Fossils & Palaeontologists
Understand that fossils are the remains of ancient living things preserved in rock, and that scientists called palaeontologists study fossils to learn about dinosaurs
What a learner can do afterwards
- Describe a fossil as the remains of a living thing preserved in rock
- Name the job of a palaeontologist as someone who studies fossils
- Identify examples of fossils: bones, teeth, footprints in rock
1 · Read
A long time ago, some animals died. Their bodies got buried in mud. Slowly, the mud turned to rock. The remains turned to rock too. That rock shape is a fossil.
A T. rex died in the mud. Millions of years passed. Its bones turned to rock. Now it is a fossil bone.
A palaeontologist studies fossils for a living. They look for bones in rock. They also find teeth and footprints. These clues teach us about dinosaurs.
Next time you see a rock with a shape in it, look closely. It might be a fossil!
A fossil is a living thing's remains turned to rock, and palaeontologists study fossils to learn about the past.
More to read
Fossil preparation
A fossil is something left behind by a living thing from long, long ago. Fossils can be bones, teeth, shells, footprints, or even nests. Most fossils are found inside rocks.
A palaeontologist is a scientist who looks for fossils. They dig carefully in rocky places to find them. Finding fossils takes patience. Sometimes a palaeontologist searches for many days before finding even one bone.
Once a fossil is found, the scientist digs it out of the rock very carefully, so it does not break. Then they clean it off and study it closely.
Fossils help us learn what animals and plants looked like a very long time ago, even ones that lived before people did.
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2 · Watch
به انگلیسیTake it off screen
Where it sits
Where this leads
Jobs that lean on this skill. Follow one to see everything it is built on.
8 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.