How Do Dinosaurs Books and Dinosaur Activities

Looking for a quick but cute read with illustrations that will put a smile on your face? Look no farther than Jane Yolen and Mark Teagues How Do Dinosaur books. There are quite a few of them in the series and they are each amusing to the adult reader as well as the child.     

Dinosaurs of enormous sizes act as the children in the books while the parents try and get them to go to bed, go to school, make friends, learn colors, and eat their food. At first the dinosaurs scowl raise a fuss, and are very disagreeable. They then turn into the little angels that your little ones are…. or are trying to be! 

Other Titles:

How Do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food

How Do Dinosaurs Count to Ten

How Do Dinosaurs Love Their Cats

How Do Dinosaurs Get Well Soon

How Do Dinosaurs Say I Love You

How Do Dinosaurs Learn Their Colors

How Do Dinosaurs Clean Their Rooms

How Do Dinosaurs Go To School

How Do Dinosaurs Play With Their Friends

How Do Dinosaurs Say Happy Birthday

How Do Dinosaurs Play All Day

And many more.

Dinosaur Activities to Go with Your Dinosaur Book

Day in the Life of A Dino

"Dinosaurs may be extinct from the face of the planet, but they are alive and well in our imaginations." -Steve Miller, Freaks!

Kids love dinosaurs and nearly everything about them. Their sheer size makes it impossible to ignore these creatures that once ruled the earth. Whether you are trying to teach children about dinosaurs or just looking to have some fun hopefully you'll find something to try.

Make Your Own Dinosaur Skin-

Paleontologists can guess about what dinosaur skin looked like and felt like but because it did not fossilize well they don't know exactly what color dinosaurs where. Dinosaur skin impressions have been found leading us to believe that dinosaur skin may have been similar to reptiles. Bumpy, scaly, rough. Create a piece of "dinosaur skin" and let children feel what a dinosaur may have felt like.

Supplies: Plate, Cardboard box, or other flat surface for your skin to sit on. Clay, and small rocks gathered from outside. (Rocks should be roughly the same size)

Directions: 

• Form your clay into a flat piece of skin. The shape is entirely up to you.
• Place the rocks in the clay as close together as possible in a single row.
• Continue to make rows of rocks until the clay is completely covered.
• Dry Clay so the rocks will be stuck in the clay. (Overnight)
• Let Children touch and feel the skin. 

Educational or Party Ideas:

• Dinosaur skin color is unknown as well. If you would like you can have the children paint the skin in different colors or patterns. 
• If you would like each child to have their own piece of skin simply make the pieces of clay smaller and have each child make their own.
• Make several pieces and use as a scavenger hunt for a classroom activity or birthday party. Hide the pieces around the yard,school, home and ask the kids to find the different colored pieces of skin.

 Make Your Own Dinosaur Skin

Dinosaur Footprint-

By using size on something like a foot children are able to understand how big dinosaurs were compared to them. Make a giant dinosaur footprint and then have children make traceable footprints of their own. 

Supplies: Air Dry Clay, Paint, Flat Surface/Piece of Cardboard or Plastic, Paper, Pencils

Directions:                                                                                   

• Trace a large dinosaur footprint onto your piece of cardboard.
•  Using the molding air dry clay cover the entire surface of the footprint with clay. 
• If you prefer you can add extra clay and mold the footprint so it looks like a dinosaur stepped in the clay.
• Paint it to look like mud. Let dry overnight.
• Have children trace their feet and place the two side by size for a size comparison.

Make a Dinosaur Footprint

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE DIG

Finding dinosaur bones is hard work and paleontologists have to be careful with the bones as the dig in the dirt. Using Chocolate Chips cookies is a fun way to let children "dig for dinosaur bones".

Supplies: Napkin, Toothpick, Chocolate Chip Cookie

Directions: 

• The cookie itself is the dirt
• Chocolate Chips are "dinosaur bones"
• Toothpick is the paleontology digging pick
• Use the toothpick to remove chocolate chips from the "dirt"
• Have the children see how many chips they can safely remove without breaking the cookie.
• Enjoy your chips and the cookie!

Dinosaur Heads

Children love to wear their own creations. This activity is a little more time consuming and will probably need the help and guidance of an adult. But the end result is worth it. You can spend as much or as little time on these as you would like. They are nice to have as a teaching prop that can be used over and over again. But if they are just for fun you can let the children each make their own and use them for play.

Supplies: 

Shoe box or other box that will loosely allow a child's head inside

Newspaper

Masking Tape

Paint

Glue

Scissors

Modge- Podge if desired

Directions:

• Make two holes in the sides of the cardboard box for eye openings
• Crumple up the newspaper to form the shape of a dinosaur nose
• Attach the nose to the front of the box between the eye holes
• Children paint their creation
• (If you as the adult are making it you may want to paint it nicely and modge-podge over your final product. This will make it harden up and last a little longer.)
• Put it on, have fun, and let the playing begin.

Educational or Party Ideas:

• Dinosaur Eyesight- Eyes of a Dinosaur- Make two boxes. One with eyes facing forward like a T-Rex and one with eyes on the side of the head. Let the children try on both boxes to see that some dinosaurs could see like humans (eyes in the front) while other dinosaurs had eyes on the sides of their heads and could only see that way. 
• Day in the Life of a Dinosaur- Put head piece on and have children act out different dinosaur activities. See Below. (T-Rex Hands) You can do an obstacle course of some kind with these.

Tyrannosaurus Rex Hands

With Black or Brown Gloves and a bit of light sewing you can turn average gloves into T-Rex Hands. 

Simply purchase or find a pair of old gloves and sew down the last two fingers and the thumb. When children/or adults put their hand into the glove they will have only two fingers to use. Just like a T-Rex.

Tyrannosaurus Rex Hand

Education or Party Ideas:

• Use as part of an obstacle course or alone. Have children put on two gloves with only two fingers that are usable. Give them small tasks to do while their have the gloves on. Unwrap candy, hold objects, tie their shoe, etc. This will let them see how a T-Rex was only able to use two tiny fingers.
• Use with Dinosaur Heads above to complete a dinosaur costume and do a full obstacle course as a true "dinosaur". If doing the course as a T-Rex use a piece of ribbon to tie children's elbows to their sides. This will further make them more like a T-Rex as they had tiny arms. Use yarn to wrap around chairs, playground equipment, trees, etc. depending on your location. Wrap the yarn around items to make a course that children have to step over, crawl under, go around objects as they are dressed in their dinosaur heads, gloves, and feet. 
• An alternative to doing a course with yarn. Use masking tape on the floor to make places where children run, walk, zig zag, jump, crawl etc. This is a lot of fun!

T. Rex Nose-Does Your Nose KNOW?

Tyrannosaurus Rex had an amazing sense of smell. This helped him hunt. In this activity you'll teach the children how to smell like a T-Rex. 

Directions:

•  Find several small jars/containers that you can put a cotton ball inside of. 
• Find several strong smells: Cinnamon, Vanilla, Chocolate, BBQ sauce etc. Anything that smells enough that children can detect it and know what it is.
• Place the smell on a cotton swab and place it in the container. It is best if all the containers match or are made in some way that children can't detect the color and texture of each item.
• Have each child take turns smelling each jar to see if they can tell what is in each.

DIY Dinosaur Happy Birthday Banner

I am all about party decor lately and there is not better way to make an occasion feel festive then with a banner of some type. They seem to be everywhere now. So just a simple one from scrapbook paper from the local craft store. (Hobby Lobby I believe). I chose a dark green for the background of all the letters and then different dinosaur prints to mix and match. I wish I had a better picture. You can see some of the letters are just a plain color while others have dinosaur, dinosaur prints, and dinosaur phrases "Roar" on them. 

Simply trace or draw all of your letters out. Cut them out and mount them to another color, place holes in the tops and string with your choice or ribbon. 

Done! Enjoy!

DIY Dinosaur Felt Room Decor

Dinos Dinos Dinos

Not really sure what you would use this for other then decor. I was trying to theme a little boys room with dinosaur stuff and did not want to spend much money. I had some felt and some stencils so I made some stuffed dinosaurs, sewed them together, added a ribbon, and hung them on a hanger. You could leave them single and give to a child to play with as small stuffed dinosaurs if you wanted. If you made them a little bigger they would be adorable pillows. I thought of doing that but have not got to it yet. We'll see if it happens or not.

Either way here are the instructions for what I did.

Needed Supplies:

• Colored Felt of your choice
• Colored Embroidery Floss of your choice
• Poly fill
• Small piece of ribbon
• Scissors, Needle, Pen

Directions:

• Trace desired stencil on fabric and trace two of them one for front and one for back. (If you do not have a stencil print a picture cut that out and use that as a stencil.)
• Cut out fabric
• Begin sewing the pieces together. If you are talented with a sewing machine do it that way. I don't have a sewing machine so I did these by hand with embroidery floss/string. Place one over the other, thread your needle, use a simple stitch along the outside. 
• Stitch all along the outside until you have just a small hole left. 
• Fill with Poly Fill
• Stitch Closed
• When all three are completed use a small stitch to sew them together as you would like.
• Add loop of ribbon at the top.
• Hang where you would like.

DIY Dinosaur Mobile

Little Dinos

There are so many cute baby mobiles out and about but they are SO expensive. Instead of spending major cash why not make your own. Sure it won't necessarily turn on its own but it will definitely do the trick for your little one.

DIY Dinosaur Mobile for Child's Room

Needed Supplies:

2 large paint sticks

Fish line

Paper of choice

String or ribbon

hot glue and glue gun

Command Hook 

Directions:

• Paint the paint sticks desired color and glue them together in a "t" shape.

• Using your paper find a stencil or print out of a shape you would like to use and trace as many as you'd like on your scapbook paper and cut out the shapes. 

• Take a long piece of fishing line and glue the shapes to the line with a little bit of space in between. 

• Make 5 strings of shapes. One for each end of the stick and one for the middle. Be sure and leave extra string at the top and bottom of your shapes. It is easier to cut off extra when you are done then to try and add more if needed.

• Once your strings are done secure them to your paint sticks.

• Add a ribbon to the top of your mobile to attach it to the hook on the ceiling. 

• Place your command hook on the ceiling where ever you would like it and hang your mobile. Command hooks are the best for this as they will not leave a hole in your ceiling and as soon as you are done with the mobile you can take the hook off and use it somewhere else. 

Good luck. I'd love to see your finished product if you attempt to make your own! Really easy and turned out great for what it is!

12 Coolest Toys on the Planet

While looking for gift ideas for nieces and nephews I came across the Uber Review and their 12 coolest Toys of the Year.http://www.uberreview.com/2007/11/the-top-12-coolest-toys-on-the-planet.htm Just when I was beginning to think that video games were taking all of the fame these made the list. Some are a bit pricey but maybe they'll give you ideas of something you could do on a smaller scale. From the look of some of them you might have a hard time prying Dad away from them long enough to let Jr. try them out.

The only one I have semi experience with is the Lego T-Rex. I used a robotic T-Rex several years ago for an elaborate Birthday Party and bit surprise the kids LOVED IT. They were mesmerized that the robot could move, walk toward them, and roar. I'm not sure if the one featured here roars, but it looks like it moves and you get to build it! A little boys dream.


Anyhow... check out the list. Hope you find it as interesting as I did!

http://www.uberreview.com/2007/11/the-top-12-coolest-toys-on-the-planet.htm

Dinosaur Activities

Day in the Life of A Dino

"Dinosaurs may be extinct from the face of the planet, but they are alive and well in our imaginations." -Steve Miller, Freaks!

Kids love dinosaurs and nearly everything about them. Their sheer size makes it impossible to ignore these creatures that once ruled the earth. Whether you are trying to teach children about dinosaurs or just looking to have some fun hopefully you'll find something to try.

Make Your Own Dinosaur Skin-

Paleontologists can guess about what dinosaur skin looked like and felt like but because it did not fossilize well they don't know exactly what color dinosaurs where. Dinosaur skin impressions have been found leading us to believe that dinosaur skin may have been similar to reptiles. Bumpy, scaly, rough. Create a piece of "dinosaur skin" and let children feel what a dinosaur may have felt like.

Supplies: Plate, Cardboard box, or other flat surface for your skin to sit on. Clay, and small rocks gathered from outside. (Rocks should be roughly the same size)

Directions: 

• Form your clay into a flat piece of skin. The shape is entirely up to you.
• Place the rocks in the clay as close together as possible in a single row.
• Continue to make rows of rocks until the clay is completely covered.
• Dry Clay so the rocks will be stuck in the clay. (Overnight)
• Let Children touch and feel the skin. 

Educational or Party Ideas:

• Dinosaur skin color is unknown as well. If you would like you can have the children paint the skin in different colors or patterns. 
• If you would like each child to have their own piece of skin simply make the pieces of clay smaller and have each child make their own.
• Make several pieces and use as a scavenger hunt for a classroom activity or birthday party. Hide the pieces around the yard,school, home and ask the kids to find the different colored pieces of skin.

 Make Your Own Dinosaur Skin

Dinosaur Footprint-

By using size on something like a foot children are able to understand how big dinosaurs were compared to them. Make a giant dinosaur footprint and then have children make traceable footprints of their own. 

Supplies: Air Dry Clay, Paint, Flat Surface/Piece of Cardboard or Plastic, Paper, Pencils

Directions:                                                                                   

• Trace a large dinosaur footprint onto your piece of cardboard.
•  Using the molding air dry clay cover the entire surface of the footprint with clay. 
• If you prefer you can add extra clay and mold the footprint so it looks like a dinosaur stepped in the clay.
• Paint it to look like mud. Let dry overnight.
• Have children trace their feet and place the two side by size for a size comparison.

Make a Dinosaur Footprint

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dig

Finding dinosaur bones is hard work and paleontologists have to be careful with the bones as the dig in the dirt. Using Chocolate Chips cookies is a fun way to let children "dig for dinosaur bones".

Supplies: Napkin, Toothpick, Chocolate Chip Cookie

Directions: 

• The cookie itself is the dirt
• Chocolate Chips are "dinosaur bones"
• Toothpick is the paleontology digging pick
• Use the toothpick to remove chocolate chips from the "dirt"
• Have the children see how many chips they can safely remove without breaking the cookie.
• Enjoy your chips and the cookie!

Dino for A Day-T-Rex Heads, Hands, Nose

Dinosaur Heads

Children love to wear their own creations. This activity is a little more time consuming and will probably need the help and guidance of an adult. But the end result is worth it. You can spend as much or as little time on these as you would like. They are nice to have as a teaching prop that can be used over and over again. But if they are just for fun you can let the children each make their own and use them for play.

Supplies: 

Shoe box or other box that will loosely allow a child's head inside

Newspaper

Masking Tape

Paint

Glue

Scissors

Modge- Podge if desired

Directions:

• Make two holes in the sides of the cardboard box for eye openings
• Crumple up the newspaper to form the shape of a dinosaur nose
• Attach the nose to the front of the box between the eye holes
• Children paint their creation
• (If you as the adult are making it you may want to paint it nicely and modge-podge over your final product. This will make it harden up and last a little longer.)
• Put it on, have fun, and let the playing begin.

Educational or Party Ideas:

• Dinosaur Eyesight- Eyes of a Dinosaur- Make two boxes. One with eyes facing forward like a T-Rex and one with eyes on the side of the head. Let the children try on both boxes to see that some dinosaurs could see like humans (eyes in the front) while other dinosaurs had eyes on the sides of their heads and could only see that way. 
• Day in the Life of a Dinosaur- Put head piece on and have children act out different dinosaur activities. See Below. (T-Rex Hands) You can do an obstacle course of some kind with these.

Tyrannosaurus Rex Hands

With Black or Brown Gloves and a bit of light sewing you can turn average gloves into T-Rex Hands. 

Simply purchase or find a pair of old gloves and sew down the last two fingers and the thumb. When children/or adults put their hand into the glove they will have only two fingers to use. Just like a T-Rex.

Tyrannosaurus Rex Hand

Education or Party Ideas:

• Use as part of an obstacle course or alone. Have children put on two gloves with only two fingers that are usable. Give them small tasks to do while their have the gloves on. Unwrap candy, hold objects, tie their shoe, etc. This will let them see how a T-Rex was only able to use two tiny fingers.
• Use with Dinosaur Heads above to complete a dinosaur costume and do a full obstacle course as a true "dinosaur". If doing the course as a T-Rex use a piece of ribbon to tie children's elbows to their sides. This will further make them more like a T-Rex as they had tiny arms. Use yarn to wrap around chairs, playground equipment, trees, etc. depending on your location. Wrap the yarn around items to make a course that children have to step over, crawl under, go around objects as they are dressed in their dinosaur heads, gloves, and feet. 
• An alternative to doing a course with yarn. Use masking tape on the floor to make places where children run, walk, zig zag, jump, crawl etc. This is a lot of fun!

T. Rex Nose-Does Your Nose KNOW?

Tyrannosaurus Rex had an amazing sense of smell. This helped him hunt. In this activity you'll teach the children how to smell like a T-Rex. 

Directions:

•  Find several small jars/containers that you can put a cotton ball inside of. 
• Find several strong smells: Cinnamon, Vanilla, Chocolate, BBQ sauce etc. Anything that smells enough that children can detect it and know what it is.
• Place the smell on a cotton swab and place it in the container. It is best if all the containers match or are made in some way that children can't detect the color and texture of each item.
• Have each child take turns smelling each jar to see if they can tell what is in each.