School Fossil Presentation Today

[Brett Breakin' Rocks 229]

Well,

   This is a story that tangentially relates to fossil excursions.  I'm not one to want to collect jars of shards or Leaverites but I do like to pocket teeth that I think would be good for trades , gifts etc.  My son is approaching the age now where he shows a bit more interest and he has started many 'collections' , shark teeth being one of many.  (he collects rocks, sticks, bugs, buttons, shiny crystals - more rocks-, you get the idea)

 

  I visited his school this morning for my first (hopefully one of many) presentations.  I had a few visual aids up on the projector screen but mainly talked about the Oligocene of South Carolina and sharks.  Well, ok Megalodon sharks and the things that they ate, and the landscape at the time.  20 minutes was about all that these figit-y pre-k and kindergarten kids would give me but it was worth it. I may have converted a few in the process.

 

  Of course images of fossilized poo won the day and got the biggest reaction. Go figure ... though, I did stick those images in for that very reason.  

 

  I'd like to give a shout out to Bobby @Boesse and the Mace Brown Museum of Natural History in Charleston for the inspiration. The exhibits there are outstanding and really give you a nice slice of the fauna in the area at the time. I relied on shots from inside of the museum for visual aids when discussing Basilosaurids and the evolution of whales (the kids honestly were more impressed with the whale's teeth).  And if it wasn't for Cade and his most excellent hand-drawn identification page @Sharks of SC I don't think the visuals would have been half as impressive.  The kids loved the handouts Cade and the cool thing is they double as something that they can color !

 

The prep

 

Goodie bags for 22 students. They each got 5 teeth from 4 different sharks.

 

Angy partials

 

Oh, and if you are curious the meg at the far end of the table is a beautiful 7" inch reproduction of a Meg tooth by Matty Swilp. One the kids could handle and toss around without me having a heart attack. It looks amazing.

 

 

The 7 inch repro ...

 

 

Cheers,

Brett

[Nimravis 973]

Great job Brett, I know the kids loved it. I use to help out on Braidwood Library trips to Pit 11 (Mazon Creek). Sometimes there would be2 bus loads of parents and kids. My son and I would salt the area with fossils before the buses arrived and at the end there were grab bags for everyone that contained about 20 Mazon Creek fossils and we would also raffle off about 10 real nice examples. The fossils were always a hit with the kids. I am sure the kids you visited will remember this for a long time and they have a pieces of history to treasure. Again, great job.

[Tidgy's Dad 2,176]

Most splendid! 

Well worth doing. 

Thirty odd years ago i used to go the a few primary schools to show off my fossils, always gave me a heart attack or two  but nothing ever got broken or stolen. 

I too found that anything dinosaur, or big teeth and coprolites got the most attention. 

The wrinkling of noses and the sniffing of the coprolites was always funny, or perhaps it was my socks provoking this reaction.

[Sharks of SC 65]

@Brett Breakin' Rocks Now that looks like a good time! I'm so glad the drawings could find some use.

[Brett Breakin' Rocks 229]

26 minutes ago, Nimravis said:

Great job Brett, I know the kids loved it. I use to help out on Braidwood Library trips to Pit 11 (Mazon Creek). Sometimes there would be2 bus loads of parents and kids. My son and I would salt the area with fossils before the buses arrived and at the end there were grab bags for everyone that contained about 20 Mazon Creek fossils and we would also raffle off about 10 real nice examples. The fossils were always a hit with the kids. I am sure the kids you visited will remember this for a long time and they have a pieces of history to treasure. Again, great job.

 

18 minutes ago, Tidgy's Dad said:

Most splendid! 

Well worth doing. 

Thirty odd years ago i used to go the a few primary schools to show off my fossils, always gave me a heart attack or two  but nothing ever got broken or stolen. 

I too found that anything dinosaur, or big teeth and coprolites got the most attention. 

The wrinkling of noses and the sniffing of the coprolites was always funny, or perhaps it was my socks provoking this reaction.

 

7 minutes ago, Sharks of SC said:

@Brett Breakin' Rocks Now that looks like a good time! I'm so glad the drawings could find some use.

Thanks guys,

 

  It was really fun and definitely a different audience compared to my college students.  haha .... the kids were great, especially when their little eyes would fixate on you as you were explaining something that they apparently thought was deadly serious. @Tidgy's Dad I think it might be time to purchase a few more replicas so they can toss them around .... ... it was touch and go there a few times.

 

  The drawings were great Cade ... thanks again.

[Fossildude19 5,198]

Community outreach at is finest, and most rewarding.  

Who knows what pathways you have opened up to those children.  

Great job, Brett.  Well done! 

 

[oldtimer 180]

Great job.

It's people like you and others that share information that will inspire young minds to be creative and expand the universe. Very rewarding.

Very nice displays. That repro Meg is outstanding.

I don't know why but all kids love the Dino Poo.

[JohnBrewer 943]

What a great presentation Brett. I particularly love the fact the kids got a goody bag. I’ve done a couple (didn’t think of goody bags tho so I’ll pinch that idea!) and Violet, 8 years old, did a ‘show and smell’ presentation on coprolites. It’s such a buzz sharing knowledge  

[Ludwigia 2,032]

Good job, Brett!

[FossilDAWG 2,454]

Much respect!  (We could use a bowing down emoticon).

 

Don

[Brett Breakin' Rocks 229]

3 hours ago, Fossildude19 said:

Community outreach at is finest, and most rewarding.  

Who knows what pathways you have opened up to those children.  

Great job, Brett.  Well done! 

 

I hope it inspires them, in the very least, to be more curious about their world.

 

 

3 hours ago, oldtimer said:

Great job.

It's people like you and others that share information that will inspire young minds to be creative and expand the universe. Very rewarding.

Very nice displays. That repro Meg is outstanding.

I don't know why but all kids love the Dino Poo.

The poo it seems will be one of the show stoppers in the future.  It's hard to get them to touch it even if they know it's just a lowly rock now ... haha

 

2 hours ago, JohnBrewer said:

What a great presentation Brett. I particularly love the fact the kids got a goody bag. I’ve done a couple (didn’t think of goody bags tho so I’ll pinch that idea!) and Violet, 8 years old, did a ‘show and smell’ presentation on coprolites. It’s such a buzz sharing knowledge  

Yeah, they were happy to know that some of the teeth were going home with them.

 

2 hours ago, Ludwigia said:

Good job, Brett!

Thanks .. it was fun !

2 hours ago, FossilDAWG said:

Much respect!  (We could use a bowing down emoticon).

 

Don

haha .. it has been in the works since he was born.  I honestly think part of the joy of having a little one is act like an excited 'big' kid once in awhile. 

 

Thanks.

[ynot 3,247]

It is fun to watch the kids when they make the connection.

Good for You for doing that.

[jcbshark 219]

Excellent job, I’d bet a couple of those kids will remember that for lifethat’s the type of thing that can result in a lifelong passion 

[RJB 692]

Good job Brett.  I use to do fossil presentations for 2nd graders all the way up to highschoolers.  and yeah, teeth and dino poop.  I would pass around the poop first, then let them guess, then tell them what it was. Wish I had a vidio camera in those days.  The kids expressions were priceless! 

 

RB

[Pagurus 320]

It looks like you were well-prepared for the class with lots of great stuff for them to look at and touch and even bring home. Those cards and the teeth are fantastic. Well done, all. The kids don't have a long attention span at that age but they love hands-on learning. Their wide-eyed excitement is so much fun to watch, and it's rewarding to know you had a hand in it. They love to tell you how much they already know, too. I've met so many 5-year old shark experts and dinosaur experts over the years. I've only done a handful of fossil presentations but thousands of sea-life classes, mostly kindergarten to grade 2. There were so many questions about megalodons I had to buy a 4-inch tooth to bring with me, just to be ready when they asked. Those kids will remember you (or at least your presentation) for a long time.  

[JohnBrewer 943]

I must also say Brett you’v really set the bar high for those who are keen to do kids presentations  

[Brett Breakin' Rocks 229]

18 hours ago, ynot said:

It is fun to watch the kids when they make the connection.

Good for You for doing that.

Indeed, they looked concerned at one point when I tossed a few images up on the projector that showed an example of a Megalodon max-size jaw reproduction with someone standing inside of it .... I reassured them that the Megalodon sharks were in-fact extinct.  haha.

 

7 hours ago, jcbshark said:

Excellent job, I’d bet a couple of those kids will remember that for lifethat’s the type of thing that can result in a lifelong passion 

I hope so .... I'm collecting other shark species in the hopes that I might return next year. Thanks.

 

 

7 hours ago, RJB said:

Good job Brett.  I use to do fossil presentations for 2nd graders all the way up to highschoolers.  and yeah, teeth and dino poop.  I would pass around the poop first, then let them guess, then tell them what it was. Wish I had a vidio camera in those days.  The kids expressions were priceless! 

 

RB

haha ... RB you are a constant source of belly laughs on this end.  I might try that next time, gonna steal that idea. Though to be honest, just flashing an image up on the screen sent them into an Ewwwww .. crescendo !! 

 

B 

 

 

2 hours ago, Pagurus said:

It looks like you were well-prepared for the class with lots of great stuff for them to look at and touch and even bring home. Those cards and the teeth are fantastic. Well done, all. The kids don't have a long attention span at that age but they love hands-on learning. Their wide-eyed excitement is so much fun to watch, and it's rewarding to know you had a hand in it. They love to tell you how much they already know, too. I've met so many 5-year old shark experts and dinosaur experts over the years. I've only done a handful of fossil presentations but thousands of sea-life classes, mostly kindergarten to grade 2. There were so many questions about megalodons I had to buy a 4-inch tooth to bring with me, just to be ready when they asked. Those kids will remember you (or at least your presentation) for a long time.  

Ohhh .. sea-life presentations sound cool.  Did you bring live specimens with you ?  That would be a kick.  I do appreciate that I can find cheap replicas for the more hands-on portion. Matty has some affordable Mastodon and Toothed-Whale specimens I have been eyeing. Thanks, it looked as if they were having a good time. 

 

Cheers,

Brett

 

52 minutes ago, JohnBrewer said:

I must also say Brett you’v really set the bar high for those who are keen to do kids presentations  

Haha ... well, don't make a monument yet.  That was just a first go.  I gave it some prep time of a day or two but I was running up to the wire.  Next time I need to think about a cart or something.  Those things are heavy after a point. And lugging them the few blocks with Finn in tow was a bit awkward ... he decided to turn on his 'jets' that day and take off like a little bullet down the street on the walk to school.   ------------>

 

 

[Pagurus 320]

5 hours ago, Brett Breakin' Rocks said:

sea-life presentations sound cool.  Did you bring live specimens with you ?  That would be a kick

Yep.  Mostly critters the kids could touch. Sea stars, urchins, hermit crabs, spider crabs, green crabs, horseshoe crabs, moon snails, whelks, scallops, clams, and whatever else I could find. Common steamer clams (Mya arenaria) were often the biggest hit with the little kids when they would squirt a stream of water out of their long siphons. Lots of giggles. I spent nearly an hour in each class, talking about writing, making up stories with the kids, using seashells as props, and then walking around with the live animals, talking about them, answering questions, and letting the kids touch them. I had them in picnic coolers full of salt water, rolling them from room to room on a utility cart with a fold-down handle. I often did five presentations in a day, several days a week. It was tiring sometimes, but I loved it. I was lucky to do them for thirty years. I've only done a few fossil presentations for some local groups, and they were fun too, but like you I had to do an awful lot of preparation. And those rocks were heavy!  I had the kids search through some micro matrix that I seeded with some extra teeth, and they seemed to enjoy it. Everything didn't go as planned, but it was fun.

[Monica 383]

Well done, Brett!  I'm sure that the kids loved it!  I'm a high school teacher, and I often talk to my students about fossils (even though it's not really related to the curriculum - I don't know how I can work fossils into the teaching of stoichiometry, equilibrium, etc., but I'm open to suggestions! ).  They LOVE it when I bring some things in to show them before/after a lesson - the students who correctly guess what I've brought in are always very proud of themselves. 

 

Thanks for sharing!

 

Monica

[Boesse 888]

Well done! Glad the museum was so helpful towards your outreach activities!

[Brett Breakin' Rocks 229]

On 12/29/2017 at 7:00 AM, Monica said:

Well done, Brett!  I'm sure that the kids loved it!  I'm a high school teacher, and I often talk to my students about fossils (even though it's not really related to the curriculum - I don't know how I can work fossils into the teaching of stoichiometry, equilibrium, etc., but I'm open to suggestions! ).  They LOVE it when I bring some things in to show them before/after a lesson - the students who correctly guess what I've brought in are always very proud of themselves. 

 

Thanks for sharing!

 

Monica

  Thanks, you know .. I wonder if you could tie into the atmospheric and climactic equilibrium that occurs over time in response to say ...  large shifts in ice cover (ice ages or other geologic markers) and how this affects animal and plant life, how large they were able to grow, their change in home range and food sources .. etc..   Haha .. it's a stretch.

 

Cheers,

Brett

20 hours ago, Boesse said:

Well done! Glad the museum was so helpful towards your outreach activities!

Yes, your museum has some great displays.