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Four-Winged Dinosaur, The
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Viewing Ideas
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Before Watching
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Use a map to locate where scientists found the
Microraptor fossils. Using a world map, have students first locate
China and then the Liaoning Province (the southern portion of
Northeastern China). Explain to students that Liaoning Province
is the source of many unusual fossils, including feathered
dinosaurs. Ask students what might make the area a good source
of fossils. What conditions do students think would be best to
preserve fossils? (Most fossils are found in sedimentary rock, which forms when sediment, such
as rock particles or organic matter, become compressed and
cemented together as it piles up. Fossils can also be found in
amber, tar pits, frozen ground, or preserved during a
catastrophic event happened, such as a volcanic eruption that
produced a lot of fine ash. The Liaoning fossils are so well
preserved because the victims were killed by volcanic
eruptions of suffocating gas and then buried quickly by
volcanic ash. This allowed the preservation of very fine
details of soft tissues, like feathers. It also favored the
preservation of small animals, which usually do not fossilize
because they decompose quickly when exposed to the
elements.)
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Explore the time period when the Liaoning fossils were
formed.
Have students use the University of California Museum of
Paleontology online time line to locate the geologic time period
in which the Liaoning fossils were formed (130 million years
[plus or minus 5 million years] ago during the early Cretaceous
Period). Assign groups to research what happened in the periods
before and after in terms of development of insects, mammals,
birds, amphibians, and plants. Ask each group to place a
self-stick note on a time line at the front of the class that
indicates the period researched and photos of the organisms that
were evolving at that time. Find the time line at
www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/help/timeform.html
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Research the structure and function of feathers. If you
have samples of feathers, bring them in. Have students discuss
the functions of feathers (flight, insulation, defense, display, camouflage,
waterproofing). Group the class into small teams and assign each team one of
the following birds: penguin, ostrich, peacock, duck, snowy owl,
and robin. Ask students to research the physical characteristics
and function of feathers in the bird they are assigned. Their
research should include an examination of the bird's habitat and
the role feathers play as an adaptation to that habitat. After
students have finished their research they should present their
findings to the class, incorporating pictures or illustrations
of their bird, its feathers, and its habitat if possible.
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Evaluate the evidence for the evolution of flight. While
the majority of scientists agree that birds evolved from
dinosaurs, how flight evolved is still being debated. As they
watch the film, have students take notes on the two main
theories about how flight evolved. Have half the class take
notes on evidence supporting and refuting the theory that flight
evolved from dinosaurs who took flight from the ground up and
the other half take notes on evidence for and against the theory
that flight evolved from reptiles that glided among the
treetops.
After Watching
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Discuss evidence for the evolution of flight. Have
students summarize what each theory proposed and outline the
evidence supporting and refuting each theory. What types of
fossil evidence was used to support or clarify these theories?
Ask students for a show of hands of which theory they believe is
most plausible. Choose some students from each camp to defend
why they chose that theory.
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Draw a dinosaur model based on its skeleton. Point out
that the scientists in the video created several models of
Microraptor based solely on fossils. Explain that similar
techniques are used to model all dinosaurs, since we have no way
of knowing what they actually look like. Direct students to the
American Museum of Natural History's "Drawing Dinos" Web site at
ology.amnh.org/paleontology/stuff/drawdinos.html
The site provides detailed suggestions on how to draw a dinosaur
based on its skeleton. Print out at least one copy of the "Dino
Skeletons for You to Draw!" page for each student, and hand out
the page along with tracing paper and colored pencils. (Students
can also draw a model based on other skeletons. They just need
to find a skeleton picture that gives a side view of the
animal.)
Have students use the information on the site to create their
dinosaur drawings. When students are finished, discuss the
process. How similar or different are the final drawings? Was
the task easy or difficult for students? Why or why not?
Links
NOVA—The Four-Winged Dinosaur
www.pbs.org/nova/microraptor
Features articles, interviews, interactive activities, and resources
to accompany the program.
All About Birds: Feather Structure
www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/studying/feathers/feathers
Provides a diagram of the parts of a feather and explanations of the
different kinds of feathers found in birds.
American Museum of Natural History: Liaoning Diorama
www.amnh.org/exhibitions/dinosaurs/diorama
Includes descriptions and images of the fossil finds, feathered
dinosaurs, and Liaoning Forest 130 million years ago.
Natural History Museum: DinoBirds
www.nhm.ac.uk/nature-online/life/dinosaurs-other-extinct-creatures/dino-birds
Features descriptions of fossil finds as well as information on
evidence linking dinosaurs to birds.
The Dinosaur Museum: Making a Feathered
Deinonychus Sculpture
www.dinosaur-museum.org/featheredinosaurs/show.htm
Illustrates in a slide show how scientists created a life-sized
model of Deinonychus.
Books
Dinosaurs with Feathers: The Ancestors of Modern Birds
by Caroline Arnold. Clarion Books, 2001.
Traces the relationship between dinosaurs and modern birds starting
with the discovery of the first Archaeopteryx fossil in 1861.
Rise of the Dragon: Readings from Nature on the Chinese Fossil
Record
by Henry Gee (editor). University of Chicago Press, 2001.
Gathers together 16 articles from Nature magazine on recent
fossil finds in China.
Feathered Dinosaurs
by Christopher Sloan. National Geographic Children's Books, 2001.
Examines the development of feathers and avian characteristics from
dinosaurs to birds. Includes text, drawings, photos, and diagrams.
Feathered Dinosaurs of China
by Gregory Wenzel. Charlesbridge Publishing, 2004.
Examines a number of feathered dinosaur fossils found in Liaoning
Province. Includes a map and a glossary.
Taking Wing
by Pat Shipman. Simon and Schuster, 1998.
Provides a history of the bird origin debate from the discovery of
Archaeopteryx in the 1860s until just before the first
feathered dinosaurs were discovered in the mid-1990s.
Unearthing the Dragon
by Mark Norell and Nick Ellison. Pi Press, 2005.
Recounts the personal account of AMNH paleontology curator Mark
Norell in his hunt for feathered dinosaurs in China.
Viewing Ideas Author
Margy Kuntz has written and edited educational materials for 20
years. She has authored numerous educational supplements, basal text
materials, and trade books on science, math, and computers.
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