Imagination Station, Toledo’s hands-on science center, plans to put the “roar” back in dinosaur with its newest exhibit.

At “The Big Dig: Footprints to Fossils,” visitors are invited to step back in time and discover the prehistoric world of dinosaurs. In addition to a replica T.rex skull, lots of interesting prehistoric facts and several fun photo opportunities, including a baby T.rex nest where kids can dress up like a baby dinosaur; there are a number of interactive exhibits, including:

The Shale Dig – Over 375 million years ago, Northwest Ohio was a great sea teeming with life. What we know now as Ohio was once located south of the equator. As the North American Plate moved to its current position, tropical and subtropical seas repeatedly transgressed over the plate. It is because of these warm seas that Ohio has the abundant fossils that people collect today.

At the Shale Dig tables, uncover actual fossils to take home with you, including trilobites, horn corals, brachiopods, pelecypods, bryozoans, gastropods, crinoids and pyrite.

The Dinosaur Maze – How big were the first dinosaurs? Are dinosaurs really extinct? These are just a couple of the questions that will intrigue the visitors and help them find their way out of the maze.

“Walking With Dinosaurs” Video Tent – This resting point will offer a dig site feel, but with a few comfortable chairs for viewing of the six-part documentary series “Walking With Dinosaurs.” Using computer-generated imagery and animatronics, the producers recreated the life of the Mesozoic.

The Dinosaur Dig – Paleontologists record the location of bones (called grid mapping) because this can provide important information about the shape of the dinosaur and how it lived. The position of the bones in the ground helps paleontologists determine what the dinosaur looked like when it was alive. In this experience, large dinosaur replica bones are buried and visitors are encouraged to jump right in and excavate them. A grid map is included in the Official Paleontologist’s Guide to help with mapping.

Bone Reconstruction – During the excavation of dinosaur remains, more often than not, parts of the skeleton are missing and must be reconstructed in order to best identify the type of dinosaur found and to determine its physical characteristics. In this exhibit, visitors are asked to reconstruct missing bones using silly putty to help fill in the missing parts of the remains.

Rubbing Station – Using a simple sheet of paper, a crayon and clever placement, visitors can create a fossil rubbing to take home with them. This creative and artistic exercise in capturing the beauty of these fossilized remains is a great souvenir of your visit to The BIG DIG, but it’s also a fun way for children to learn about science.

Giant Dinosaur Reconstruction – Visitors are asked to excavate the dinosaur bones and reconstruct the skeletons by placing the “bones” in the appropriate places. Think of it like a giant version of one of those small wooden puzzles that fit together with slots.

Throughout the run of “The Big Dig: Footprints to Fossils,” – through Sept. 6 –Imagination Station will be hosting a variety of special events to enhance the experience. For more information, visit www.imaginationstationtoledo.org or call 419-244-2674.

Comments (0)

Subscribe to this comment's feed