LS.4.2.1
Analyze and interpret data to compare fossils to one another and living organisms.
Embedded Files
District Recommended Resources for 4th Grade Science
Rocks and Minerals
Kit rental options are available. See your administrator.
Appalachian State University - Fossils and Geologic Time
Next Generation Science Standards YouTube Channel
Step 1: Lesson Standards & Learning Goals
Clarification Statement:
Examples of data could include type, size, and distributions of fossil organisms.
Dimension 1:
Science and Engineering Practice: Analyze and Interpret Data: Compare data collected by different groups in order to discuss similarities and differences in their findings (NSTA SEP Matrix).
Dimension 2:
Crosscutting Concepts: Patterns
Dimension 3:
Disciplinary Core Ideas:
LS4.A Fossils provide evidence about the types of organisms (both visible and microscopic) that lived long ago and also about the nature of their environments. Fossils can be compared with one another and to living organisms according to their similarities and differences (A Framework for K-12 Science Education).
Sample Essential Questions
Sample Essential Questions
Vocabulary
Vocabulary
In what ways do the structures of fossilized organisms resemble or differ from those of modern organisms?
What can we learn by comparing fossils to living organisms?
What do similarities between fossils and living organisms tell us about adaptation and survival?
casts
characteristics,
early environments
environmental conditions
evidence
examine
fossil
impression
infer
investigate
molds
organisms
paleontologist
preserved
reasoning
slow processes
sediments
surface
slow processes
Students will be able to...
Students will be able to...
Compare fossils to find similarities and differences in fossil characteristics.
Infer organisms that are alive today, under the right conditions, will leave fossil evidence (e.g. right conditions include a plant and animal being quickly buried by sediment or preserved in certain environments- peat bogs).
Analyze and Interpret Data- Use a data table to make comparisons of the body structure of fossilized organisms and organisms that exist today. Compare two organisms to determine similarities and differences (e.g., present day and fossilized horseshoe crabs; american alligator and deinosuchus).
Students will know...
Students will know...
Fossils are evidence of living organisms (plants and/or animals) that once existed on Earth.
Fossils (molds, casts, preserved parts of plants and animals) share some characteristics based on where, how, and from what they formed (e.g. certain plants and animals left behind impression fossils versus others that had their skeletons fossilized).
Some organisms that lived long ago are similar to existing organisms, while others are quite different (e.g., ancient alligators, crocodiles, and mollusks are still very similar to the animals we see now, but present day mammals look very different than their predecessors).
Step 2: Assessment
Formative Assessments
Formative Assessments
Writing Prompts
Dinosaur Detective
"You are a dinosaur detective who has found a dinosaur bone fossil. Write a story about how you compare this fossil to the bones of living animals today. What clues help you understand more about the dinosaur?"
Write a story about a group of students who find a fossil on a field trip. How do they identify it, and what do they learn about the ancient creature by comparing it to animals alive today?
Fossils help explain how _______(organisms) have changed over time.
How are fossilized ___________(ferns) similar to modern day (ferns)? (e.g., they have similar structures).
How are fossilized ___________(ferns) different from modern day (ferns)? (e.g., they are nonliving and the modern day fern is living).
How are fossilized ___________(insects) similar to modern day (insects)? (e.g., they have similar structures e.g., wings, number of legs, divided body).
How are fossilized ___________(insects) different from modern day (insects)? (e.g., some(not all) were much larger than current day insects e.g., dragonflies; lived in different areas, etc. ).
Mini Projects and Investigations
Cookie Excavation - (note food allergies)
Comic strip that shows the journey of a fossil from discovery to display in a museum. Include panels that show comparisons between the fossil and living organisms.
Fossil Comparison Chart
"Make a chart comparing three different fossils to living organisms. Write a paragraph explaining what you learn from these comparisons about how plants and animals have adapted and evolved."
NCDPI Formative Assessment Samples
Mastery Connect
Mastery Connect
Mastery Connect: LS.4.2 Summative-Biamby-WCS
Culminating Activity
Imagine you are a paleontologist who just discovered a new fossil.
Create a replica of your fossil. Make your Own Fossil Activity or Alternative - Use cookie cutters, play-doh molds, seashells, or other items to create fossils using clay and play-doh.
Create a newspaper article describing your discovery. Use information gained throughout the unit to help you write your artice.
What is the name of your discovery?
What does the fossil look like?
How does it compare to a living organism you know?
Where did it live?
What did it eat?
Why did it become extinct?
Step 3: Lesson Instructions
Possible Activating Strategies
Possible Activating Strategies
Compare and Contrast:
Use a Venn diagram to compare and contrast the wooly mammoth and the elephant.
Graphic Organizer
Have students create their own K-W-L chart in their notebooks.
“What I Know About Fossils”
"What I Wonder About Fossils"
"What I Learned About Fossils"
Give 5-10 minutes for students to draw/write/reflect on what they know and wonder about fossils. Collect the papers. At the end of the unit, have students reflect on how knowledge has changed and what has been learned.
Additional Literacy Connections
epic! (Search epic! for over 100 additional titles)
Fossils by Rebecca Felix - Below grade level text, but has excellent photographs.
Fossils Uncovered - Tiny Giants (Graphic Novel)
Fossils by Andrea Rivera
Teacher Resources
Teacher Resources
Appalachian State University - Fossils and Geologic Time
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