How big was that animal?

Skills: scaling, formulating models, observing

Goal
For students to see that prehistoric animals came in a variety of sizes.

Background
Students often have the image that all prehistoric animals were very large. While many were, there were many that weren't. The ecological niches that can be found today can also be found in the past. Like the animals of today, prehistoric animals came in a variety of sizes and filled all the different niches available to them.

Directions

1. Make an overhead transparency of a prehistoric animal from the figures provided, by printing out the image and photocopying it onto a transparent sheet.
2. Use kraft paper or tape together a number of sheets of paper to create a poster big enough to hold the actual size of the animal.
3. Project the image of the animal onto the paper with an overhead projector.
4. Adjust the distance between the overhead projector and the paper until the image is the animal's actual size. The unit length of the scale bar with the figure should be used when projected.
5. Trace the image onto the paper.
6. Have the students color in the animal. Encourage them to be creative in their choices. They may wish to draw and color a background scene on the remaining paper or add animals of the same time period to it.

Dimetrodon

Ichthyosaurus

Eurypterid

Eryops

Smilodon (sabertooth cat)