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Dinosaur Foot Print
(part of Discovering Dinosaurs Unit)

a child putting their painted footprints on a life size t-rex paper footprint

This activity should be done in advance so you have time to cut out and tape the pieces together.  You will be creating your own life-size stencils of dinosaur foot prints.


Make the Full Size Dinosaur Footprint


Materials:
scissors
masking tape

  1. Download for $1 the Tyrannosaurus Rex foot print.  The approximate size is 33" long and 28" wide.  FYI: The stride of a T-Rex is 12'.
  2. Download for $1 the Apatosaurus foot print. The approximate size is 36" long and 42" wide.
  3. Tape the sheets together.
  4. Cut out foot prints and save both pieces. 
    1. The inside you will use to compare your child's foot print to the dinosaurs.
    2. The outside you will use for a stencil to make the dinosaur tracks on the grass (outline the stencil with masking tape to give it more stability).

      tyrannosaurus footprint template

If the actual size of the dinosaur foot prints are too large, you can print the smaller versions for making tracks in your home.

Varying Sizes of Dinosaur Foot Prints
Large Size
Medium Size
(2 foot prints fit
on 8 x 11 sheet of paper)
Small Size
(lots of foot prints fit on 8 x11 sheet of paper)
Tyrannosaurus Rex
Foot Print
Approx. 33" long
by 28" wide

Tyrannosaurus Rex
(PDF)

Tyrannosaurus Rex
(PDF)
Apatosaurus/Brontosaurus
Foot Print
Approx. 36" long
by 42" wide

Apatosaurus
/Brontosaurus
(PDF)

Apatosaurus
/Brontosaurus
(PDF)

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Dinosaur Footprint Activities


To make the tracks using the outside of the stencil:

Materials:
stencils of dinosaur print
flour or sand
flour sifter
chalk
  1. Using the life-size foot prints as a stencil, make tracks using chalk, flour or sand.
  2. Chalk works well on concrete and flour or sand work well on grass.
  3. You can make groups of prints "walking" in one direction and another one crosses it. Or you can have the prints lead to your dig site and other activities. There is no wrong way to set out the tracks.

    tyrannosaurus footprint template

    making a dinosaur footprint using a paper cut out of a dinosaur footprint, flour and a flour sifter

If your child is older or shows an interest, some suggestions of what you could ask when following the tracks are:

  1. Do some dinosaurs travel in groups?
  2. Do they travel alone?
  3. Was the dinosaur running or walking that made these tracks? Why do you think that?
  4. What kind of dinosaur do you think it was?  PDF

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To use the inside of the stencil to do an estimating activity:

Materials:
dinosaur print
towel
paint (Have a variety of colors available and let your child select which ones to use.)
garden hose or a bucket with soapy water
paper plate or some disposal container (to make clean-up easier) to put the paint in that your child's foot fits into comfortably.

  1. If you would like to have your child have fun estimating the number of his foot prints that would cover a dinosaur print, you will use the inside foot print.
  2. He will compare his foot print to the dinosaur foot print. Have him tell you how many of him feet will cover the dinosaur print. Estimating the number of objects fit an area is a skill that gets easier for children as they get more practice doing it. How many will fit on the T-Rex foot print PDF? How many will fit on the apatosaurus foot print PDF?
  3. Then let him pick out the paint and squeeze it onto a paper plate. Having your child balance on one foot while the other is squishing around in the wet paint can be tricky. He will need your help to steady himself.
  4. After he feels he has enough paint on his foot, have him carefully place it on the paper print.
  5. Continue doing that until the dinosaur print is covered.

    apatosaurus footprint template
  6. Make one extra painted foot print for your scrap book. PDF

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Think About It!

Some questions that would be appropriate would be:

  1. Which one is larger - yours or the dinosaur? (Don't assume he knows.) PDF
  2. What is something close to his size? (Giving him opportunities to compare familiar objects will help him later in measuring and estimating. Accept anything close. If he doesn't understand, gently guide him by putting the object next to it, when possible. Or have him explain to you how it is close in size in his eyes. Sometimes children look at objects differently then adults do. They bring their own perceptive to it. )
  3. Have him estimate (make a good guess) how many of his foot prints would fit inside one of the dinosaur prints. (Let him use whatever strategies that he would like to figure it out.)
  4. Then put paint on a paper plate and have him put his painted foot prints on the dinosaur print. Have him cover the paper with his prints.
  5. When he feels he has covered enough of the dinosaur print with his foot prints, ask him, "How many do you think you have?" Then let him actually count them.
  6. Was his estimate close? (Estimates don't have to be exact, the idea is to get close and with practice, he will.) Either way let him know that you value his effort. Give him a high five or tell him well done, whatever acknowledgement would be appropriate for your child.

September 12, 2008

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