Fossils Lab
4th Grade PSI Science
Name ____________________________________
Let's make a fossil!
Day 1
1. Take the ball of clay and flatten it into the bottom if the cup to create the
sediment at the bottom of the lake.
2. Select 1 object and press it into the clay. Make sure it is face down in the clay
and do not push too hard. Once the impression is made, remove the object to
see the impression it made.
3. Add 1/2 paper cup of DRY plaster into the top of the cup.
4. The teacher will add between 1-3 T of water to the mixture (you will want
the consistency to be thick!) and you will stir it gently.
5. Once it is stirred to the consistency needed, we will store it in a dry place
over night.
Day 2
6. Before the start of the lesson, carefully tear open the cups over a trash can to
revel the fossil.
What is your fossil of? _______________________________________________________________________
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What does the clay represent? _____________________________________________________________
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Describe what happened for your fossil to be formed: ___________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
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_________________________________________________________________________________________________
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www.njctl.org
4th Grade PSI Science
History of Planet Earth
Teacher Notes:
What is your fossil of?
used to create them.
Answers will vary depending on the different objects you
What does the clay represent? The clay represents the sediment that has been
collecting over the years. It could be mud, sand or gravel.
Describe what happened for your fossil to be formed: For the fossil to form, it was in
sediment that was collecting for a long time. It collects over the years in the
sediment rock that formed to fossil.
www.njctl.org
4th Grade PSI Science
History of Planet Earth