We started with a paper dinosaur bone hunt. I drew 5 Tyrannosaurus Rex skeletons, cut them up and hid them all over my classroom. My 2nd graders had to find the bones in their set and then they had to work together to assemble the skeletons. They had so much fun hunting for "fossils"! I did not show them the completed skeleton beforehand, they had to figure out how the bones fit together like puzzle pieces & they did a great job!
We examined the real fossils that I have in my classroom. The top pic is a 15 lb. dinosaur bone given to me by a paleontologist. It is MILLIONS of years old! My students think it is so cool! They can't believe how heavy it is. Bottom pic is a 12 inch T. Rex tooth:
After looking at real fossils, we played a Fossil Guessing Game:
I would love to fly to Wyoming to dig for dinosaur bones with my class but until then - we have to do virtual excavations using our interactive whiteboard. My favorite virtual excavation for kids is from the Smithsonian's website. It's called Virtual Dinosaur Dig & it was created by the Smithsonian's Paleobiology Department. In my classroom, I have an Epson BrightLink Interactive Projector mounted on the ceiling. It turns my whiteboard into an interactive whiteboard using something my students call "Magic Pen". Everyone gets a turn at the step-by-step excavation of a stegosaurus skeleton. We then wrap the skeleton up & transport it to the Smithsonian where we assemble the skeleton - all virtually! My class loves this! I do not tell the children the type of skeleton they're unearthing - they use their heads & figure it out as more & more of the fossil is revealed. I made up a worksheet to go along with the virtual dig, click here for a copy.
Next week, we'll make 4 types of fossils -cast, mold, true form & trace. My classroom will be pretty messy but hands-on science is the way to go!
Hope you're all enjoying Presidents' Day weekend!
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