Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History

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Activities are listed alphabetically by exhibition.  Included is a brief description of each activity and its location by Floor in the Museum (click here for a downloadable map of the Museum). 

 

ANCIENT SEAS
(First Floor)

Echinoderms

Students compare starfish, seastars and other invertebrates from all over the world and discover how they vary in size, color and shape and are preserved for study.
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BONES
(Second Floor)

Is it Human or Not Human?

Students examine and compare human and non-human skulls.
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Where Humans Fit In (First floor)

Students observe and compare a human skeleton to those of several other mammals to find out where humans fit in. To receive a digital rather than a printed copy.
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DINOSAURS
(First Floor)

Dinosaur Detective

Students classify fossils as either body or trace fossils and identify selected dinosaur fossils using physical clues.
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Dinosaur Tale

Students (especially pre-K to grade 1) participate in a brief stick-puppet show about the adventures of a newly-hatched baby Monoclonius searching for its mother and, as the story unfolds, compare and contrast the physical characteristics of four different dinosaurs.
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The Tooth Factory

Students recognize different characteristics of shark teeth and describe similarities between the modern white shark and the gigantic extinct great white Carcharodon megalodon.
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What is a Dinosaur?

Students differentiate dinosaurs from other prehistoric reptiles.
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What is a Fossil?

Students describe what a fossil is, distinguish between plant and animal fossils, and identify animal fossils as either body or trace fossils.
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GEOLOGY, GEMS & MINERALS
(Second Floor, Minerals and Gems Gallery)

Minerals Matter

Students learn to recognize the importance of minerals in several every-day objects and products.
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ICE AGE
(First Floor)

Ape or Human?

Students examine and sort the skulls of modern apes, humans and fossil apes and hominids.
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Is that a Tool?

Students compare objects from several archeological sites with objects made and used by people living in recent times to discover the uses of the archeological object
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MAMMALS
(First Floor, North America Gallery)

Prairie: Bison and the Plains Indians

With the bison exhibit as reference, students identify bison("buffalo") parts and speculate about the uses of artifacts made from bison to discover the relationships of the Plains Indians andthe bison today and in the past.
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Temperate Forest: White-tailed Deer and the Woodland   Indians

Using the white-tailed deer in the spring forest as reference, students identify deer parts and explore the uses of artifacts made from the deer to discover relationships of the Eastern Woodland Indians and the white-tailed deer in the past and today.
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WESTERN CULTURES
(Second Floor)

A Corner on the World

Students assess trade goods from the ancient and modern Near and Middle East as they select products they might like to "trade."
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Egypt: Gift of the Nile

Students examine a wide variety of artifacts used in ancient Egyptian religion, government, and daily life.
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Sorting it Out

Students sort real potsherds and other materials unearthed by archeologists working in the Near and Middle East.
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Spicing It Up

Students learn about and compare the relative value of many items-including salt (a mineral) and the spices cardamom and cinnamon-used in both the ancient and modern Near and Middle East.
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Tooling Around

Students examine objects from the ancient Near and Middle East and compare them with artifacts found with the 5300-year-old Iceman and at the site of ancient Troy.
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