Roaming with the Dinosaurs!

Dinosaurs continue to fascinate the young and old alike which makes them a great educational tool. They provide unique research and thinking opportunities.

Dinosaurs were marvels of size, speed, versatility and power who reigned the earth unchallenged for the better part of 165 million years. Dinosaurs roamed the earth and dominated the planet. Today we can visit their bony remains in museums or peer into the past by looking at their fossils. "Dinosaurs pushed the envelope of physiological possibility, broke record after record and were paragons of success by almost any measure," says Kenneth Lacovara. Dinosaurs had breathtaking adaptations, gigantic sizes, razor-sharp teeth, devastating power, extravagant plumage, bizarre spines, horns, plates, and even clubs.

All of these characteristics make for an inspiring learning hook and instant introduction for paleontologists and educators to get students interested and involved in science content while developing inquiry and critical thinking skills. Students can even touch the bones of an animal that lived two hundred million years ago! They can see skeletons of animals that weighed upwards of 75 tons and can see predators that are 15 times as big as the most massive predators that still walk the earth! Even learning the names of dinosaurs can add a fun challenge for students: tyrannosaurus, triceratops, stegosaurus, velociraptor, allosaurus, diplodocus, ankylosaurus, iguanodon, and so many more! All of this combines for a great way to incorporate transdisciplinary learning that includes creativity, critical thinking, writing, geography, and so much more.

Engaging students as future researchers through the study of paleontology helps to energize to explore scientific concepts and explore ideas as true scientists. Studying dinosaurs provides a wonderful way for students to learn how sciences like biology and geology are interrelated and to teach about life on Earth.

Are you interested in engaging your child in learning more about dinosaurs and paleontology? 

Check out our Paleontologist Interns class with this spring's Camp Innovation Pathways to College Program at NKU. Students will put on their paleontologist hat and discover what the world was like for these magnificent ancient reptiles. How did they live? How did they become extinct? Do they roam among us today? Registration is limited and available at http://gifted.nku.edu.