Types of Fossils
Distinguish body fossils (preserved bones, teeth, shells) from trace fossils (footprints, trackways, eggs, burrows, coprolites) and explain what each type can tell scientists
Teaching approaches
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1 approach
If your child saw a dinosaur footprint in rock at a museum, could they explain how it's different from a fossil bone and what scientists can learn from it?
Distinguish body fossils (preserved bones, teeth, shells) from trace fossils (footprints, trackways, eggs, burrows, coprolites) and explain what each type can tell scientists
Learning resources
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This concept
Check understanding
- Sort examples into body fossils (bones, teeth, shells) and trace fossils (footprints, eggs, dung)
- Explain that body fossils show what an animal looked like physically
- Explain that trace fossils show how an animal behaved — how it moved, what it ate, where it nested
“If your child saw a dinosaur footprint in rock at a museum, could they explain how it's different from a fossil bone and what scientists can learn from it?”
Curriculum record
- Type
- Conceptual
- Subject
- Science
- Domain
- Dinosaurs & Paleontology
- Age range
- Ages 7–9