This fish skeleton is a well-preserved example of what can be found on a fossil hunt.
Dinosaurs are one of those intriguing topics we never outgrow, and studying their fossils can be fascinating. But dinosaurs aren't the only creatures that left behind fossils. Shark teeth, fish and lizard skeletons and even plants have been preserved through time and are still found today. The popularity of fossils only grows with each new fossil we discover, and introducing fun classroom activities about them is one way to make learning fun.
Baked Bread Eggs
For this activity, you will need:
Many 1- to 2-inch plastic dinosaurs or dinosaur bones from a learning or toy store
3 lbs. bread dough mix
Baking sheet
Oven
Toothpicks
Paint (optional)
Make a large bowl of classic bready-biscuit dough. When you form the dough into balls on a baking sheet, press one plastic dinosaur into the center and wrap the dough around it, making sure no pointed tails or spikes are still visible. Bake these "dinosaur eggs" as the bread recipe instructs until golden brown. Then, give one cooled egg to each child in your class and provide them with a toothpick for digging. You can even paint the bread to look like an egg, if you would like. This is an activity best suited for children between the ages of 7 and 12.
Sandbox Discovery
For this, you will need:
Large sandbox or kiddie pool filled with sand
Paint brushes and hand-sized plastic rakes (enough for your whole class)
Plastic dinosaur bones, claws, eggs, shark teeth, etc (or real, if you have them)
Remove half of the sand and place it on a plastic sheet or fill the pool half-way. Scatter the bones, claws, etc., in the sand, making sure to push some down to a lower level. Continue adding sand and fossils, at varying depths, until the sandbox is full. Then, give each child a brush or rake and let them dig like real archeologists. This activity is best suited for children under 10.
Fossil Match
For this activity, you will need:
Posters of different early earth environments (when dinosaurs ruled)
Pictures of some of the dinosaurs that owned the footprints, bones, etc.
Various fossils (real are ideal or good representations of them) including: footprints, plant impressions, bones, amber, etc., that match the posters and pictures of dinosaurs
Candy
This is a matching game. Give each kid in the class at least one fossil and let them try to figure out where it belongs. A child with a shark tooth would put it near the ocean poster, for example. Or a kid with amber may put it in the forest, near the trees. Then let each child explain why that particular fossil goes there and reward them with candy. This can be a fast-paced game, if you want it to be. Kids of all ages will love being rewarded and they'll retain the information they've learned longer.
Guest Lecturer
No, don't invite anyone boring to your class. This is a chance to invite someone so excited by dinosaurs that they ooze enthusiasm with every word. Call a local museum or university and ask for a resident paleontologist or geologist with a penchant for fossils. Ask them to inspire your children to learn about the creatures that once dominated our planet. If the visiting lecturer is exciting enough, she will keep children of all ages fascinated.
Fossil Hunt
For this activity, you will need:
Transportation
Permission from your school
Permission from your students' parents
Money for a dig
If you're lucky enough to live near a fossil dig, such as Kemmerer, Wyoming, or near a creek bed full of ancient shark teeth, such as Greensprings Park in Greenville, North Carolina, why not try a field trip? Nothing compares to a hands-on learning experience. Complete a quick search online for any cheap and exciting prospects near the school, then see if your class and school is interested.
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