| If there's a common thread in my big blended family of | | | | but look at the position of the eye sockets. Could they |
| seven, one thing that everyone can agree on, it's this - | | | | really only see you if you moved? And was that one |
| dinosaurs are cool. Dinosaurs tend to bring out the best | | | | type of dinosaur or all of them? We bought dinosaur |
| in the kids. My wife and I are blessed with kids that do | | | | kits and explored the skeleton. Human biology seemed |
| appreciate a trip to the museum as a mini-adventure. | | | | to get covered as we went along. Some dinosaurs |
| That might have more to do with Ben Stiller than the | | | | are thought to have had nearly 360 degree vision, to |
| allure of history, but we'll take what we can get. Still, | | | | understand what that means you have to know about |
| nothing gets their curiosity juices flowing more than a | | | | eyes, but also about degrees. |
| natural history museum with good dinosaur exhibits. | | | | The study of dinosaur kits or models, plus comparison |
| Nearly every city has some sort of natural history | | | | with our own bodies, can cover so many subjects |
| museum. It's a great opportunity to inspire the inner | | | | which children normally view as boring or lame or |
| scientist in your family. | | | | which are not normally introduced until much later in the |
| The highlight of our visits to the Smithsonian's National | | | | school curriculum. You can never be too young to be |
| Museum of Natural History (NMNH) was of course the | | | | enthusiastic about science. The study of geology |
| hall of dinosaurs where the vicious Allosaurus is quite | | | | doesn't impinge much on the life of most children, but |
| popular along with the Triceratops. Something about | | | | how do we know about dinosaurs? Fossils. You need |
| those meticulously assembled bones holds a sway | | | | to know how they are made, and if that means |
| and sense of wonder for me and my kids that doesn't | | | | learning the difference between metamorphic and |
| fade with time. The Jurassic Park movies are still a | | | | sedimentary, then that's fine. How did the dinosaurs |
| yearly viewing requirement for all of us. | | | | die? Was it a meteor? What would that do exactly? |
| Our visits to the museum gift shop yielded useful items. | | | | There's never been a better reason to talk about |
| First there were stickers. It's a scientific fact that all | | | | space, comets, asteroids and meteors, and if it wasn't |
| children love stickers, but when these stickers are | | | | a meteor, was it perhaps volcanic activity? To |
| dinosaur stickers the reward has a new dimension. | | | | understand that you have to read about the great |
| Would it be a carnivorous species (best) or to quote | | | | volcanic eruptions and why they occurred, and if that |
| Jurassic park a vegiesaurus? Would it be a large | | | | leads to a discussion about places, well that's good too. |
| species, or one of the thousands of small dinosaurs | | | | Dinosaurs skeletons have been found in some |
| you don't hear so much about? Dinosaur stickers took | | | | amazing places, from Antarctica to the Gobi Desert. |
| us through many early learning experiences (from | | | | Making a map which shows all these locations will tell |
| potty training on) always providing an interesting topic | | | | you a lot about dinosaurs, but even more about |
| along the way, but there was much more to come. | | | | geography. Could there really be a Jurassic Park and |
| As they got older, we graduated from dinosaur | | | | what is DNA anyway? Genetics is another branch of |
| stickers to dinosaur models. Comparisons were | | | | science the dinosaur enthusiast just has to explore. |
| inevitable. Why did Tyrannosaurus have those silly | | | | Age is not a barrier to these subjects, especially when |
| short arms? What are arms for? What would it be like | | | | there is an enthusiastic child around who wants to |
| if we had short arms? What if is a great game to play | | | | know more. |
| with children and became our favorite whenever we | | | | There is no end to the subjects you can explore when |
| made a trip in the car. What if you had dinosaur skin? | | | | dinosaurs are your starting point, and there is no end to |
| What color was it? What if dinosaurs had skin like | | | | the capability of children when they get to study |
| ours? What is skin anyway? What if people where 30 | | | | something they feel enthusiastic about. |
| feet tall? Strangely the fascination with dinosaurs | | | | Every major city has a museum and most museums |
| never died and we found that many of our hands on | | | | have a dinosaur. If that's not an option, rent Jurassic |
| science activities were centred around dinosaur kits | | | | Park and order a dinosaur model kit online or find one |
| and models. I didn't realise at first, but the strangest | | | | at your local hobby store. With a little patience and |
| thing about dinosaurs is that apart from their great size | | | | imagination you have found the key to an |
| they're not so different from us. As school began this | | | | understanding and enthusiasm for science. This is |
| was more and more useful. | | | | something your child will treasure for the rest of his or |
| Human biology? Boring. Dinosaurs biology? That's | | | | her life. |
| something else. Dinosaur skulls are structured like ours, | | | | |