How to use dinosaurs to teach the scientific method, conservation and ethics

Dinosaurs have great educational potential because they fascinate young minds and the general public. The ancient Chinese, Greeks and Romans explained their fossils with beautiful legends; in the Twentieth century, Jurassic Park and Walking with Dinosaurs brought dinosaur science to the masses. Here I explain how to make three inexpensive and simple activities: the first one teaches how to reconstruct the appearance of a dinosaur and its habitat from fossils and focuses on the requirements of the Scientific Method; it can be done with a computer or manually. The second is a simple drawing practice that teaches the impossibility of faithfully copying an extinct species (despite the current proposals for species “de-extinction”). The third activity is a dramatization about ethical conflicts related to fossils. The article includes activity cut-outs and detailed steps, how to evaluate and practical advic