Dinosaurs - References

Annotated Children's Books

• Allen, C. (1989). The dinosaur family reunion. Allen, TX: DLM Teaching Resources. This predictable storybook has the dinosaur family coming to a reunion, one by one, two by two, etc. It also highlights verbs that children can act out and say.
• Barton, B. (1989). Dinosaurs, dinosaurs. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell. This is almost a wordless book. It is well illustrated, showing the different kinds of dinosaurs.
• Barton, B. (1990). Bones, bones, dinosaur bones. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell. Large-sized print, an almost wordless book, this shows paleontologist looking for bones.
• Berenstain, S. & J. (1987). The day of the dinosaur. New York: Random House. Labeled a first time reader, this 30-page publication can be used to teach the concepts of "long ago"; different sizes and shapes of dinosaurs and fossils. It contains good illustrations and names of the dinosaurs while the text is written in rhyming manner. It begins with "Long ago, long, long ago, before many things we now know - before cities, towns, and roads, before people, before birds, frogs, and toads - long, long, long before - it was the day of the dinosaur."
• Brandenberg, A. (1989). Digging up dinosaurs. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell. Labeled as a "Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science Book," this book is good for read-aloud in kindergarten. It is one of the few primary books that includes the paleontologist, geologist and other experts working with fossils. It also emphasizes the caution these experts take when digging up dinosaurs' fossils. This is a sample sentence: "At the museum, scientists unwrap the fossil."
• Carrick, C. (1986). What happened to Patrick's dinosaurs? New York: Clarion Books. Patrick invents his own explanation of why dinosaurs became extinct.
• Dixon, D., & Lings, S. (1988). Be a dinosaur detective. Minneapolis: Lerner Publications. In its question/answer format, this publication has many charts and diagrams. It contains easy-to-follow projects. It is colorful and large enough for children to see during a read-aloud session.
• Donnelly, L. (1987). Dinosaur day. New York: Scholastic. A boy and his dog go hunting for dinosaurs. Almost a wordless book.
• Emberley, M. (1980). Dinosaurs: A drawing book. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. This appears to be a good book for children and teachers, too. It shows how to draw the different dinosaurs; easy to follow steps.
• Heller, R. (1981). Chickens aren't the only ones. New York: Grosset & Dunlap. Chicken aren't the only ones laying eggs. Many others do, including dinosaurs.
• Kindersley. (1991). Dinosaurs. New York: Macmillan Books. Illustrated in beautiful colors, this publication names the dinosaurs.
• Moseley, K. (1984). Dinosaurs: A lost world. New York: Putnam Publishing Group. Presents current information in a "pop-up" format.
• Most, B. (1978). If the dinosaurs came back. San Diego: Harcourt, Brace, & Jovanovich. This fantasy depicts dinosaurs helping build skyscrapers and catching lost kites, if they were to come back. Available in a big book also.
• Most, B. (1984). Whatever happened to the dinosaurs? New York: Harcourt, Brace, & Jovanovich. This is a clever book about extinction possibilities. It is a humorous book, portraying the dinosaurs at large in cities, in jungles, undergrounds, and even in disguise.
• Most, B. (1987). Dinosaur cousins? San Diego: Harcourt, Brace, & Jovanovich. Using clever words and vivid illustrations, the author points out the similarities between animals of today and the dinosaurs of yesterday.
• Most, B. (1990). Four and twenty dinosaurs. New York: Harper Collins Children's Books. Beautifully illustrated, this book combines dinosaurs and nursery rhymes.
• Most, B. (1991). A dinosaur named after me. New York: Harcourt, Brace, & Jovanich. This book encourages creative thinking. Ryan wants Tyrannosaurus Rex to be called Ryanosaurus Rex, etc.
• Norman, D., Milner, A., & Keates, C. (1989). Eyewitness books: Dinosaurs. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. Realistic drawings and photographs make this volume a useful source of information regarding early discoveries, eggs and nests, birth and growth, claws, footprints, and other dinosaur facts.
• Robinson, E. (1987). The dinosaur ball. Allen, TX: DLM Teaching Resources. This is a predictable storybook, using numbers.
• Sattler, H. R., & Zallinger, J. (1984). Baby dinosaurs. New York: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books. Based on rare baby dinosaur fossils, this discusses early life of dinosaurs.
• Shapiro, L. (1979). Dinosaurs. New York: Simon & Schuster. This is an entertaining "pop-up" book.
• Talbott, H. (1988). We're back!: A dinosaur's story. New York: Crown Publishers. A product testing firm from outer space brings seven dinosaurs to the 20th Century. The seven dinosaurs get into a lot of trouble. Will they stay on earth?

Other Resources

At Possibilitoys, 1206 W. 39th Street, Austin, Texas 78705 (512) 467-9044

• Dino 300 Card Game
  For 2-5 players ages 6-12The object of the game is to form as many sets of dinosaurs as possible. Cards contain a body part of a dinosaur. Color and numerically coded. Sets contains from three to five pieces. 13 different dinosaurs.

• Dinosaurs Jigsaw Puzzle, for ages 3 and over.
  International Playthings, Inc. Riverdale, New Jersey 07457Has 34 pieces. When puzzle pieces are lifted out, the puzzle board has a natural history museum scene - Hall of Dinosaurs.

• Dino Checkers
  Ed InsightsDominguez Hills, CA 90220Has board and dinosaur game pieces.

• Dino Kaleidoscope
  Gemini Precision ProductsZelienople, PA 16063

Available from Lakeshore Learning Materials, 2695 E. Dominguez St., P.O. Box 6261, Carson, CA 90749

• Dinosaurs Flannel Board Concept Kit-$13.95
  Described as "incredibly realistic, beautifully colored flannel board objects."

• Dinosaur Counters-$14.95
  Described as "Adorable dinosaurs counters........" Set contains 100 plastic stegosaurauses in five colors. 1 1/2 inches long.

• Dinosaur Counters - Classroom Pack-$39.95
  Set consists of 300 dinos in three species and five brilliant colors.

• Dino-Sorters-$10.95
  Tough plastic dinos in 12 different species, 96 in all.

• Dinosaur Reward Jar-$19.95
  192 colorful rubber dinos come in a see-through jar.

At Toys to Grow On, P.O. Box 17, Long Beach, CA 90801. Customer Severice 1-800-874-4242

• Giant Vinyl Dinosaurs-$29.50
  Set of dinos; stegosaurus is 16 inches long.

• Dinosaurs Collection Box-$16.95
  40 durable dino from 5"-long dimetron to a 1 1/2 inch pteranodon (technically a reptile, not a dinosaur). Set contains 3 eggs with baby dinos inside.

• Carnegie Museum Dinosaur Collection-$115.00
  Authentic reproductions i solid vinyl. 11 dinosaurs and two humans, with fiberglass playscape (22" x 36") and 4 bags of sand. Set of figures only-$75.00

• Dinosaur Mobile (all ages)-$24.95
  Three-dimensional mobile has five detailed animals on heavy tagboard. Portion of purchase goes to benefit wildlife and conservation.

Unit Bibliography

• Allen, R. V., Sampson, M. R., & Teale, W. H. (1989). Experiences for literacy: Dinosaurs land. Teacher's Guide. Allen, TX: DLM Teaching Resources. This is the teacher's guide to a literacy program. A musical tape, dinosaur posters, and a big book are included in the packet.
• Begly, S., & Yoffe, E. (October 28, 1991). How dinosaurs lived. Newsweek, 52-58. An article on new theories and old bones that may reveal the lifestyles of the dinosaurs. Dinosaurs appear to be enjoying a renaissance as paleontologists find new species every year. Fossils of the largest dinosaur, Seismosaurus, was found in New Mexico.
• California State Department of Education. (1988). Environmental education guide. Hayward, CA: Author. This curriculum guide for kindergarten through sixth grade contains eight units. Each unit is organized around a theme and integrates content areas. Easy to follow, this guide contains evaluation activities for each lesson.
• Charlesworth, R., & Lind, K. K. (1990). Math & science for young children. Albany, NY: Delmar Publishers. This publication is designed for teacher inservice in early childhood education. It presents an organized and sequential approach to creating curriculum in mathematics and science that is developmentally appropriate for young children. Three types of learning are emphasized: naturalistic, informal and structured.
• Paulu, N., & Martin, M. (1991). Helping your child learn science. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Research and Improvement. This a handbook for parents, in which they are encouraged to work on nine concepts: organization, cause and effect, systems, scale, models, change, structure and function, variation, and diversity. It includes specific activities parents can provide and/or facilitate.
• Peña, S. C. (1991). Había una vez, dinosaurios. Houston, TX: University of Houston. This is a unit on dinosaurs, using children's books in Spanish.
• Poppe, C. A., & Van Matre, N. A. (1985). Science learning centers for the primary grades. West Nyack, NY: The Center for Applied Research in Education. Techniques are given to help teachers effectively manage a learning center system. Descriptions of five science learning centers, with eight learning activities based on a particular science theme, are included.
• Sandbeck, E. (1989). Dinosaur: Cut and use stencils. New York: Dover Publications. This is a useful and comprehensive collection for arts and crafts projects in the classroom. Has 54 black-and-white stencil designs. Designs and illustrations for graphics and crafts applications may be used for free and without special permission, provided that no more than four in the same publication or project are included.
• Warren, J. (1989). Theme-a-saurus. Everett, WA: Warren Publishing House.This is a series of integrated teaching units containing a collection of activities. Developmentally appropriate, the ideas use only inexpensive, readily available materials.