Dinosaur fossils

Dinosaur fossils

Pencil and paperOnline interactive
Overview
Using this Resource
Connecting to the Curriculum
Marking Student Responses
This task is about evidence.
Fossils are the clues that give us information about extinct dinosaurs.
Fossils can be any of the following: skin, footprints, bones, droppings, or eggs.

Question 1Change answer

Explain two pieces of information that each fossil shown below could tell us about a dinosaur.
The first one has been done for you.
Type of fossil
What this fossil can tell us
Skin   
  • How thick the skin was.

     
  • The structure of the skin.
Footprints   
  •  
Bones   
  •  
Droppings   
  •  
Eggs   
  •  
Task administration: 
This task can be completed with pencil and paper or online.
Level:
4
Curriculum info: 
Science, Understanding about science, Living World
Key Competencies: 
Thinking
Keywords: 
Life processes, evidence, inference, fossils, dinosaurs
Description of task: 
Students are provided with four diagrams of different types of fossils. Students are asked to explain the type of information each of these fossils could provide.
Curriculum Links: 
Science capabilities
The capabilities focus is brought about by the conversations you have and the questions you ask.
 
Capability: Gather and interpret data
This resource provides opportunities to discuss what you can infer from observations and knowledge from images. 
 
Capability: Use evidence
This resource provides opportunities to discuss matching what you know about animal signs and body parts to knowledge of dinosaurs.
Science capabilities: 
Gather and interpret data, Use evidence
Answers/responses: 

 

Y9 (04/2001)
Footprints
Any 2 of:

  • Number of toes.
  • Whether it had claws.
  • Whether it walked on 2 or 4 legs.
  • How big it was likely to be.

2 correct – difficult

1 correct – easy
Bones
Any 2 of:

  • Its size.
  • Its shape.
  • What the animal's skeleton was like.

2 correct – difficult

1 correct – easy
Droppings
Any 2 of:

  • What the animal ate.
  • How big it was.

2 correct – very difficult

1 correct – easy
Eggs
Any 2 of:

  • The size of the eggs the animal laid.
  • How many eggs were laid.

2 correct – very difficult

1 correct – moderate