Skeletons and bones Work in groups and start at different What on Earth! points on the trail so all the children get to see the objects clearly. The trail doesn’t have to be done in order. Weird & wonderful Look carefully at the teeth of the animals in the Eating case. Name an animal that you think eats meat.

Encourage children to look at animal teeth and identify canines.

Tell a friend how you know. Check the label to see if you are right. Can you see the canines and incisors of this animal? Draw them here

Canine Incisor

Draw a line to match the animal teeth to the food.

canines molars

molars and canines Examine skeleton no. 39 Gibbon

What kind of animal do you think it belongs to? Write down two things that are the same as your skeleton? ribs, spine, in fact the skeleton is made up of the same bones, it’s just the sizes that are different

Write down two things that are different to your skeleton? length of arms, hands, legs, feet, shape of eye sockets on skull

Find and look closely at a snake. Circle the bones a snake’s skeleton might have? femur (thigh bone) rib (chest bone) vertebrate (part of spine) humorus (upper arm bone)

Draw what you think a snake skeleton might look like Find Spike the woolly rhino. Examine the teeth in the case underneath him.

What do you think a woolly rhino would have eaten?

Was Spike a carnivore or a herbivore? herbivore as he ate plants. The teeth are molars

Find the tooth in the cabinet as you enter Ancient lands What did it belong to? Mammoth tooth in the case with the wolf

Look behind you, in a hidey hole is a tooth from the same animal. You can touch this tooth look down towards the ground Circle the words that describe what it feels like?

cool rough hard

soft smooth warm

These teeth are really old. Why do you think we just have teeth and skeletons from animals a long time ago and no skin? skin, and everything else, is more likely to rot away Power of nature Find the elephant bones. What part of the skeleton is it? Skull and jaw (mandible)

What does this part of the skeleton do?

protects the brain

Treasures Find the crocodile skull. The skull has holes in it to make it light. Why do you think this is important? A crocodile doesn’t have very strong jaw muscles so its skull need to be light enough for it to be able to lift it’s upper jaw.

Sometimes animal skeletons are used to make jewellery and ornaments. Find an example in Treasures and draw it.

There is a case called ‘Made from animals’.

Which part of the animal do you think it might be?