Chloe Baxendale
Science Lesson Plan – Animals of the Past/Earth Processes
Title: Fossils teach us about dinosaurs
Grade: 3
CPALMS Standard: SC.3.N.1.6 Infer based on observation.
Inquiry Question: How can fossils help us learn about the past?
Main idea: Even though dinosaurs lived millions of years ago, scientists have been able to learn a lot of
information about them. Information about hundreds of dinosaurs, plants, and animals, was gathered
by scientists who studied fossils.
Objectives: The student will be able to:
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
Define what a fossil is, what a paleontologist is, and what it means to be extinct. (cognitive)
Describe at least one way a fossil is formed. (Cognitive)
Create their own fossils using model dinosaurs and clay. (psychomotor)
Record their inferences on a data sheet. (psychomotor)
Compare inferences made about fossils with the class. (psychomotor)
Use observations to infer how real fossils are created. (cognitive)
Concepts: Dinosaurs (extinct species), paleontology, the process of fossilization.
Process Skills: Observation, inference, recording data, communicating, comparing.
Materials: Internet access to the Brain Pop, Jr. video about fossils
(http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/land/fossils/), clay, model dinosaurs, lab sheet, vocabulary
matching worksheet
LESSON PROCEDURES:
Exploration: (approximately 20 minutes)
First, review the lab safety contract with students. Tell students that they are expected to raise hands
before answering a question and follow all instructions. Warn students that if they disobey instructions,
they will be deducted Dojo Points (classroom behavior is managed using a point system). Once students
are made aware of expectations, proceed with the lesson. The teacher will begin the class by asking
students, “what facts do you know about dinosaurs?” The class will have a brief discussion about
dinosaurs that pulls from their background knowledge. Then the teacher will ask, “How do you think
scientists discovered these facts about dinosaurs?” There will be another whole group discussion in
which the teacher guides students to think about the importance of fossils. The teacher will then
announce “we are starting today’s lesson by doing a fossil lab.” The teacher will preassemble “fossil
kits.” These are just Ziploc bags that contain a small dinosaur figurine and a ball of clay. Each child will be
given a fossil kit and a lab sheet. At the beginning of the lab, the teacher will tell her students that they
will be creating fossils. She will say to the students, “Use your clay and your dinosaurs to make fossils in
whichever way you believe is appropriate. Then, on your lab sheet, describe the different ways you used
your materials to make a fossil. After creating your fossil, also make an inference about how real fossils
are formed and record it on your lab sheet.”
Explanation: (approximately 25 minutes)
The teacher asks the class to reflect on the activity they have just completed.
Ask students how they utilized their materials in order to create fossils of their own. Write some student
examples on the board. Then ask students, “based on your physical experience today, how do you think
real fossils are formed?” Have a class discussion about how fossils take a long period of time to form and
how a significant amount of pressure is often required to make them.
Pull up the BrainPop video about fossils. Pass out the vocabulary matching worksheet. Inform students
that they may complete the worksheet while the video is playing. Also ask the students to write down at
least three interesting facts presented in the video on the back of their worksheet.
Throughout the video, pause and ask the class important questions in order to encourage critical
thinking. These questions should include:
What are fossils?
How do fossils form?
In today’s lab, which material played the role of sediment and which material provided gravity and
pressure?
What other discoveries help us learn about the Earth’s past?
Since videos can discuss topics at a quick pace, it is important to pause and present these questions so
that a whole-group discussion may take place. It will reinforce facts that were just presented to students
in the video.
When the video concludes, the teacher will ask her students the inquiry question: How can fossils help
us learn about the past?
The teacher explains to her class that fossils give us clues about the past. By looking at fossils, we are
able to learn about the lives of extinct creatures like dinosaurs. We can find fossilized items such as
bones, teeth, and plants. These help us learn about what different dinosaurs ate and if they hunted
other creatures. Fossils can also be traces left over from a dinosaur’s life. We have found dinosaur
footprints, dinosaur nests, and even dinosaur droppings. This gives scientists more information about
what dinosaurs ate, how they interacted with other dinosaurs, if they walked on two or four legs, and if
they were migratory.
Terms:
Fossil: Something left from a plant or animal that lived long ago that has turned into rock.
Extinct: No longer living and none of its kind are alive today.
Sediment: Different kinds of rock or soil, like mud, sand, or clay.
Paleontologist: A scientist who studies fossils to learn about the Earth’s past.
Decompose: To break down or rot.
Expansion: (approximately 10 minutes)
The teacher will present the class with photos of actual dinosaur fossils. Based on the photos, students
will be asked to identify “clues” that may show them how their dinosaur lived. For example, they may
look at the tooth shape to see if it would be better for eating meat and plants. They will also look at the
size to see if they believe it to be a predator or a form of prey to other dinosaurs. Students will take
turns presenting their findings to the class. The teacher will elaborate on student findings to clarify how
specific dinosaurs actually lived when they walked the Earth.
Evaluation: (occurring informally during the Explanation portion of the lesson/through vocabulary
worksheet)
1. Define what a fossil is, what a paleontologist is, and what it means to be extinct (Obj. a).
2. Describe at least one way a fossil is formed. (Obj. b).
The following items are steps taken during the experiment and at the beginning of the Explanation
portion of the lesson:
Step 1: Create their own fossils using model dinosaurs and clay. (Obj. c)
Step 2: Use observations to infer how real fossils are created. (Obj. f)
Step 3: Record their inferences on a data sheet. (Obj. d)
Step 4: Compare inferences made about fossils with the class. (Obj. e)