Fossils 2020

A boy was hiking through a desert with his family. He found a fossilized insect that has pinchers for eating grass while he was digging in the sand. What can the boy conclude about the habitat of the once living insect?

• The area was always a desert and someone put the fossil there.

• The area was once covered in water and must have had sea animals.

• The area must have once had lots of grass because of the characteristics of the fossil.

• The area has always been a desert because of the location where the fossil was found.

A student was observing a full fossilized skeleton of an animal at a museum. He wants to know more about the animal and is curious about the type of habitat it lived in when it was alive. What clues below would BEST help him to find out what he wants to know?

• The animal has large tusks with very short front legs and long legs in back.

• The animal has a very large body and flipper-like front feet.

• The animal has large flat teeth and really large rib bones.

• The animal has very sharp teeth and a really large skull.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-1

NGSS.MS-LS4-2

A student went on a fossil dig in the desert and found the two following fossils.

Based upon the evidence of the fossils, what can the student conclude when comparing the environment of the location the two fossils were found in?

• The environment has always been a desert environment because a horseshoe crab and ammonite fossil were found in a desert.

• The environment has changed over time from an area covered with water to a desert because long ago the animals lived in water.

• The environment has always been a desert environment, but the horseshoe crab and ammonite fossil moved locations over time.

• The environment has changed over time from an area covered in forests with a lot of trees since there is water for these creatures to live in.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-2

NGSS.MS-LS4-1

Two fossils are found in a cold mountain region. One is a fish fossil and the other is a palm tree fossil. What can you infer about the environment in which these organisms lived?

• A warm ocean environment because fish are found in areas with water and palm trees are found in warm ocean environments.

• A cold mountain region because an environment cannot change its type of environment over time.

• A warm mountain region because since there are palm trees, the area needs to be warm.

• A hot desert because palm trees are found in hot areas.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-1

A student is observing two fossils found in a warm wooded region. One fossil is of an animal and one of a plant. Both of these fossils appear to have the same characteristic that they retain water. What can you infer about the environment in which these organisms lived?

• The fossils are of organisms that once lived in an ocean because they need water in order to survive.

• The fossils are of organisms that once lived in a desert since these organisms are able to live where there is limited water.

• The fossils are of organisms that once lived on the coast next to the ocean because they lived on land, but need access to the ocean.

• The fossils are of organisms that once lived in a wooded area because there are a lot of types of plants and animals found in this region.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-1

NGSS.MS-LS4-1

A group of friends were hiking to the top of a mountain. When they got to the top of the mountain, they discovered several fossils of animals like the one pictured above.

What clues does the fossil give you about how the animal moved and what type of habitat it lived in?

• This animal lived at the bottom of the mountain since it was discovered at the mountain, but the mountain rose in height over time.

• This animal lived at the top of a mountain since that is the location it was discovered.

• This animal lived in a water environment such as a lake or ocean since it has bones.

• This animal lived in a water environment since it has dorsal fins.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-1

Erik and Carol are each creating a model to represent how an imprint of a leaf fossil is formed. Below are their descriptions of the model they created.

Who has a more accurate model?

• Erik, because he used play dough and it will decompose in the soil.

• Erik, because he buried it in soil which happens to all dead things.

• Carol, because the glue represents the minerals filling in the spaces to form a fossil.

• Carol, because she used clay and it could be molded over and over into something new.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ETS1-2

A student wants to create a model to represent how a turtle fossil formed once it dies. They designed the following plan for the model.

Which of the following would be the BEST for the student to do to continue their model for step 3?

• Fill in the gaps with glue to represent minerals filling in the space.

• Reveal the fossil since it is time for scientists to discover the fossil.

• Squish the clay to show that overtime fossils will disappear.

• Smooth the imprint over with your fingers to show that sediment will fill in the spaces.

A group of third graders share the task of creating a model to represent how fossils are formed. One of the students is in charge of representing the step that organisms are buried under sediment. They are using a clay dinosaur to show the steps. Which of the following would BEST demonstrate this step?

• Use glue to fill in empty spaces on the clay dinosaur.

• Use a book to push down dirt over the clay dinosaur.

• Use a pencil to pick at the dirt around the clay dinosaur.

• Use a piece of paper to squeeze the clay dinosaur from all directions.

A student creates a model to show the process of how the following fossil formed.

Which of the following should the students include in their illustration?

• The student should show people digging out the fossil to show an animal becomes a fossil the moment it is discovered.

• The student should label the soil types in each layer of the illustration.

• The student should draw a time lapse of images for each step with arrows and descriptions.

• The student should label the type of dinosaur in their image.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-4

NGSS.MS-LS4-1