Individual
Using a grid, students will help create an enlarged replica of a stegosaurus drawing.
Additional Resources
Video
Dinosaurs are a group of animals descended from reptiles and the ancestors of birds. They were different from their reptile ancestors in that they have an S shaped neck and feet held directly beneath their bodies, as well as several other features. They lived on land, grew both big and small, and died out 65 million years ago.
We know of over 300 kinds of dinosaurs, half of those from a single tooth or bone. A reliably new kind of dinosaur is found every seven weeks on average. There were probably thousands of kinds of dinosaurs, but most haven’t been found yet. We don’t get a great sample because fossils are usually only made in lowland areas where bones get covered over by mud, even though dinosaurs lived all over. And we only find fossils where rock from dinosaur times is now near the surface, and when the bones were preserved—many bones are weathered soon after the animal dies. Many places have dinosaurs but they are deep in the ground; in other places the weather wasn’t right to turn dinosaurs into fossils.
More species of plant-eating dinosaurs (herbivores) have been found than carnivores, because there are always more herbivores than carnivores in any animal population. One such plant eater was the stegosaurus. The stegosaurus was a dinosaur that lived in Utah and surrounding states. It weighed three tons, was nine feet tall and 15 feet long. It had plates that it used for protection as well as to control body temperature. The stegosaurus had a curved beak and very small teeth. These teeth were too weak to chew food, so the plants were torn off by the beak, swallowed in large pieces, and digested in the stomach.
1. Use Science Process and Thinking Skills
2. Manifest Science Interests and Attitudes
3. Understand Science Concepts and Principles
Invitation to Learn
Ask: How big were dinosaurs that lived in Utah? Could we enlarge a
picture to represent the size of a dinosaur?
Instructional Procedures
Math
Using coordinates, find the correct region on a grid.
Art
Interpret and apply visual arts in relation to history and all learning.
Family Connections
Encourage students to share information on dinosaurs with family
members. Ask students to research information on a dinosaur that
lived in Utah. If possible, have students and their families visit a
dinosaur museum or quarry close to their home.