Format
1.) Students cut out the tooth models and bottom of simulated caliper.
2.) Groups are shown a short video introducing Paleobiologist Darin Croft and his research.
3.) Students practice use of calipers and how to measure tooth casts for height & width.
4.) Groups measure their casts & fill out their worksheets.
5.) Groups are asked to use their results to match ancient mammals with possible ecosystems.
Objectives
Students will:
• Practice the proper use of lab equipment, including digital calipers & museum specimens.
• Describe how studying extinct animals helps illustrate how species and ecological communities have evolved over millions of years.
• Explain how this information can help improve conservation efforts focused on saving species and ecological communities today.
• Investigate how animal populations are affected by food supply.
Standards Alignment
National Standards
Please see Ohio State Standards below.
State Standards
Ohio
Life Science
Grade 4 Science: Life Science-Earth’s Living History
•Fossils can be compared to one another and to present day organisms according to their
similarities and differences.
Grade 5 Science: Life Science-Interconnections within Ecosystems
•Organisms perform a variety of roles in an ecosystem.
Grade 8 Science: Life Science-Species and Reproduction
•Diversity of species occurs through gradual processes over any generations. Fossil records provide evidence that changes have occurred in number and types of species.