How to Plan a Dinosaur Dig

The kids can be paleontologists for a day when you plan your own dinosaur dig.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Flat Paintbrushes
• Sand
• Plastic Spoons
• Safety Goggles
• Safety Goggles

For Younger Children

1. Fill a sandbox or a large plastic container with sand, layering in small plastic dinosaurs.

2. Add water to the sand and pack it down hard. Place a weight on top of the sand.

3. Allow the sand to dry overnight.

4. Give the kids plastic spoons or plastic shovels and have them dig for dinosaurs.

5. Provide them with small paintbrushes so they can brush the sand off their finds.

For Older Children

6. Purchase a dinosaur excavation kit that allows kids to chip away at pretend rocks to get to the dinosaur bones.

7. Make sure the children wear goggles to protect their eyes from sand and grit.

8. Help the children carefully chip away at the excavation area and brush away debris to get to the bones hidden inside.

9. Get some dinosaur books so that you can learn together about the bones they uncover.

[cynww]

on 6/15/2009 If your child is into dinosaurs, check out this website: http://www.parentchildeducation.com/units/dinosaur/a_top/dinosaur.php They have a boy doing a dinosaur dig on video and fun activities that any child can do. They also have more coming out soon!

[Kimber1]

on 7/16/2008 This is a great idea! I saw another activity that was similar to this at www.KidsActivityBox.com, but kids search for chicken bones rather than dinosaur toys. The direct link is http://www.kidsactivitybox.com/2008/07/07/dinosaur-dig/.