PSD Fossil Assessment Task

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This is an example of an assessment "for learning" that could accompany a book like Dinosaur Lady. This is not meant to be SUMMATIVE. These are tasks that give teachers and students some formative information, promote thinking and also prepare students for the types of tasks that they might engage in on our state science assessment.

You just read about Mary Anning and her work with fossils. Using the reading and your own knowledge of fossils, select which statements are true about fossils. More than one is true. *

Most ancient organisms die without being formed into fossils.

Animals and plants can be made into fossils.

A fossil could have formed 100 years ago.

An ancient fish fossil could be found in rocks dug out of a mountain top.

Some types of organisms found in fossils can be found living on Earth today.

A fossil organism found at the ocean shore today must have lived in the water when it was alive long ago.

Required

Mary Anning found several interesting fossils in the book Dinosaur Lady. Study the fossil in the picture below. Part 1: Describe the type of ENVIRONMENT this organism lived in.

Part 2: Describe how evidence from the fossil above helped you decide about the ENVIRONMENT this organism lived in.

Fossils give us evidence about many things. Check off the statements that are TRUE about what fossils can show us. Fossils can give us evidence about...

...the types of clothing worn 150 years ago.

... the types of organisms that lived long ago.

...the kind of environments that existed long ago.

... how the Earth has changed over millions of years.

Read the passage below from a book titled Mary Anning: Fossil Hunter. Then answer the two questions.

What does the author mean by the sentence from line #2 "They become part of the earth."?

The muscles and brains of the animal are recycled into soil.

Animal parts like legs or fins come off and are carried to other places on the earth.

The whole body of an animal turns into rock layers of the earth.

The soft parts of animals are eaten by birds.

Clear selection

What does the author mean by the word THEY in the sentence from line #3? "Over thousands of years, they may turn to stone."

The earth may turn to stone.

The whole body of an animal may turn to stone.

Bones and shells of animals may turn to stone.

Soil and sand may turn to stone.

Clear selection

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