feet Are Strange
Feet are neat! So, if you've already walked the path of examining animal footprints with your class, put them in the shoes of early humans! A well-designed lesson incorporates video, discussion, and hands-on learning to demonstrate how...
Curated OER
Fantastic Fossils
Students learn about the kinds of fossils and what scientists can learn from them. In this earth science activity, students are told how engineers and paleontologists work together. Then students create a "fossil fondue" and write a...
Curated OER
Dinosaur Detectives
Middle schoolers write a report about a paleontologist. For this paleontology lesson, students research and write a report about a noted paleontologist. They discuss the importance of technology to paleontologists and how paleontologist...
Curated OER
Fossils!
Students 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...
Alabama Learning Exchange
We Can Dig It!
Third graders understand the process by which fossils and rocks are excavated. In this fossil and rock lesson, 3rd graders explore the job of the paleontologist in a podcast.
Curated OER
Be a Paleontologist
Students search for fossils in a simulated archeology site and explore how paleontologists mark out a dig site.
Curated OER
Dig This: A Relief Sculpture of Dinosaur Bones
This is a truly amazing project. Perfect to use during your next dinosaur unit. Second and fifth graders work together to draw and make a relief sculpture of a nine foot-long stegosaurus. They discuss what paleontologists do and then...
California Academy of Science
What Kind of Geologist Am I?
Transform your class into young geologists as they learn about six different branches of geology. Using the included geology career descriptions and picture cards, learners work in small groups deciding which tools and locations fit...
Curated OER
Xenosmilus
Students play the roles of paleontologists on a dig. They unearth a few fossils at a time and attempt to reconstruct the animal the fossils represent.
Project SMART
Dinosaur Trek
Second graders investigate dinosaurs. They explore various websites, submit questions to a paleontologist online, construct cut and paste model dinosaur skeletons, develop a graph to compare dinosaurs, and label pictures from online...
Curated OER
We Really Dig Archeology and Palentology
Sixth graders examine the differences between archeology and paleontology. Using the internet, they explore the tools and techniques used in each field. They must use the correct tools to uncover and record the objects they find. They...
Curated OER
Fossils
Pupils 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.
Curated OER
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.
Curated OER
Dinosaur Traces
Learners identify and interpret the type of evidence found at a typical dinosaur dig and mimic a paleontologist by taking crayon rubbings of simulated bone impressions. After the rubbings are taken, the students reconstruct the complete...
Curated OER
Weighing a Dinosaur
Learners role play as paleontologists who make inferences about the weight of dinosaurs. They use models and the density of water to make these inferences.
Curated OER
What is the Evidence for Evolution?
Students work in teams in this Webquest, to conduct research on selected Web sites and then report their findings. In this Evolution WebQuest, specialists (students) gather evidence from the fields of paleontology, anatomy and...
Curated OER
From Human Skeletons to Owl Pellets to Paleontology
Students explore about the function of the skeleton and comprehend the names of the bones of the human skeleton. They compare bones of the human skeleton to a dinosaur skeleton and graph to compare these bones. Students sort bones to...
Curated OER
Dino Babies
Young scholars distinguish between dinosaurs and fossils. They escribe what paleontologists do and how they reconstruct the lives of dinosaurs from the fossil record. In addition, they state that dinosaurs hatched from eggs.
Curated OER
Dig This Dinosaur Relief Lesson
Students create low-fire ceramic relief sculptures of dinosaur bones. They incorporate art history, aesthetics, and criticism with hands on activity. Students work together to draw an enlarged skeleton on butcher paper. The Stegosaurus...
Curated OER
Animal Tracks - Walking and Running
Students, 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.
Curated OER
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.
Curated OER
Biology: Howler Monkeys Tell All
Students examine a PBS special about howler monkeys as an introduction to scientific forensic investigative methods. In groups, they conduct a host of experiments containing clues which point to discovery. By challenging assumptions,...
Curated OER
DinoWorks
DinoWorks is a paleontolgy kit that you can order from skullduggery.com. This resource has directions that come with it. Primary paleontolgists examine bone replicas of the Velociraptor, Tyrannosaurus, and Triceratops that you prepare...