The World of the Dinosaurs

The National Museum of Natural History
Smithsonian Institute
10th Street and Constitution Ave.
Washington, D.C. 20560
(202)357-2700
(202) 357-2747 (Education Department)

Instructional Unit:
The World of the Dinosaurs

Curriculum Unit:
Grade 3
Science, Social Studies

Objectives:
Instructional:
1. The student will become aware of how paleontologists reconstruct fossil finds to gain insight into life in the past.
2. The student will investigate characteristics of various dinosaurs.

Behavioral:
1. The student will define five of the following words: paleontologist, fossil, carnivore, herbivore, skeleton, dinosaur.
2. The student will name three tools that a paleontologist uses.
3. The student will name five dinosaurs.
4. Given a list of five dinosaurs and another list of size descriptions, the student will match each dinosaur to a description of its size with 80% accuracy.
5. Given a list of ten items, the student will identify seven that dinosaurs may have used as food.
6. Given a list of five animals, the student will identify two that also existed at the time of the dinosaurs.

Pre-Visit Activities:
Over a period of several days prior to the visit, the student will draw a picture of what he/she imagines a dinosaur to look like. The teacher will read a book about dinosaurs to the class show a filmstrip on the subject.

On-Site Activities:
At the museum, the students will be divided into groups of four to five children and one adult. Each child will be given five index cards to record the name of a dinosaur and two facts about that dinosaur on each card. Each chaperone will have a list of things to look for and questions to ask in order to guide the students as they walk around. Each group will take a turn watching the paleontologist at work.

Follow-Up Activities:
Upon returning to the school, the students will share what they wrote on the index cards as well as other observations they made. Each student will make a shoe box diorama of a dinosaur of his/her choice in prehistoric surroundings, including a representation of its food supply.

Appendices:
None

Bibliography:
None

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