This Palentological Research Institution (PRI) website illustrates for students many of the concepts paleontologists must consider daily in their research. Concepts such as size and shape, form and function, and the process of science are covered in the activities. Full description.

This website covers details about the Permian extinction, which occurred about 250 million years ago. It contains a paleontological overview of the extinction, discussing the life present at that time, evidence for the extinction, and what types of lifeforms disappeared. Other sections discuss various theories about what caused the mass-extinction including volcanism, impacts, climate change, glaciation, ... Full description.

This University of Bristol page discusses in detail the Cambrian Explosion event that occurred about 545 million years ago. This site covers what the 'explosion' was and when it happened, the Cambrian environment, what caused this event to occur, fossil groups and their significance, and controversies surrounding this theory as well as recent discoveries. Full description.

This University of Bristol page discusses the process and importance of studying dinosaur tracks and trackways. Beginning with footprint morphology and preservation, it covers track taphonomy, ichnotaxonomy, dinosaur posture and stance, behavior, gait and speed, paleoecology and how to identify the trackmaker. Links are provided for additional resources. Full description.

In this lesson plan students will investigate the evidence from modern and prehistoric crocodilians like SuperCroc (Sarcosuchus imperator) to determine the causes of survival and mass extinction at the Cretaceous/Tertiary boundary about 65 million years ago. Students will research and take notes on questions about modern and prehistoric crocodilians, and write papers providing their opinions of why ... Full description.

This lesson plan asks students to think about the ways in which living animals use their bodies and the ways in which dinosaurs might have used their bodies based on fossil evidence and our best educated guesses. These topics serve as a prelude to studying evolution and adaptation. Full description.

This lesson plan is about the process by which paleontologists locate, excavate, and study dinosaurs. Students will write journal entries pretending they are on a dinosaur dig. They will also make fact sheets about this recently discovered Jobaria dinosaur; place Jobaria into a timeline to indicate the periods in which it lived; visit a website to learn about the steps involved in finding and excavating ... Full description.

This site discusses and defines a number of extinction concepts and provides a survey of some important extinction and extinction-like events, primarily from the Phanerozoic. There is information about species transitions, abrupt and mass extinctions, patterns and causal mechanisms of extinction, and isotope studies. Events that occurred during the Proterozoic, Vendian-Cambrian, Upper Cambrian (Dolgellian, ... Full description.

In this activity, students build Euoplocephalus and Triceratops dinosaurs, answer basic counting questions, and print out coloring pages. The site provides basic information on the two kinds of dinosaurs and a list of further reading materials. Full description.

This site provides descriptions of dinosaurs and audio of what the dinosaurs might say to describe themselves. Students can listen to the pronunciation of a dinosaur name by clicking on the phonetic spelling of the name. There is also a computer activity in which the user must match clues to dinosaur names. Full description.