Guide A: Introductory Guide for Junior Students

Transcription

1 Guide A: Introductory Guide for Junior Students Spend the first 20 minutes of your time in the Dinosaurs in Time exhibition getting a good overview of what is exhibited. Then follow this Guide, which will take you to all 13 segments of the exhibition. Read the questions and write brief answers in the spaces provided. Be sure to check whether there are any fossil activities taking place in the Dinosaurs in Time exhibition or in the performance space just outside the gallery. If there are, include them in your visit. Exhibition Segments 1. Clues to the Past 8. Hadrosaur / A Real Dinosaur 2. Measuring Time 9. Life with Dinosaurs 3. Earliest Life 10. Gondwana Life in Australia 4. Diversity in the Deep 11. KT Extinction 5. Invasion of the Land 12. The Dawn of Modern Life 6. Permian Extinction 13. Megafauna 7. Dinosaurs Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 1

2 Guide A: Introductory Guide for Junior Students 1. Clues to the Past How many footprints are on the large slab? What animal made these footprints? Give yourself a tick when you have found: a shell that has turned to opal a coprolite (piece of fossilised poo) an insect in amber (fossilised tree sap) fossilised animal burrows 2. Measuring Time Find and touch the Apatosaurus thigh bone (femur). In which country was this bone found? How old is it? The Apatosaurus was a long-necked dinosaur. A similar dinosaur, called Mamenchisaurus is on display in the middle of the exhibition. Give yourself a tick when you have seen it. The Apatosaurus thigh bone is 1850 mm long. At home, measure how far it is from your hip to your knee: mm. Find and touch the sedimentary slab nearby. This was formed millions of years ago from layers of sand and mud beneath the sea. Where is this slab from? How many layers can you count in it? Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 2

3 Guide A: Introductory Guide for Junior Students 3. Earliest Life Find and touch the stromatolite specimen. What organisms produce stromatolites? Stromatolites were among the first producers of Find and touch the banded iron specimen. Banded iron was formed from o in the atmosphere and i in the oceans. 4. Diversity in the Deep Find and touch the large fish slab. The fish slab is from the Devonian Period of time. 1 It is therefore about 400 years old 400 thousand years old 400 million years old Where was it found? Give yourself a tick when you have found the following marine fossils: a trilobite a piece of coral a brachiopod a fish a graptolite an ammonoid (mollusc) a sea star (echinoderm) What is the name of the group of extinct animals that looked like this? 1 The fish slab dates from the Devonian Period of time, which was from 410 to 354 million years ago. Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 3

4 Guide A: Introductory Guide for Junior Students 5. Invasion of the Land Find and touch the Genoa trackway. How many footprints can you see? What kind of animal made the footprints? How long ago were the footprints made? Where were these footprints found? Give yourself a tick when you have found the following fossils: an early plant a eurypterid (giant water scorpion) the skull of a mammal-like reptile 6. Permian Extinction When was the Permian extinction? Write down the names of two animals that became extinct at that time: 7. Dinosaurs Tsintaosaurus belonged to the group of dinosaurs called hadrosaurs. Tick or cross the correct statement about hadrosaurs: Hadrosaurs made noises like ducks Hadrosaurs had feet like ducks Hadrosaurs had bills like ducks What does the name Gallimimus mean? Why did scientists give it this name? Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 4

5 Guide A: Introductory Guide for Junior Students What do scientists think that Gallimimus ate? Tarbosaurus lived in Asia. Which close relative of Tarbosaurus lived in North America? Look at this dinosaur s teeth. What did it eat? In what way was Mamenchisaurus special? Tick or cross: It had the smallest brain of any animal that has ever lived It had the longest neck of any animal that has ever lived It had the biggest feet of any animal that has ever lived Deinonychus was a meat-eater. How can you tell? Look up at Pteranodon. What sort of animal was it? a bird a dinosaur a flying reptile 8. Hadrosaur / A Real Dinosaur What work would have to be done on the hadrosaur before it could be put on display in an upright position like the other dinosaurs? 9. Life with Dinosaurs Dinosaurs lived in the Mesozoic Era, 250 million to 65 million years ago. Name some other animals that lived at the same time: Why is Archaeopteryx a special fossil? Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 5

6 Guide A: Introductory Guide for Junior Students Hypsilophodon was a small, fast-running herbivorous dinosaur that lived in Victoria, as well as in other parts of the world. What did these dinosaurs eat? Find the Ichthyosaur on the wall through the window. These extinct swimming reptiles looked a bit like d p h s, but were not related to them. Find and touch the ammonoid. These animals became extinct millions of years ago. Where did they live when they were alive? Draw the ammonoid here: Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 6

7 Guide A: Introductory Guide for Junior Students 10. Gondwana Life in Australia Find the fossil bones from small dinosaurs that have been found in Victoria. Write down the name of one of these dinosaurs: Find and touch the large sea shell (bivalve mollusc). This large sea shell was found in Queensland, far from the sea. When this animal was alive, what was the centre of Australia like? Find the fossils from Koonwarra in Gippsland. What kinds of fossils are on display? 11. KT Extinction A mass extinction occurred 65 million years ago. What sorts of animals became extinct? What do scientists think caused the mass extinction? 12. The Dawn of Modern Life Give yourself a tick when you find an example of the following fossils: a leaf coral a brachiopod a fish a crab (crustacean) a sea urchin (echinoderm) a scallop (mollusc) Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 7

8 Guide A: Introductory Guide for Junior Students 13. Megafauna (two locations) The fossils displayed in this segment are from animals known as the megafauna (meaning big animals ). They are now extinct. They became extinct: at the same time as the dinosaurs long after the dinosaurs became extinct before the dinosaurs became extinct Were there any humans living at the same time as: the dinosaurs the megafauna YES / NO YES / NO Zygomaturus was about as big as a (cat, sheep, cow, elephant). What sort of animal was Sthenurus? Diprotodon was the biggest marsupial ever. It are(grass, meat). Megalania was a large carnivore. Which modern Australiam animal was it related to? Genyornis looked like an emu, but was actually a giant (magpie, duck, kookaburra). The Diprotodon was the largest of the extinct Australian megafauna. It may have looked like this. Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 8

9 Guide B: Short Guide for Junior Students Spend the first 20 minutes of your time in the Dinosaurs in Time exhibition getting a good overview of what is exhibited. Then follow this Guide, which will take you to all 13 segments of the exhibition. Read the questions and write brief answers in the spaces provided. Be sure to check whether there are any fossil activities taking place in the Dinosaurs in Time exhibition or in the performance space just outside the gallery. If there are, include them in your visit. Exhibition Segments 1. Clues to the Past 8. Hadrosaur / A Real Dinosaur 2. Measuring Time 9. Life with Dinosaurs 3. Earliest Life 10. Gondwana Life in Australia 4. Diversity in the Deep 11. KT Extinction 5. Invasion of the Land 12. The Dawn of Modern Life 6. Permian Extinction 13. Megafauna 7. Dinosaurs Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 1

10 Guide B: Short Guide for Junior Students 1. Clues to the Past How many footprints are on the large slab? What animal made these footprints? Give yourself a tick when you have found: a shell that has turned to opal a coprolite (piece of fossilised poo) an insect in amber (fossilised tree sap) fossilised animal burrows 2. Measuring Time Find and touch the Apatosaurus thigh bone (femur). Apatosaurus was a long-necked dinosaur, similar to Mamenchisaurus (on display in the middle of the exhibition). 3. Earliest Life Find and touch the stromatolite specimen. Some stromatolite fossils are very old much older than the dinosaurs. They are produced by lots of tiny bacteria working together. 4. Diversity in the Deep Find and touch the large fish slab Where was this slab found? What is the name of the extinct group of animals that looked like this? Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 2

11 Guide B: Short Guide for Junior Students 5. Invasion of the Land Eurypterids (water scorpions) were the first land animals. Give yourself a tick water scorpion. when you have found the fossil of a giant Find and touch the Genoa trackway. How many footprints can you see? What kind of animal made the footprints? 6. Permian Extinction Many animals became extinct about 250 million years ago. The first dinosaurs appeared soon after this time. 7. Dinosaurs Which dinosaur was a vicious little predator? had a muzzle like a duck s bill? had no teeth, and looked like a big chicken? was a close relative of Tyrannosaurus rex? had the longest neck of any dinosaur? (Choose from Tsintaosaurus, Mamenchisaurus, Tarbosaurus, Gallimimus, Deinonychus) 8. Hadrosaur / A Real Dinosaur What work would have to be done on the hadrosaur before it could be put on display in an upright position like the other dinosaurs? Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 3

12 Guide B: Short Guide for Junior Students 9. Life with Dinosaurs Give yourself a tick when you find: a Hypsilophodon (dinosaur) an ichthyosaur a dinosaur egg Archaeopteryx, an early bird Find and touch the ammonoid. These animals once lived in the sea, but became extinct millions of years ago. Draw the ammonoid here: 10. Gondwana Life in Australia Find the fossil bones from small dinosaurs that have been found in Victoria. Write down the name of one of these dinosaurs: Find the fossils from Koonwarra in Gippsland. What kinds of fossils are on display? Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 4

13 Guide B: Short Guide for Junior Students 11. KT Extinction The extinction of the dinosaurs may have been caused by volcanoes in India or by an asteroid hitting the Earth near Mexico. When did this happen? million years ago. 12. The Dawn of Modern Life Inspect the fossils in this segment, and then go to the final segment of the exhibition. 13. Megafauna The fossils displayed in this segment are from animals known as the megafauna (meaning big animals ). They lived after the dinosaurs, but are now extinct. Zygomaturus was about as big as a (cat, sheep, cow, elephant). What sort of animal was Sthenurus? Diprotodon was the biggest marsupial ever. It are(grass, meat). Megalania was a large carnivore. Which modern Australiam animal was it related to? Genyornis looked like an emu, but was actually a giant (magpie, duck, kookaburra). Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 5

14 Guide B: Short Guide for Junior Students Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 6

15 Guide C: Find and Touch Spend the first 20 minutes of your time in the Dinosaurs in Time exhibition getting a good overview of what is exhibited. Then follow this Guide, which will take you to all 13 segments of the exhibition. Read the questions and write brief answers in the spaces provided. Be sure to check whether there are any fossil activities taking place in the Dinosaurs in Time exhibition or in the performance space just outside the gallery. If there are, include them in your visit. Exhibition Segments 1. Clues to the Past 8. Hadrosaur / A Real Dinosaur 2. Measuring Time 9. Life with Dinosaurs 3. Earliest Life 10. Gondwana Life in Australia 4. Diversity in the Deep 11. KT Extinction 5. Invasion of the Land 12. The Dawn of Modern Life 6. Permian Extinction 13. Megafauna 7. Dinosaurs Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 1

16 Guide C: Find and Touch Segment 2: Measuring Time Find and touch the Apatosaurus thigh bone (femur). Write down two words that describe how it feels: Where was this bone found? How old is it? The Apatosaurus was a long-necked dinosaur. A similar dinosaur, called Mamenchisaurus is on display in the middle of the exhibition. Give yourself a tick when you have seen it. Find and touch the sedimentary slab nearby. This was formed millions of years ago from layers of sand and mud beneath the sea. Describe how it feels: Where is this slab from? How many layers can you count in it? Segment 3: Earliest Life Find and touch the stromatolite specimen. What organisms produce stromatolites? Stromatolites were among the first producers of Find and touch the banded iron formation specimen. Banded iron was formed from o in the atmosphere and i in the oceans. Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 2

17 Guide C: Find and Touch Segment 4: Diversity in the Deep Find and touch the large fish slab. Write down two words that describe how it feels: The fish slab is from the Devonian Period of time. 2 How old is it? about 400 years old about 400 thousand years old about 400 million years old Where was it found? Segment 5: Invasion of the Land Find and touch the Genoa trackway. How many footprints can you see? What kind of animal made the footprints? How long ago were the footprints made? Where were these footprints found? Segment 9: Life with Dinosaurs Find and touch the ammonoid. Describe how it feels: These animals became extinct millions of years ago. Where did they live when they were alive? Draw the ammonoid here: 2 The Devonian Period of time was from 410 to 354 million years ago. Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 3

18 Guide C: Find and Touch Segment 10: Gondwana Life in Australia Find and touch the large sea shell (bivalve mollusc). This large sea shell was found in Queensland, far from the sea. When this animal was alive, what was the centre of Australia like? Teachers and students please note: Section 2.9 of the education kit for this exhibition is entitled Touch Objects. It has some additional information on the eight fossils that you have visited. Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 4

19 Guide D: Dinosaurs! Spend the first 20 minutes of your time in the Dinosaurs in Time exhibition getting a good overview of what is exhibited. Then follow this Guide, which will take you to all 13 segments of the exhibition. Read the questions and write brief answers in the spaces provided. Be sure to check whether there are any fossil activities taking place in the Dinosaurs in Time exhibition or in the performance space just outside the gallery. If there are, include them in your visit. Exhibition Segments 1. Clues to the Past 8. Hadrosaur / A Real Dinosaur 2. Measuring Time 9. Life with Dinosaurs 3. Earliest Life 10. Gondwana Life in Australia 4. Diversity in the Deep 11. KT Extinction 5. Invasion of the Land 12. The Dawn of Modern Life 6. Permian Extinction 13. Megafauna 7. Dinosaurs Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 1

20 Guide D: Dinosaurs! 1. Clues to the Past The footprints on the slab were made by an amphibian that lived before the dinosaurs. How many footprints can you see? Give yourself a tick when you have found: a shell that has turned to opal a coprolite (piece of fossilised poo) an insect in amber (fossilised tree sap) fossilised animal burrows 2. Measuring Time Find and touch the Apatosaurus thigh bone (femur). Where was this bone found? How old is it? The Apatosaurus was a long-necked dinosaur. A similar dinosaur, called Mamenchisaurus is on display in the middle of the exhibition. Give yourself a tick when you have seen it. 3. Earliest Life Find and touch the stromatolite specimen. Stromatolites were formed by millions of tiny bacteria. Some stromatolites were formed long before there were any dinosaurs. Other stromatolites are still being formed today. Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 2

21 Guide D: Dinosaurs! 4. Diversity in the Deep Touch the large slab containing fossil fish. Fish lived on Earth long before the dinosaurs, and there are still fish in the oceans today! Where was this slab found? 5. Invasion of the Land All the fossils in this segment are older than the dinosaurs. Give yourself a tick when you have found: the tracks of an ancient amphibian (from Genoa in Victoria) the giant water scorpion 6. Permian Extinction Many animals, especially those that lived in the sea, became extinct about 250 million years ago. Perhaps the Earth was hit by an asteroid, or perhaps volcanoes polluted the atmosphere. 7. Dinosaurs Go to the large dinosaur casts in the centre of the exhibition. These are all casts of original dinosaur fossils from China, Mongolia and America. Which dinosaur.. was a vicious little predator? had a muzzle like a duck s bill? had no teeth, and looked like a big chicken? was a close relative of Tyrannosaurus rex? had the longest neck of any dinosaur? (Choose from Tsintaosaurus, Mamenchisaurus, Tarbosaurus, Gallimimus, Deinonychus) Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 3

22 Guide D: Dinosaurs! Look up at the model of Pteranodon. This flying reptile wasn t a dinosaur, but lived at the same time as the dinosaurs. Do you know what Pteranodon ate? 8. Hadrosaur / A Real Dinosaur What work would have to be done on the hadrosaur before it could be put on display in an upright position like the other dinosaurs? 9. Life with Dinosaurs Archaeopteryx is the oldest known bird. Scientists believe that early birds were closely related to dinosaurs. Archaeopteryx had teeth, a long tail, and wings with claws. It looked a lot like a small dinosaur, except that it had f. Give yourself a tick when you find: a Hypsilophodon (dinosaur) an ichthyosaur a dinosaur egg 10. Gondwana Life in Australia Dinosaur fossils have been found near Cape Otway and near Inverloch in Victoria. Most are single bones from quite small dinosaurs. How old are these fossils? 11. KT Extinction The extinction of the dinosaurs may have been caused by volcanoes in India or by an asteroid hitting the Earth near Mexico. When did this happen? Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 4

23 Guide D: Dinosaurs! 12. The Dawn of Modern Life Inspect the fossils in this segment, and then go on to the last segment of the exhibition. 13. Megafauna Long after the dinosaurs became extinct, very large animals including giant possums, wombats and kangaroos lived in Australia. They are all extinct now. Zygomaturus was about as big as a (cat, sheep, cow, elephant). What sort of animal was Sthenurus? Diprotodon was the biggest marsupial ever. It are(grass, meat). Megalania was a large carnivore. Which modern Australiam animal was it related to? Genyornis looked like an emu, but was actually a giant (magpie, duck, kookaburra). Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 5

24 Guide D: Dinosaurs! If time allows: Artists study the fossils of extinct animals and try to draw what these animals might have looked like. Revisit the central display of dinosaurs and try to write the name of each dinosaur under its illustration below. Melbourne Museum Dinosaurs in Time 6