I Dig Dinosaurs

Brief Description

Students learn how dinosaurs are named, participate in a group fossil dig, and create an image of a dinosaur.

Objectives

After learning how dinosaurs are named, students create original drawings of dinosaurs. Students work in groups to gain a greater understanding of how difficult fossil removal may be.

Keywords

dinosaurs, fossils, dig, prefix, suffix

Materials Needed

• For each group: one paper plate, one chocolate chip cookie, one toothpick
• For each student: construction or white drawing paper, art materials (crayons, markers, etc.), writing paper, pencils
• For the class: teacher-made chart, teacher-made prefix cards, suffix cards, and main word cards

Lesson Plan

Teacher suggestion: Divide the activity into two lessons to be taught over two days.

Lesson 1

• Begin the lesson by asking the class the questions "What do you know about dinosaurs?" "How do we know that dinosaurs lived long ago?" Write students' responses on a chart.
• Explain what fossils are and then say, "I'm going to let each of you help find "dinosaur fossils."
• Assign students in groups of two or four. Distribute one paper plate, one chocolate chip cookie and one toothpick to each group. Hang up a chart that says the following: "Each fossil: $25. Break a fossil PAY $15. Tool rental (the toothpick): $5. Destroy the ground: PAY $10."
• Tell students that they are going to try to remove the "dinosaur fossils" (chocolate chips) from the "ground" (the cookie) without breaking the fossil or the ground. Give students about 20 minutes to complete this activity.
• At the end of the lesson, tally each group's achievements; add up the "profits" and subtract the "fines."

• Begin the next lesson by asking students "How are dinosaurs named?" Write students' answers on a chart.
• Explain that dinosaurs are named in four ways: where the dinosaur fossils are found (for example, Edmontosaurus, Albertosaurus); after a famous scientist (for example, Lambeosaurus); by the way the animals acted (for example, T. Rex, the KING of the dinosaurs); and how the animals looked (for example, Stegosaurus -- plated lizard, Triceratops -- three horns on face).
• Display word cards showing prefixes, suffixes, and main words of dinosaur names and their meanings. Move the cards around to create different dinosaur names (for example, change Triceratops to Microceratops -- small-horned face).
• Distribute writing paper and tell students to copy a prefix, a main word, and a suffix to create a new dinosaur name. For example, if students copy the prefix "tri" (three), the main word "donto" (teeth), and the suffix "saurus" (lizard), the new word would be "tridontosaurus" (three-toothed lizard).
• Have students to draw pictures of the dinosaurs they create. Tell students to make sure that the drawings match the names.

Lesson 1

After completing the activity, ask students to explain why it is difficult to remove fossils from the ground. Evaluate the tallies of students' "profits" and "fines."

Review students' illustrations to see if their drawings match the names students gave their dinosaur creations and reflect an understanding of how dinosaurs are named.

Lesson Plan Source

Submitted by: Terri La Masa, ([email protected]) St. Anne Elementary School, Grants Pass, Oregon

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