How fossils form
Describe in simple terms how fossils are formed when things that have lived are trapped within rock over millions of years
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Teaching Table
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“Can your child explain how a shell or bone from an ancient creature ended up preserved inside a rock?”
Full guide and materials
- Activity. Describe in simple terms how fossils are formed when things that have lived are trapped within rock over millions of years
What to notice. Describe the basic process: organism dies, gets buried in mud/sand, layers build up, material turns to rock over millions of years • Explain that the organism's shape is preserved as a fossil within the rock • Give examples of common fossils (shells, bones, leaf imprints, footprints)
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Can your child explain how a shell or bone from an ancient creature ended up preserved inside a rock?
Describe in simple terms how fossils are formed when things that have lived are trapped within rock over millions of years
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Check understanding
- Describe the basic process: organism dies, gets buried in mud/sand, layers build up, material turns to rock over millions of years
- Explain that the organism's shape is preserved as a fossil within the rock
- Give examples of common fossils (shells, bones, leaf imprints, footprints)
“Can your child explain how a shell or bone from an ancient creature ended up preserved inside a rock?”
Curriculum record
- Type
- Conceptual
- Subject
- Science
- Domain
- Earth's Systems
- Age range
- Ages 7–8
Standards