Teacher's Guide for APPLESEEDS Digging Up Dinos

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1 Teacher's Guide for APPLESEEDS Digging Up Dinos January 2005 Teacher's Guide prepared by: Terri Jean, an author, historian, educational lecturer, and the director of The Red Roots Educational Project in New Marshfield, Ohio. "Dozens of Dinos" (pages 2-5) 1. Dino - A root word that means terrible. 2. Dinosaur - Large, land-dwelling reptiles that roamed the Earth during the Mesozoic Era, but are now extinct. The word dinosaur means "fearfully great lizard." 3. Saurus - A root word that means lizard. 1. Argentinosaurus: ahr-gen-teen-oh-sawr-us 2. Coelophysis: SEE-low-FIE-sis 3. Compsognathus: COMP-sog-NAY-thus 4. Elasmosaurus: eh-lazz-mo-sawr-us 5. Maiasaura: MY-yah-SAWR-ah 6. Parasaurolophus: PAR-ah-saw-ROL-oh-fus 7. Plesiosaur: plee-zee-oh-sawrs 8. Pterosaur: TER-o-SAWR 9. Quetzalcoatlus: KET-sal-koh-AHT-lus 10. Stegosaurus: STEG-oh-SAWR-us 11. Troodon: TROH-oh-don 12. Tyrannosaurus rex: tye-ran-oh-sawr-us recks 1. What is a dinosaur? 2. Why aren't marine and flying reptiles considered dinosaurs? 3. Write a poem to your favorite dinosaur entitled "Ode to." 4. Did dinosaurs lay eggs? Do you think they were good parents? 5. Look at the different dinosaur names and try to determine why that particular name was chosen. Do you think it was named after the person who found it? Perhaps it's because of what it looked like or where it was found.

2 6. In two columns, list how the dinosaurs on pages 2-5 are similar and how they are different. "A Really Long Time Ago" (pages 6-7) 1. Cenozoic Era - was the "Age of Mammals." We are currently in the Cenozoic Era, which started 65 million years ago. Cenozoic means "recent life." 2. Era - Two or more geological periods comprise an Era, which is hundreds of millions of years in duration. 3. Extinct - When an animal species (such as the dinosaur) dies out this is known as extinction. 4. Mesozoic Era - ("The Age of the Reptiles") occurred from million years ago. This era saw the height of the dinosaur and the development of flowering plants. It ended with the demise of the dinosaur and other prehistoric animals. The Cenozoic Era would follow. 5. Paleozoic Era - (540 to 248 million years ago) saw an explosion of new life forms, but would also end with the largest mass extinction in geologic history. The Paleozoic (which means "ancient life") Era was followed by the Mesozoic Era. 1. The Jurassic Period occurred during the Mesozoic Era. This was a time when many birds and flowering plants evolved, and large number of diverse dinosaurs flourished. Today this term was used to title a popular movie series [Jurassic Park] - why was this title so appropriate for the movie? 2. How long has it been since a dinosaur actually walked the earth? (A - 65 million years.) 3. Discuss the possible reasons why dinosaurs became extinct. (Scientific theories include: a dramatic climate change, killed by poisonous plants, animals ate their eggs, asteroid crashed to the earth killing nearly all living things, and disease.) 4. Write the Earth's biography. Using the time line of page 7 as a reference, each child could create the Story of Earth: A Biography, with a chapter dedicated to each era. <strong"feathered style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; whitespace: normal; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;">

3 1. Archaeopteryx: ark-ee-op-ter-icks 2. Deinonychus: die-non-ni-kus 3. Theropod: THER-uh-pod 4. Sinosauropteryx: SINE-oh-sawr-OP-ter-ik 1. If birds are decedents of dinosaurs, then are dinosaurs truly extinct? 2. List the similarities between theropods and birds. Ask the class how many believe the two are related. "Bone Wars and Fossil Feuds" (pages 10-13) 1. Bones - A hard tissue that forms most of the skeleton of animals and humans. 2. Paleontologist - A scientist who studies paleontology, the forms of life that existed in former geologic periods, chiefly by studying fossils. 3. Skeleton - The bony framework of an animal's body. Dinosaur skeletons were made of bones and cartilage. Did you know? 1. Why was the feud between Marsh and Cope beneficial to the world of paleontology? 2. What is the best discovery for a paleontologist? 3. Would you like to be a paleontologist? Why or why not? 1. Edward Drinker Cope ( ) named over one thousand species of fossil animals, including the following: Amphicoelias, Agathaumas, Camarasaurus, Coelophysis, Cionodon, Diclonius, Dysganus, Dystrophaeus, Hypsibema, Monoclonius, Paronychodon, Pteropelyx, and Tichosteus. 2. Othniel C. Marsh ( ) named roughly 500 new species of fossil animals, such as the following dinosaurs: Allosaurus, Apatosaurus, Barosaurus, Ceratops, Diplodocus, Labrosaurus, Nodosaurus, Ornithomimus, Pleurocoelus, Priconodon, Stegosaurus, Torosaurus, and Triceratops. 3. "Paleo" means old or ancient. "Ontology" is the study of existence ("onto-" means existence, "-logy" is the study of something). The "-ist" at the end means a person who is involved in the field. "Have you got your head screwed on straight?" (Pages 12-13)

4 Classroom Activity 1. Apatosaurus: uh-pat-uh-sawr-us 2. Camarasaurus: KAM-ah-rah-SAWR-us 3. Iguanodon: ig-wahn-oh-don Make your own blooper! Draw your favorite dinosaur with a body part of another dinosaur. For example, choose the body of one animal (such as a Stegosaurus) and add the head of another (such as the Apatosaurus). Then give it a new name! "Making Tracks" (pages 18-19) 1. Ichnology - The study of fossilized footprints and other fossils. 2. Trackways - paths where dinosaurs walked. 1. What do these footprints tell us about the dinosaurs? 2. Why is it important to preserve them? "Make your own fossil"(pages 20-21) 1. What is a fossil? 2. Why are these fossils so important? 3. Ask the class if they've found a fossil. Or have them look at rocks for fossils. "The scoop on dino poop" (pages 22-23) 1. Carnivore - An animal that eats other animals. (meat-eater) 2. Coprolite - meaning "dung stone" is fossilized feces. 3. Omnivores - Animals that eat both animals and plants. 4. Herbivores - Herbivores are animals that eat plants. Most dinosaurs were herbivorous (plant-eating). 5. Paleoscatologist - a scientist who studies fossilized dung. 1. What can be learned about dinosaurs from their coprolite? 2. What does coprolite look like?

5 3. Write a newspaper article about the find of the century - a big piece of coprolite - and why this finding is so important. "The Artist's Eye: Waterhouse Hawkins" (pages 24-25) 1. Hylaeosaurus: hie-lee-oh-sawr-us 2. Megalosaurus: MEG-ah-lo-SAWR-us Class Activity Read off a description of a dinosaur and have each child draw their own interpretation. Hang them up as an art display and discuss the various renderings. "Digging up Africa's Lost Dinosaurs" (pages 29-31) 1. Afrovenator: af-roh-ven-ah-tor 2. Allosaurus: Al-oh-SAWR-us 3. Nigersaurus: nee-zhaer-sawr-us Classroom Activities 1. Each student can invent their own dinosaur. Draw or sculpt the dinosaur, name it, explain how and where it was found, why it's different (or the same) as other dinosaurs, how it behaved, and its unique physical characteristics. 2. Make a life-sized drawing of a dinosaur. Need more Dino Info? Check out these websites: Includes a listing of over 80 dinosaurs Dinosaur and Paleontology Dictionary Fun Facts