Fossils and Geologic Time
Beginning of lesson:
I begin this lesson by asking students to answer the following question:
"With so many organisms that die everyday, why is it that only a small percentage of organisms that ever lived actually become fossils?"
Write an answer in your ISN. Share your response with your seatmate.
Start by watching this Video, Fossils 101 National Geographic
After watching the video answer this question in your ISN; The fossil record is a primary account that tells the story of life on Earth through stone. What intrigues you the most about the fossilization process? Pair share your answer with your seat neighbor. Share out with the class if you are comfortable.
Activity: Read the article, Fossilization. At the end of the article there is a short video for you to watch. Scroll down and find the questions. Write the answers in your ISN.
1. What are fossils?
2. What type of rocks are fossils found in?
3. What are sediments?
4. Explain how a fossil is created.
5. What factors have exposed sedimentary rock?
Review
1. Give three examples of body fossils and trace fossils.
2. Under what conditions do fossils form?
3. Why are more fossils of marine organisms than of land organisms?Making Inferences From Fossils
Activity: Read the article, Surprise, Fossils in a Flash! at the end of the article answer the following questions:
Before reading:
- Have you ever handled a fossil? In what sort of environment or under what sorts of conditions do you think the animal’s remains became fossilized?
- Now picture a fossil fish, bird or snake. Create two lists that detail 1) what body parts you would expect to find preserved in the fossil and 2) what body parts you would not.
- Why do the bluish-gray rocks described in the first paragraph resemble fish?
- Explain why David Martill used an acid bath instead of a power saw to reveal contents of his Brazilian rocks.
- Other than bones, what else did Martill discover inside the rocks?
- Define “taphonomy.”
- What is the legend of the Medusa? What is the “Medusa effect?”
- Describe why a paleontologist would be interested in learning how modern animals rot after death.
- Why is apatite important in the preservation of delicate features?
- What are the “replicas” that Rudolf and Elizabeth Raff study?
- Why does Sarah Gabbott say you must rot an animal before comparing it to a fossil?
- What surprising discovery did Robert Sansom make during his rotting experiments?
- What is a source of the phosphate needed to flash fossilize fish?
- “The absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence.” What does this expression mean? How can it relate to Sansom’s experiments on amphioxus, and what do those experiments suggest about Cathaymyrus?
Activity: Interpreting a horse and dino skeleton
At this point students will begin to discover how to analyze skeletal remains to make inferences about an organism. I start by discussing with students that there is a lot of information about an animal is lost during the fossilization process.
I use the PowerPoint interpreting Horse and Dino Skeleton to guide students through this idea.
1. First I ask students to create a list of everything they know about horses.
2. Next, I have students create a list of the parts of the body that would not fossilize, such as skin, hair and internal organs.
3. While showing students a drawing of a horse skeleton, I ask, “What would we know if this animal was extinct?” Students should use their initial list of facts as a starting point. As they progress, they should begin to recognize that there is a lot of information on their list that cannot be derived from fossilized bones and teeth (SP4 Analyzing and Interpreting Data - Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence for phenomena).
4. Repeat this using the picture of the skeletal stegosaurus.
At the end of this activity, have students respond to the following question in their science log: “
There are a lot of illustrations of dinosaurs. Do you think that these drawings represent
what these dinosaurs actually looked like? Why or why not?”
To provide the students with practice, I ask them to explain how they think scientists determine the external features of these fossil remains and give them an example for practice (it is part of the Interpreting Horse and Dino Skeleton PowerPoint.
Activity: Students are instructed to create an illustration that depicts what the actual animal (with its outer layer) looks like. Once students have drawn their interpretation, I have them complete the Description/Justification Chart to provide more information and practice inferring and justification. I am looking for students to use what they learned in previous lessons about comparing the fossil to something that is alive today and using it as a source of reference to guess about the ecosystem and the look of the creature. I am looking for logic, not necessarily accuracy at this point.
Activity35 MINUTESAt this point students will begin to discover how to analyze skeletal remains to make inferences about an organism. I start by discussing with students that there is a lot of information about an animal is lost during the fossilization process.
I use the PowerPoint interpreting Horse and Dino Skeleton to guide students through this idea. First I ask students to create a list of everything they know about horses. Next, I have students create a list of the parts of the body that would not fossilize, such as skin, hair and internal organs. While showing students a drawing of a horse skeleton, I ask, “What would we know if this animal was extinct?” Students should use their initial list of facts as a starting point. As they progress, they should begin to recognize that there is a lot of information on their list that cannot be derived from fossilized bones and teeth (SP4 Analyzing and Interpreting Data - Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence for phenomena).
Repeat this using the picture of the skeletal stegosaurus. At the end of this activity, have students respond to the following question in their science log: “There are a lot of illustrations of dinosaurs. Do you think that these drawings represent what these dinosaurs actually looked like? Why or why not?”
To provide the students with practice, I ask them to explain how they think scientists determine the external features of these fossil remains and give them an example for practice (it is part of the Interpreting Horse and Dino Skeleton PowerPoint. Students are instructed to create an illustration that depicts what the actual animal (with its outer layer) looks like. Once students have drawn their interpretation, I have them complete the Description/Justification Chart to provide more information and practice inferring and justification. I am looking for students to use what they learned in previous lessons about comparing the fossil to something that is alive today and using it as a source of reference to guess about the ecosystem and the look of the creature. I am looking for logic, not necessarily accuracy at this point. This video explains how I use these resources with my students.
The following video provides an example of students discussing the stegosaurus skeleton to determine what type of food it eats. I would like to point out that it does not matter if they already know the answer because the focus is on how they use the fossil image to justify their answer.
I then explain to students that all of this fossil evidence makes up the fossil record and how we use this record to help us understand long-extinct species and their connections to modern day animals.
Conclusion:
To conclude this lesson I have students complete a 3-2-1 exit slip where they write:
- 3 things they learned.
- 2 things they found interesting and would like to know more about.
- 1 question they have or something they wonder.
Activity: Read Newslea article: Paleontology, the study of ancient life
Write a short paragraph that explains the central idea of the article. Use at least two details from the article to support your response. Put your answer in your ISN and show your teacher. Take the 4 question quiz. Put the Question # and the correct answer into your ISN.
Complete the short quiz
Activity: Evolution Kahoot
Create a new dinosaur Lab: For My EYES ONLY
I begin this lesson by asking students to answer the following question:
"With so many organisms that die everyday, why is it that only a small percentage of organisms that ever lived actually become fossils?"
Read this article: Fossils !: Fossilization
Watch the video:
Watch the second video:
Interpreting Horse and Dino Skeleton
Activity: Looking at a horse. In your ISN list all the things you know about horses.
Create a T-chart and list all the parts that would fossilize and what horse parts would NOT fossilize. Using your chart can you summarize your list in one phrase? -(Soft parts will not fossilize-hard parts will)
Look at the T-chart of what you know about horses. Cross off anything you would not know if all you had were the
fossilized remains of the horse
Look at the slide of the stegosaurus. Putting aside anything you may already know about this animal can you INFER any information based on what you are seeing by looking at the skeleton of the animal.
1. Is this animal a animal or prey? How do you know? List all the factors that went into your interpretation.
In your ISN answer the following questions.
1. There are a lot of pictures of dinosaurs. Do you think these drawings represent an accurate representation of what they looked like in real life? Why or why not?
2. How do scientists -paleontologists- determine the characteristics that are NOT represented through fossil remains?
Looking at this dinosaur (in slide)- What do you think this dino looked like in real life? Draw and color your version. You may use the computer to compare any current animal to get your picture more accurate. Include the ecosystem in your drawing.
Activity: Description of fossils: Use this chart "Description/Justification Chart" to provide more information and practice inferring and justification.
Provide:
1. A written description of physical features
2. What ecosystem or habitat did your dino live in?
3. What type of behavior did your dino exhibit? Did it walk and stalk? Did it fly and swoop on it's food? Did it scavenge for food?
EXIT TICKET: 3-things you learned today with this lesson
2-things your found interesting and would like to know more about
1-question you may still have
Activity: Create an animal from bones: Given a set of bones. Cut the bones out and glue them in the area you think would represent the dinosaur. In your worksheet draw how you think that animal would look like if it were alive. Would it have feathers, scales or skin? What color would each body part be? How tall is your animal? Draw something like a house to show the size of your animal.
Activity: NEWSLEA: Read this article on a what ancient animals looked like: On land and at sea: Ancient whales had four legs and were semi-aquatic
Activity: Do the Write and Quiz portion
Activity: NEWSLEA: Read this article: The Permian extinction: When life nearly came to an end
Activity: Do the Write and Quiz portion.
Activity: National Geographic: Read this article: Exclusive: Gem-like fossils reveal stunning new dinosaur species
Making inferences from fossils
Warm Up-
Activity: Interpreting Horse and Dino Skeleton
How Fossilization creates fossils
Virtual field Trips for Geologic time Scale
Teachers Pay Teachers
Geologic Time Scale Google Slides
Guided Study Answers Link. Not for public use: Teacher only
Geologic Time Scale Google Slides
Guided Study Answers Link. Not for public use: Teacher only