Fossils or Not?
Initial Publication Date: August 20, 2018
Summary
The goal of this activity is to help students think about how, why, and where fossils are preserved in the geological record.
This activity can be done using the website Macrostrat or the mobile app Rockd. Using either application, students individually decide if, given the information available to them via the Rockd Map or Macrostrat Bedrock layer (these are equivalent datasets), there could be fossils where they are at that moment (on campus, on a field trip if using Rockd, etc). Then in pairs students discuss their answers and come up with reasons for why there might or might not be fossils at their location. After discussing their predictions with their partners, they then check to see if their predictions were correct by looking at the Paleobiology Database and discuss why their predictions did or did not hold up.
This activity can be done using the website Macrostrat or the mobile app Rockd. Using either application, students individually decide if, given the information available to them via the Rockd Map or Macrostrat Bedrock layer (these are equivalent datasets), there could be fossils where they are at that moment (on campus, on a field trip if using Rockd, etc). Then in pairs students discuss their answers and come up with reasons for why there might or might not be fossils at their location. After discussing their predictions with their partners, they then check to see if their predictions were correct by looking at the Paleobiology Database and discuss why their predictions did or did not hold up.
Collapse
Context
Audience
Introductory geology/earth science, earth history, or paleontology
Skills and concepts that students must have mastered
Students must have basic familiarity with Macrostrat or Rockd. They must know what a fossil is and the very basics about how fossils form. They must know about the major types of rocks (igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary) and the very basics of how they form.
How the activity is situated in the course
This is a stand-alone exercise that can be done when discussing fossils and the fossil record and/or sedimentary rocks and sedimentary environments.
Goals
Content/concepts goals for this activity
Helps students to understand that different rock types are better for preserving fossils than others and to think about why this is the case. Gives students insight into what controls the spatial and temporal distribution of fossils.
Higher order thinking skills goals for this activity
This activity helps students apply factual information to their understanding of a specific location, and allows them to make and test predictions based on their understanding of course material. In addition, students learn how to interpret geological information via online access to maps.
Other skills goals for this activity
Gain familiarity with using Macrostrat and/or Rockd applications
Description and Teaching Materials
This activity can be done using the web interface Macrostrat (https://macrostrat.org/map) or the free mobile app Rockd (http://rockd.org/) Using either application, students individually decide if, given the information available to them via the Rockd Map or Macrostrat Bedrock layer (these are equivalent datasets), there could be fossils where they are at that moment (on campus, on a field trip if using Rockd, etc). Then in pairs students discuss their answers and come up with reasons for why there might or might not be fossils at their location. After discussing their predictions with their partners, they then check to see if their predictions were correct. If students are using Macrostrat, they can load the Fossils layer to see if there are fossil in their location or not. If using Rockd, students can peruse local checkins and/or view the Paleobiology Database in a mobile web browser to see if there are fossils nearby (www.paleobiodb.org). If their predictions are wrong, students can then discuss why this might be. For example, they might realize that they are standing on metamorphic rocks, and these very rarely preserve fossils. Or they might discover that they are on sedimentary rocks, but that there are no fossils. Students can then discuss issues of preservation or other factors that might lead to barren sedimentary strata. In a more advanced paleontology-focused course, students can also make predictions about what kinds of fossils they might expect to find given the age and lithology information gleaned from Macrostrat / Rockd and then check these predictions against the Paleobiology Database.
This activity can be done as a classroom or field trip group discussion with pairs sharing their predictions and findings. Alternately, students can submit short written responses where they outline their predictions, their findings, and why those predictions did or did not match up with their findings. This activity is appropriate for any introductory level earth science or paleontology class. Students need to have learned that fossils are most often preserved in sedimentary rocks, and the basics of why this is the case. This activity helps students apply factual information to their understanding of a specific location, allows them to make and test predictions based on their understanding of course material, and gives them insight into the spatial and temporal distribution of fossils.
This activity can be done as a classroom or field trip group discussion with pairs sharing their predictions and findings. Alternately, students can submit short written responses where they outline their predictions, their findings, and why those predictions did or did not match up with their findings. This activity is appropriate for any introductory level earth science or paleontology class. Students need to have learned that fossils are most often preserved in sedimentary rocks, and the basics of why this is the case. This activity helps students apply factual information to their understanding of a specific location, allows them to make and test predictions based on their understanding of course material, and gives them insight into the spatial and temporal distribution of fossils.
Teaching Notes and Tips
Share your modifications and improvements to this activity through the Community Contribution Tool »
Assessment
Formative: Faculty circulated in class and checks in on groups, providing guidance as needed.
Summative: Students report out in their small groups about their initial hypothesis and why it was correct or incorrect, or submit a short written piece describing their initial hypothesis, their findings, and their justification for why their initial hypothesis was or was not correct.
Summative: Students report out in their small groups about their initial hypothesis and why it was correct or incorrect, or submit a short written piece describing their initial hypothesis, their findings, and their justification for why their initial hypothesis was or was not correct.
References and Resources
For more information on how to use Macrostrat, Rockd, and the Paleobiology Database please see the relevant chapters in the forthcoming Paleontological Society Shortcourse volume (link to be updated once documents are available online)