The First Dinosaur

A Kirkus Reviews Best Middle Grade Book of 2019 An Orbis Picture Recommended Title “An outstanding case study in how science is actually done: funny, nuanced, and perceptive.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review) Join early scientists as they piece together one of humanity’s greatest puzzles—the fossilized bones of the first dinosaur! Dinosaurs existed. That’s a fact we accept today. But not so long ago, the concept that these giant creatures could have roamed Earth millions of years before humans was unfathomable. People thought what we know as dinosaur bones were the bones of giant humans. Of large elephants. Of angels, even. So, how did we get from angel wings to the T-Rex? The First Dinosaur tells the story of the idea of dinosaurs, and the chain of fossil discoveries and advances in science that led to that idea. Be prepared to meet eccentric men and overlooked women who uncovered the pieces to a puzzle so much bigger than themselves, a puzzle far stranger and more spectacular than they could have ever imagined.

This brightly illustrated non-fiction book for very young children is packed with dinosaurs to look at and talk about. Little children can find out about different species of dinosaur, how big they were, what they ate, how they lived and died. Illustrations:Full colour throughout

A beautifully illustrated picture book biography of Mary Anning that will enlighten children about the discovery of the dinosaurs and the importance of female scientists, perfect for fans of The Girl Who Thought in Pictures Mary Anning loved scouring the beach near her home in England for shells and fossils. She fearlessly climbed over crumbling cliffs and rocky peaks, searching for new specimens. One day, something caught Mary's eye. Bones. Dinosaur Bones. Mary's discoveries rocked the world of science and helped create a brand-new field of study: paleontology. But many people believed women couldn't be scientists, so Mary wasn't given the credit she deserved. Nevertheless, Mary kept looking and learning more, making discoveries that reshaped scientific beliefs about the natural world. Educational backmatter includes a timeline of Mary Anning's life and lots of fantastic fossil facts! The perfect choice for parents and teachers looking for: Dinosaur books for kids 5-7 and kids books about fossils Feminist picture books about historical women, and daring books for girls Kids STEM books

"Roar around the world with the mightiest beasts ever!"--Cover.

Relates the competition between Othniel Marsh and Edward Cope to discover more fossils, name more species, and publish more papers that brought out the best and worst in them and provided the world with a new view of life on Earth.

The fascinating story of how the fossils of dinosaurs, mammoths, and other extinct animals influenced some of the most spectacular creatures of classical mythology Griffins, Centaurs, Cyclopes, and Giants—these fabulous creatures of classical mythology continue to live in the modern imagination through the vivid accounts that have come down to us from the ancient Greeks and Romans. But what if these beings were more than merely fictions? What if monstrous creatures once roamed the earth in the very places where their legends first arose? This is the arresting and original thesis that Adrienne Mayor explores in The First Fossil Hunters. Through careful research and meticulous documentation, she convincingly shows that many of the giants and monsters of myth did have a basis in fact—in the enormous bones of long-extinct species that were once abundant in the lands of the Greeks and Romans. As Mayor shows, the Greeks and Romans were well aware that a different breed of creatures once inhabited their lands. They frequently encountered the fossilized bones of these primeval beings, and they developed sophisticated concepts to explain the fossil evidence, concepts that were expressed in mythological stories. The legend of the gold-guarding griffin, for example, sprang from tales first told by Scythian gold-miners, who, passing through the Gobi Desert at the foot of the Altai Mountains, encountered the skeletons of Protoceratops and other dinosaurs that littered the ground. Like their modern counterparts, the ancient fossil hunters collected and measured impressive petrified remains and displayed them in temples and museums; they attempted to reconstruct the appearance of these prehistoric creatures and to explain their extinction. Long thought to be fantasy, the remarkably detailed and perceptive Greek and Roman accounts of giant bone finds were actually based on solid paleontological facts. By reading these neglected narratives for the first time in the light of modern scientific discoveries, Adrienne Mayor illuminates a lost world of ancient paleontology.

This big book of 96 info-packed pages introduces young readers to all the key science and facts about dinosaurs in a fun question and answer format. The book's wide-ranging Q&As include: How did dinosaurs become fossils? What happens at a dinosaur dig? Who invented the word "dinosaur"? Were dinosaurs striped and feathery? Which dinosaur's bite was the most powerful? Did dino poops become fossils? What sounds did dinosaurs make? Did dinosaurs build nests? And what happened to the dinosaurs? - Perfect for early elementary earth science projects about fossils - Detailed diagrams show how fossils formed - Shows paleontologists and other scientists at work - Packed with photos and high-quality 3D digital illustrations - Close picture and text match with lots of labels - Carefully-leveled text for newly fluent readers - Key content vocabulary with helpful phonetic pronunciations - Includes a glossary and comprehension quiz This high-interest topic is perfect for introducing students to non-fiction reading. And the fantastic imagery and quantity of information will have kids returning to the book again and again, making it a valuable resource for classrooms and libraries.