Dinosaur Virtual Field Trip

Dinosaur Virtual
Field Trip

James Sanders
Grade 4-5

PA Standards: 3.3.4
A.   Know the similarities and differences of living things.
B.    Know that living things are made up of parts that have specific functions.
D.    Identify changes in living things over time.

Introduction:
You have been given the opportunity for a job as a dinosaur researcher by a top notch company. The only problem is that you don't know much about dinosaurs. This field trip will give you a chance to learn about the different types of dinosaurs, how they are classified, what they eat, and how they live. You will have one week to do your research during class time. The class will then go through the field trip in small groups to complete this journey of a lifetime. The best group presentation of their dinosaur will win the job of the dinosaur researcher.

Directions:
You and a partner will choose a dinosaur from the pictures below and do research on it. You will be asked to answer a series of questions on this dinosaurand then you will draw a picture of this dinosaur as the way you think it would look today. The class wil then come together to chare the information they found out during their field trip.

1. Chose a dinosaur from the list below.

	Tyrannosaurus Rex		Triceratops
	Brachiosaurus		Stegosaurus
	Ultrasaurus		Protoceratops

2. Use the given resources to answer the following questions:

Is this dinosaur a herbivore, an omnivore, or a carnivore?
What did this dinosaur eat?
Where did this dinosaur live?
How big could this dinosaur get?
What kind of habitat did this dinosaur live in?

3. Report your findings to another group in the class.

4. After you finish sharing what you learned to another group, draw a picture of what you think this dinosaur would look like if it was still living today.

5. Be ready to share your picture of your dinosaur to the class after you have completed your drawing.

Resources:

General information about dinosaurs
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/dinosaurs/
This site will give you all the information you would need to know about all the types of dinosaurs that have been discovered.

Tyrannosaurus Rex
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Wikijunior_Dinosaurs/T-Rex
This site will give you a description of the most feared dinosaur, the T-Rex. You will learn about their everyday lives and information which may be surprising.

Triceratops
http://www.mce.k12tn.net/dinosaurs/triceratops.htm
This is a web-site aimed directly at triceratops. You will learn where they live, what they ate, and special features of this dinosaur.

Brachiosaurus
http://www.prehistory.com/brachios.htm
The site gives information on the brachiosaurus. You will learn be able to look at pictures of this dinosaur and learn about where they lived and what they did.

Stegosaurus
http://www.abc.net.au/dinosaurs/fact_files/scrub/stegosaurus.htm
The site is designated to the Stegosaurus. It gives information about where it lived, what it ate, and which enemies it encountered.

Ultrasaurus
http://greatwebsights.com/dinosaurs/ultra.htm
This site gives you everything you would need to know about the Unltrasaurus. It provides detailed information of all the characteristics of this dinosaur as well.

Protoceratops
http://healthstones.com/dinosaurdata/p/protoceratops/protoceratops.html
This site has a wide variety of information on the Protoceratops. You learn about the different things it ate, the habitat in which is lived, and how it protected itself.

You and your partner will work at a computer together to answer these questions. Be prepared to dress like a dinosaur researcher once you present your findings. If you find pictures of waht the dinosaur looks like, parts of bones, or even fun facts about your dinosaur, bring them in to share with the class. The winner of this virtual field trip will be given the job at this top notch compant and will also be rewarded with a certificate to show off to their family and friends.

Important Dinosaur Facts

Herbivores (Plant Eaters):

· Blunt or flat teeth for stripping vegetation and grinding plants

· Many have cheek pouches to store food

· Some swallowed rocks to help digestion

· Eat much more than carnivores to get same amount of calories

Carnivores (Meat Eaters):

· Long, strong legs to run and catch prey

· Sharp teeth and claws to kill and tear apart prey

· Some hunted in packs

· Good eye-sight, smell, and a large brain to help in hunting

Omnivores (Plant & Meat Eaters):

· Some herbivores were “accidental omnivores” that ate insects and small animals while consuming plants

· Very few known dinosaurs were omnivores

Summary:

Upon completion of this project, the students will be able to classify dinosaurs according to how they looked and they will be able to report on different dinosaurs' characteristics, including where it lived, what it ate, and how big it could get. They will use this information to prepare for their exam on our dinosaur unit. After this field trip, the students will be asked to write a paragraph summary of what they liked and disliked about this field trip. They will then be taught some of the fundamental concepts of dinosaurs as a whole to enrich their learning. The test will offer me with a proper means for evaluation and I can take this dinosaur field trip and manipulate it so they can do field trips with other units on science concepts.