explorer sack

							                       explorer sack
                                                    dinosaurs galore
The Explorer Sack contains activities and resources designed to be used with the children
on the gallery in The Manchester Museum and encourages them to engage with the
collection.

Learning Opportunities
 Early Learning        Learning Opportunities
 Goals
 KU2, CLL5             To find out about, and identify, some features of living things’ that lived long
                       ago through exploring the prehistoric reptiles and dinosaurs on the gallery.
 KU1 CD3, CLL5         To ‘describe and respond to what they see and touch in a variety of ways’.
 CLL5/4                To enjoy using language to express descriptions, ideas, thoughts and feelings
                       about the galleries and objects within the museum.
 MD9, KU1,CD3          To use all their senses to explore the size, shape, movement and sound of the
                       dinosaurs.
 CLL3/4, CD4           To ‘listen with enjoyment and respond to stories’ and to ‘make up their own
                       stories’ using props and puppets.
 PSE1                  To be interested, excited and motivated to learn.
 CLL8                  To be introduced to and explore the meaning and sounds of new words such as
                       dinosaur, diplodocus, scales, claws.

Resources
  1.                                   1. “Dinosaur Galore” Book
                                                                             6.
                              2. “Bumpus Rumpus Dinosaur Jumpus” Book
                  2.
                                    3. “That’s not my dinosaur” Book
                                                                                        7.
                                             4. Dinosaur trail

                                             5. T-Rex Puppet
                                                                       8.
   3.
                                         6. Plastic Dinosaurs (x8)
                                                                                         9.
                                                7. Shaker
                  4.
  5.                                        8. Dinosaur songs        10.
                                         9. Colour paddles (x6)

                                            10. Binoculars (x6)
                                           activities
                                                    dinosaurs galore
Explore the Vivarium, Play and Learn and Fossils galleries.
                     1.Explore Explore
                     Follow the Museum trail to the Fossils Gallery. Go on a dinosaur hunt. Creep into
                     the gallery and find the T. rex. Explore the Fossils Gallery and use the magnifying
                     glasses and colour paddles to help. Follow the dinosaur trail. What did you see?
 2.Story-time
 Read the story under the T. rex. Have they seen or can they find the dinosaurs from
 the story on the fossils gallery? Take the plastic dinosaurs to look around the gallery
 and find out something new.

                    3.How do dinosaurs move?
                    Move like dinosaurs, big movements, small movements, walking on four legs, two
                    legs, swimming. Can you match the movements to instruments in the sack. Sing
                    one of the dinosaur songs on the gallery.
4.Dinosaurs today
Explore the reptiles in the Vivarium. Dinosaurs and prehistoric reptiles are now extinct, but why not
look at the reptiles alive today. Compare the reptiles to the dinosaurs in the Fossils Gallery.

5. Play and Learn
Go to the play and learn gallery use the plastic animals/puppet to retell the story. Respond
to their experiences using the objects and tools on the gallery.

Back In Your Setting
 Activity                                            Description
  Story- Make a story about your trip to the museum, use photographs and children’s writing in the
 Telling story. Make dinosaur puppets to tell stories or dinosaur shadow puppet stories using an
         overhead projector. You could even make storybooks for the dinosaurs. They would have
         to be large books!
 Model   Make 3D Dinosaur models using junk modelling, clay, plasticine and straws. Make Paper
Making aeroplane Pterodactyls to fly outdoors.
 Fossils Make block/material prints to create a fossil effect. Create your own fossils using clay or
         baked dough. Create rubbings and explore the texture of these fossils. Use white straws/
         paint on black paper to create skeleton pictures, these can be put in the dinosaur cave. Do a
         dinosaur dig outdoors. What will you find?
Habitats Create a dinosaur habitat. This could be a large dinosaur world or a small world creation
         using natural resources eg mud, sand, ferns, bark. Provide boxes and natural resources for
         children to make their own mini-environments for the dinosaurs to play in. Create a dino-
         saur cave full of fossils with torches for the children to explore.
Dinosaur Put on a dinosaur performance. Explore the dinosaur movements and sounds. Match their
 Show    movement to different music and instruments. Make up a dinosaur rap.