Sugar Cube Fossil Activity
Procedure / Lab
What happened with sugar cube 1?
• It stays intact
– Sugar cube doesn’t dissolve. Clay keep its shape
• It dissolves slightly but not completely
– Sugar cube was no longer in cube shape but
instead was mushy.
– Clay kept its shape but then fell apart once it was
out of the water
What happened with sugar cube 2?
• Sugar cube started dissolving.
• Very little sugar was left inside the clay
• The clay kept its shape
What happened with sugar cube 3?
• Dissolved completely
Did the clay preserve the sugar cubes?
• Yes and No
– It worked to preserve #1 (mostly)
– Didn’t work very well to preserve #2
Explain when the clay worked to
preserve the sugar cube.
• When the clay completely covered the sugar
cube it was able to keep the water out
Explain when the clay didn’t work to
preserve the sugar cube
• When there was holes in the clay
• When the clay fell apart
• When the cube wasn’t completely covered
Explain how this activity is similar to
the way fossils are formed.
• Animals need to be completely
covered/protected in order to become a fossil
What needs to occur to an organism in
order for it to become a fossil?
• Completely protected
• It needs to be covered fairly quickly
– Before weathering / scavengers get to it
List the ways an organism can be
preserved in nature.
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Buried by mud
Buried by ash
Buried by sand
Buried by dust
Frozen in ice
Covered in tar
Covered in amber
What do you think the stirring could
have represented?
• Wind / Weathering
What could happen to prevent an
organism from becoming a fossil?
• Weathering / Erosion
• Scavengers / Animals
• Bugs
Experimental Errors
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Amount of clay
How much of the sugar cube was covered
Air Tight versus openings in the clay
Speed of stirring
Amount of time it was stirred
Removing the sugar cubes / leaving them in
water
• Removing the clay gently / smashing it
• Water Temperature