Dinosaurs

Sample Lesson - Introduction

Lesson 1.02: Making History with Prehistory

We can't have history without a little prehistory—especially not if we're going to write the life story of our dinosaur friends.

"We're all going to die one day, son."
(Source)

To learn about the wild and rocky history of Earth, we're going to go back—pre-historically back—to a time when there was only one chunk of land on the planet: a supercontinent called Pangaea. We're going to take you through all the history of the earth, ever, until we end up in the present day and age, discussing why people became so interested in dinosaurs in the first place.

It might have to do with those huge bones that sometimes stick out of the ground due to weathering and erosion—or it might be because that Pangaea thing is just so interesting.

Sample Lesson - Reading

Reading 1.1.02: A Brief History in Paleontology

Dinosaurs may have been around for millions of years, but relatively speaking, we've only spent the last 300 – 400 years pulling these guys up from the earth and knowing what all the bones made.

Before paleontology, or the study of dinosaurs, was developed into a science, not much happened when people stumbled upon a dinosaur bone. Our ancestors would imagine what all the bones looked like put together and call the result all sorts of names—like "giants," "thunder beasts," and Shmoop's personal favorite…"dragons."

Yep, the concept of dragons did indeed come from old dinosaur bones.

This lesson's reading tells about that and more in the history of dinosaur discoveries. As you read "A Brief History of Paleontology," consider the following questions:

• How did the science of paleontology develop in the earlier centuries?
• What were some of the original ideas about dinosaurs when they were first discovered?
• What are the significant moments in paleontology? Be on the lookout for:
  
  • The first dinosaurs to be discovered
  • The first museum display to feature dinosaurs
  • The Bone Wars
  • The Dinosaur Renaissance

Sample Lesson - Activity

Activity 1.02a: The Rock Cycle and the Big Break-Up

Plate Tectonics

Did you know that the continents are constantly in motion? 

Maybe you do if you live in an area known for earthquakes. As scary as earthquakes are, they're important in shaping the Earth—it's shifting through quakes and the earth's plates rubbing against each other that have formed our contemporary continents.

Wait—plates?

Read all about the earth's formation through "plates" in the first three pages of this article.

Pangaea

As you could probably tell from that last reading, Earth has a very rocky past.

We'll let that brilliant joke sink in for a little bit and move on.

Pangaea: where the continents hugged all day. (Source)

Right. So as we said, Earth has a very rocky past, and it took billions of years to form all of those rocks. To better keep track of all that time, scientists developed time periods.

That's right, periods—and not the punctuation kind. Geologists (people who study the Earth) discovered that the best way to measure billions of years and the land development within them would require a very different type of measurement than a "century" or a "millennium." (Like we said, we're talking about billions of years here. Normal human measurement couldn't cut it.)

Thus, the Geologic Time Scale was born. This system of geologic periods helps scientists to classify land development, prehistoric animals, and other organisms according to when they lived.

The geologic time scale also helps us to trace our continents back to their origins. (Spoiler alert: Pangaea existed until the Proterozoic period.)

To show that you've gotten a firm grasp of all the Earth's periods and how the world shifted and readjusted, fill out this graphic organizer using material from the Geologic Time Scale site.

For each period and sub-era, copy the years they took place from the Geological Time Scale site, and then come up with a nickname for each period. Shmoop did the first period—Cenozoic—and its sub-eras for you. (Isn't "The Age of Mammals and Dead Dinos" a catchy nickname?)

We left the last column blank for you because honestly, we have no idea how your handwriting is. It could be as epic as the Phanerzoic, or as tiny as Holocene. Once your notes are all set, upload your chart below.

Sample Lesson - Activity

Activity 1.02b: Time for Timelines

Now that you've had a chance to, you know, consider the Earth's epic origins, let's go back to our first reading about how paleontology came about. To do this, we're going to make our own timeline about significant moments in paleontology. (This isn't a timeline about dinosaur existence, but we're getting there—quite shortly, in fact).

This timeline will consist of paleontology's blockbusting moments, from the time the first ancient bones were discovered, to the time when paleontology was born as a recognized science, to the discovery of the first dinosaur.

Wow, this list could go on and on, but we don't want to spoil the fun for you.

Part One

• From your reading, choose at least 10 points that you feel are important to paleontology.
• Set up a horizontal line and add your events to the line, in chronological order.
• For each event, make sure you have a date, title, and a brief description (about 1 – 2 sentences) about the event and why it is important in paleontology.

"1994–2004. Friends popularizes paleontology. Ross being a paleontologist on Friends is an important event in paleontology because it made the science hip to a new generation."

Is that the type of event you should use?

Maybe not. But should you, like we did, include a year and a justification about why it's included? But of course.

Part Two

In the first part of this activity, you got to create a paleontology timeline. For this activity, you'll create another timeline. This time, it's based on the geologic timescale.

(Remember that thing? From one activity ago?)

• Your timeline must cover Earth's entire history from its beginning to the current day (or at least, the current period). It should include every major period of Earth's history, from the Cambrian period to the present. That's twelve points on the timeline for you counters out there.
• Unlike your last timeline, each period should illustrate significant events that took place during that period.
• Each period should also contain a one-sentence explanation of the geologic processes that took place during that period, including plate tectonics.

Geological time periods.

Wacky dino-scientists.

Two timelines, each beautiful and special in their own way.

Once they're complete and proofread, upload below.

Sample Lesson - Activity

Activity 1.02c: Paleontology Blooper Roll

Time for some fun. We're talking zany hijinks-style fun.

But with dinosaurs.

By now, you probably know that paleontology is filled with tons of important scientific moments, from Darwin to x-rays to John Williams. But it had funny moments too. Mistakes were made—some funny, and some serious enough to spark a war.

For your next activity, you get to recreate those wacky bronto-blunders. Choose one of the following formats:

• PowerPoint: Ten slides, each dedicated to a different famous mistake made about dinosaurs, with an image and one sentence on each.
• Top Ten list: Ten short paragraphs (50 – 100 words) describing the biggest dinosaur fails. 
• Blooper reel: For the truly ambitious, make a movie-style blooper reel acting out the five biggest dino-errors.

What kind of mistakes are we talking about here? A quick Google of "dinosaur mistakes" will bring up a slew of answers; here are some suggestions to research to get you started:

• The original reconstruction of Iguanodon and Megalosaurus
• The Brontosaurus identity crisis
• How Edward Cope started the Bone Wars
• The "Ultrasaurus" discovery
• Oviraptor: the egg thief that wasn't
• Stegosaurus's second "brain"
• You can also search "Mistakes in Paleontology" for others.

Once you've completed your visual, list, or blooper reel, upload it below.