Fossil Focus
J. Galbreath, B. Gasior, Gifted Resource Specialists
Activate Prior Knowledge
What Is A Fossil?
Use this What Is A Fossil?, page to check prior knowledge and understanding. Then students can watch the video and add details and new information to their answer.
Learn all About Paleontology and Fossils
Visit the Ology website to meet a paleontologist, learn about fossils, read stories, play games, and more to learn all about paleontology and fossils!
How to Fossilize Yourself! (entertaining)
Demonstrate How Fossils Are Made
Using gummy bears and bread, the Society of Petroleum Engineers has put together this hands on way to demonstrate how fossils are made. Here are the lab instructions.
Examine Changes over Time
Ohio Rocks! Fossils
Let your students learn about fossils in Ohio and what those fossils can teach them about our great state. The Ohio Rocks! Fossils Google doc lets students pick a question to research before they watch the video below.
Ohio Rocks! Fossils
How Have Horses Changed Over Time?
Check out this Fossil Horse CyberMuseum! It is interactive and full of information. Look what can be learned by a skull or a foot fossil. Can your students describe what fossils have taught us about the evolution of horses? Here are two more resources.
Ohio Fossils Then and Now
The Metro Parks have created a brochure about Ohio fossils. The Fossil for Kids website has an interesting section called Fossils Now and Then. Have your students investigate the now and then pictures before trying to create a now and then profile for a fossil found here in Ohio. This Ohio Now and Then Fossils Google doc can be used for this lesson.
Career Education
WHAT IS PALEONTOLOGY?
WRITE A STORY
THE LIFE STORY OF A FOSSIL
Let your students write from the point of view of a fossil. They will imagine themselves as ancient organisms that have ended up as part of the fossil record. Their job is to tell their life and death stories - who they were, what their worlds were like, were they predators or prey, etc. This resource, THE LIFE STORY OF A FOSSIL, contains all the details your students will need. They will be asked to use The Paleontology Portal during their research process.