Description
What our Dinos A to Z: Leptoceratops lesson plan includes
Lesson Objectives and Overview: Dinos A to Z: Leptoceratops is a high-interest reading comprehension lesson plan. As such, students will practice various close reading and comprehension skills. In addition, they will learn some basic information about these interesting prehistoric animals. This lesson is for students in 2nd grade, 3rd grade, and 4th grade.
DINOS A TO Z: LEPTOCERATOPS LESSON PLAN CONTENT PAGES
Leptoceratops
The Dinos A to Z: Leptoceratops lesson plan contains one content page. The Leptoceratops (LEP·toe·CARE·uh·tops) lived about 65 million years ago. Its fossils have been found in Alberta, Canada, and the Midwest in the United States. Seven different species of this dinosaur have been discovered. Even though it did not have horns, its name means “slim-horned face.”
The Leptoceratops was a small dinosaur. It is described by paleontologists as “long, slender, and low to the ground.” It was around 2 to 3 meters (6 to 9 feet) long and no more than 1 meter (3 feet) high at its shoulders. A fully grown Leptoceratops weighed 90 kilograms (200 pounds). By dinosaur standards, it was a nice-sized meal for predator dinosaurs like the Velociraptor or T-Rex!
They were also herbivores and munched on vegetation low to the ground. They had a parrot-shaped beak that was useful for grazing. The teeth of the Leptoceratops indicate that it used a circular motion when chewing thorny fibrous vegetation. While it probably could stand on two legs, it spent most of its time walking or running on all fours.
Interesting Features
Four features of this dinosaur stand out. It had a large head for a dinosaur of small stature. It was an egg-laying dinosaur. Leptoceratopses kept their hands in a clapping pose. (This is unusual because many dinosaurs in the same biological group had hands that were face down.) Finally, it didn’t have a horn like its better-known relative, the Triceratops. By comparison, the Triceratops would be nearly six times larger than its Leptoceratops cousin!
Scientists are fascinated by the Leptoceratops. They try to learn more about how this primitive dinosaur survived living among more advanced dinosaurs. Some even believe this dino lived in burrows underground. Others think there is evidence that it lived in higher elevations, like mountains. Scientists agree that more information is necessary to discover how these dinosaurs survived and thrived during the harsh times they lived in.
DINOS A TO Z: LEPTOCERATOPS LESSON PLAN WORKSHEETS
The Dinos A to Z: Leptoceratops lesson plan includes two worksheets: an activity worksheet and a practice worksheet. Each one will help students solidify their grasp of the material they learned throughout the lesson.
LEPTOCERATOPS MODEL ACTIVITY WORKSHEET
For this activity, students will get to create clay models of a leptoceratops. The worksheet lists the materials you will need for the activity.
REVIEW PRACTICE WORKSHEET
The practice worksheet requires students to answer a series of 5 questions. These questions all relate to the content pages, so students will need to refer to them for the answers.
