Australia's Science Forum

Hi everyone

I have had a the stage 1 teachers ask me about fossils etc for their little people down there in Junior School (year 1 and 2 kids). They are going on an archeological expedition to the sand pit on Thursday and were thinking of burying some chicken bones for the kids to dig up and then put together. Does anyone have any ideas on how best to do this, or an alternative? I would have to cook a chicken tonight to get the bones and then let them dry out before Thursday.

Also, I was faxed a copy of the edible fossils (chocolate, I think) a while back and don't know where it has gone. I probably passed it on to the appropriate teacher at the time (silly me!!). Is there anyone out there who would be so kind as to fax me a copy (or post it here on chemtalk) of the prac? Fax No 02 6762 1752 Attn Rosalie Murray

Thanks,
Rosalie

Hi Rosalie,
We did this with our prep kids earlier this year.
I had large containers of vermiculite (sand pit OK), and buried some large bones that I'd found in a cupboard here (cow I think). We gave them paintbrushes, and away they went.
Instead of choc fossils, I cut up egg cartons, and put some play doh in the "well", then they pressed a shell into the play doh leaving an imprint (fossil).They took these home.
We have done choc fossils with other classes, and we layer different choc (white, milk, dark) in ice block trays. You can add a dinosaur lolly, and also mini marshmallows for rocks.
Hope this helps. Ellice.

Hi Rosalie,
This may be a bit to hard for junior school but this is our choc fossil rec.

Aim :
To observe the imprints of fossils.

Equipment:
White and dark chocolate
Paper cups
Bowls and saucepans for chocolate
Paper towel
Objects to make impressions (lollies, life savers, hundreds and thousands and any other hard sweet)
Spoons
Bunsen Burner or hot plate

Method:
Groups collect assigned fossils – sweets, solid represents large bones, gums represents soft tissue and hundreds and thousands are smaller organisms.
Collect paper cups, paper towelling and tooth picks
White chocolate melted first represents some type of sedimentary rock then a layer of fossils is layer down then the dark chocolate is poured over to represent lava flow.
The fossil formation is left to cool, then chipped at and separated, to reveal the imprint of our fossil.
Students draw observation, and then eat the evidence.


Kimmy

Oh Kimmy
that sounds so yummy. I am soooo hanging out for morning tea now. You have made me very hungry!
tina