We hope to build out our educational video resources library further in the very near future.
In the meantime, here are a few educational videos about dinosaurs, general paleontology and some fossil-related maker activites you can try yourself — that we hope you will enjoy. The videos below are by Mass State Dino Initiative Task Force members Mark McMenamin Barnas Monteith. If you have any questions about this content, please reach us via the contact page.
Note on Appropriate Ages: The content below is “child-friendly” and appropriate for a wide range of ages, however, some of the science and engineering terms may be best for middle and high school students. Please note the age recommendations at the top of each video. Younger children (prek~5) should probably wait a bit until we have more content geared for elementary school and younger students. The content below was primarily designed with older children in mind, but some of it can be fun for any age (with the exception of the first video which is OK for younger / elementary aged students). Teachers, parents and mentors should be advised to watch these videos with their students/children to help them understand any complex concepts that they may not understand. And, again, please reach us via the contact page if you have any questions or comments. Thank you! A Glossary of Terms to help you understand the videos better is coming very soon!
Trilobite Jury — A Play by Paleontologist Mark McMenamin (for older children and adults)
Trilobite Jury is an original play by Mark McMenamin, copyright 2021. The video shown here is a preliminary production, presented to you by the Valley Light Opera of Amherst, Massachusetts under theatrically-challenging conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic. Future iterations of the play by Valley Light Opera, hopefully soon to include live performances, will manifest the high production values that VLO has been known for since the mid-1970s. For information about librettos and performance rights, please contact Mark McMenamin. Mark is a member of the State Dinosaur Task Force.
Are Birds Actually Dinosaurs?
Paleontology & AI – Mentoring A High School Science Fair Project About Finding Fossils Using A.I.
How to Make a Very Realistic Fossil Human Ancestor Skull (Using Cardboard, Glue, Plaster & Other Simple Stuff Around the House! (best for older children, with adult supervision)
Making Ammonites! And Why Ammonites are Awesome! (requires some basic supplies)
Punctuated Equilibrium & The Evolution of Snails (Complex science; best for upper high school or college students)
How to Make Fractals Just Like The Patterns Of Living Things （For Instance, Ammonites & Other Fossils; best for middle school or older)
Please be sure and come back to our site; we’re planning to put up a whole lot more videos soon — and a glossary of terms page soon, to help you understand some of the terminology in these videos!