Indiana’s Ice Age Past
Curriculum Guide
Grades 3 – 8
The Indiana State Museum, in the heart of White River State Park in downtown
Indianapolis, has been collecting Indiana stories and objects since 1862. The collection
started as an assortment of curiosities in a cabinet started by the State Librarian and
today has grown to a collection of 500,000 objects. The museum sees over 250,000
visitors each year in a four-level building housing 100,000 square feet of exhibition
space, collection storage, labs and administrative offices.
The collection contains well known examples of Ice Age animal remains, ancient sea
fossils, Hoosier-made quilts and objects that once belonged to Abraham Lincoln and his
family. Hundreds of stories are told through three-dimensional artifacts throughout the
museum’s two floors of core galleries. And each year, many special exhibitions
featuring topics in history, science and art expand on the world around the Hoosier
state. Along with its campus in downtown Indianapolis, the Indiana State Museum also
manages eleven State Historic Sites around the state, each focusing on a unique
Indiana story.
To learn more about the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites and the collection,
visit www.indianamuseum.org.
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Indiana’s Ice Age Past Workshop Agenda
8 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.: Introduction to ISMHS and workshop expectations
8:30 – 9:30: Presentation by Ron Richards
- A Perspective on Indiana’s Ice Age
- Collecting Ice Age Remains
9:30 – 10 a.m.: Gallery Tour by Ron Richards
10 – 10:15 a.m.: Break
10:15 a.m. – Noon: Tour of Bone Lab and Natural History Storage
Noon – 1 p.m.: Lunch
1 – 4 p.m.: Teaching Indiana’s Ice Age Past in the Classroom
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Indiana State Museum Resources for Ice Age Animals
Search the Indiana State Museum Collection
http://www.indianamuseum.org/browse
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Indiana State Museum Resources for Ice Age Animals
Gallery Resource Guide: Age of Ice Gallery, pg. 1
http://www.indianamuseum.org/data/webcontent/2055/files/age_of
_ice_final.pdf
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Indiana’s Ice Age Past – Background Information
The ice age is the period of time within the past two to three million years when great masses of
ice called glaciers covered a large portion of the northern half of the Earth. Geologists also refer
to this time as the Pleistocene, a period of geologic time that began two million years ago and
ended 10,000 years ago.
Glaciers can be thought of as giant rivers of ice. Indiana glaciers came from the north, moving
very slowly. In one year, an ice sheet may only have moved four feet! As the glaciers moved
through, they made permanent changes in Indiana’s landscape. They wiped out rivers, lakes
and streams that had existed for millions of years while creating new rivers and streams that
flowed in different directions than the ones before. Glaciers scraped across rocks, leaving large
grooves and scratches. They carved new valleys. Sediment carried by the glaciers filled in
existing valleys and created new hills.
The deposits of ice age glaciers are the main material making up the Indiana landscape today.
Glaciers covered all but the southern fourth of Indiana during the most recent glaciation. The
soil in northern and central Indiana is composed of glacial till deposited by the glaciers upon
their retreat. In northern Indiana, glacial deposits can be hundreds of feet deep.
The glaciers came and went several times during the ice age. There were warmer, milder
intervals lasting thousands of years that occurred in between glacial periods. These interglacial
periods had warmer climates similar to Indiana’s climate today, but with cooler summers and
warmer winters.
Ice Age Animals in Indiana
During the ice age, many large animals lived in the area that is now Indiana. Some of these
giants have since become extinct, some have migrated away and others have evolved in to
smaller varieties. The largest of the animals, mastodons, Harlan’s musk oxen, peccaries,
armadillos, dire wolves, giant beavers, giant short-faced bears, mammoths, stag-moose,
sabertooths, ground sloths, giant land tortoises and tapirs, all became extinct.
The jaguars, bison and black bears that lived during
the ice age were larger than the ones living today.
These animals have changed into smaller varieties.
Caribou, tundra musk oxen and jaguars
disappeared in Indiana but spread to occupy other
parts of the world and did not become extinct.
White-tailed deer and elk were the only large
mammals to survive in Indiana past the ice age.
These animals were extirpated (became extinct
from the area) by the late 1800s due to overhunting and habitat destruction. Deer were
reintroduced in the early 1900s and have been very
successful since that time.
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Although many species of ice age animals are now extinct, all have relatives living today.
Harlan’s musk oxen and giant beavers may be extinct, but there were also smaller related
species of musk oxen and beavers that lived during the ice age that are still living today. The
larger Harlan’s musk oxen went extinct, while they smaller tundra musk oxen survived.
Both giant beavers and modern-sized beavers lived in Indiana during the ice age. While a
modern beaver is approximately 3 or 4 feet long, the giant beaver was 8 feet long and weighed
as much as a black bear. Relatives of ice age peccaries and armadillos are living in the
Southwest today. Sabertooths are distant relatives of lions and other large cats, and dire wolves
were large ancestors of modern wolves. The giant short-faced bear is extinct, but there are
many other species of bears living today. The stag-moose is thought to have possessed the
body of a moose and the muzzle of an elk. It is the largest member of the deer family ever to
exist. Its antlers measured 42 feet across and weighed 30 pounds. The stag-moose itself stood
6 feet tall at the shoulder. Paleontologists do not know why the stag-moose had such enormous
antlers. Although this animal is extinct, it’s relative, the moose, lives in northern areas of the
country today.
Both mammoths and mastodons may look like hairy versions of elephants, but only mammoths
belong to the elephant family, Elephantidae. Mastodons belong to the family, Mammutidae and
have no direct ancestors living today. Although mammoths and mastodons coexisted during the
ice age, mammoths are more closely related to modern elephants than they are to mastodons!
Mammoth teeth and elephant teeth are very similar, while mastodon teeth look quite different.
Mastodon teeth have big bumps, or cusps, which were useful for crushing food. Mastodons
lived in forests and swamps and feasted on stems, plants, bark and twigs. Mammoth teeth look
a lot like tread on the bottom of a tennis shoe. Mammoth teeth rubbed together to tear food.
Mammoths ate grasses and lived in open areas. A mastodon had six sets of molars on each
side. As they wore down, they fell out and were replaced by teeth coming in from behind.
Aside from the difference in teeth, mastodons differed from mammoths by having lower
foreheads, stockier bodies and a slightly smaller size. Mastodons stood about 10 feet at the
shoulder, while mammoths stood 11. The first humans in the Americas were likely hunters of
these large animals and may have been their only predators, aside from possibly sabertooth
cats.
Mammoth
Mastodon
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The End of the Ice Age
Around 11,000 years ago, a variety of animals became extinct across North America. Most of
these animals were the large mammals. Before this extinction, the diversity of large mammals in
North America was similar to that of modern Africa. As a result of the extinction, relatively few
large mammals are now found in North America. Scientists believe that environmental shifts due
to rapidly changing climate and perhaps human hunting may have caused the extinction of
many of these ice age giants.
The first humans in the Americas came across the Bering Land Bridge at least 13,000 years
ago. These people, called PaleoIndians, lived at the same time as the ice age animals. Because
animal populations moved from place to place, PaleoIndians were nomadic, meaning they
moved from place to place with the animals and never had permanent settlements.
These people hunted and gathered wild animals and plants. The animals they hunted included
many that went extinct, but also some that survived. Some scientists believe that human overhunting of various ice age animals contributed to their extinction. It is likely that PaleoIndians
hunted ice age animals such as mammoths, mastodons and ground sloths in Indiana, but proof
of this (spear points found near large mammal remains) is lacking in this part of the country.
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Indiana’s Ice Age Past – What Is a Fossil?
Fossils are the traces or remains of plants or animals that lived long ago. In order to be
considered a fossil, the remains must be at least 10,000 years old. It is often just the hard part
of the animal that is preserved as a fossil. For example, bone, teeth and shells are often found
as fossils. Hard parts of plants, like wood and seeds, are sometimes preserved as well.
A fossil also can be an insect trapped in amber or a mammoth frozen in the arctic. Traces of
plants or animals such as footprints, leaf prints, eggs or burrows are fossils as well. Animal poop
even can be fossilized if the conditions are just right! Fossilized animal poop is called coprolite.
Ancient sharks of the Paleozoic feasted on ocean fish and invertebrates which they sometimes
later threw-up. The hard parts of animals, such as bones or shells, that sharks ate were
preserved as fossilized shark vomit (also known as a gastric residue mass). This jumbled mass
of partially-digested animal remains can be found in some fossil-bearing rocks. Remember, any
trace of an ancient plant or animal is considered to be a fossil. These fossils provide information
about life thousands, even millions of years ago.
How are fossils formed?
Not all ancient plants and animals became fossils. The conditions had to be just right. Plus, the
process of changing from a living organism to a fossil takes thousands or even millions of years.
As soon as animals and plants die, they begin to decompose or rot. The hard parts that are left
(bones, teeth, wood, etc.) often will be scattered and broken up by animals, wind or flowing
water. In order for something to become fossilized, it must be buried quickly, usually by mud or
sand. These buried remains may be replaced with minerals from the surrounding soil which will
gradually harden and form stone. Dinosaur bones and petrified wood are fossils of this type.
The minerals present in the area where the plant or animal died will determine the color of the
fossil. Fossils can be brown, tan, black or even a reddish color.
There are four explanations to how fossils are formed:
1. Carbonization: When a plant is compressed in sediments, its hydrogen, nitrogen, and
oxygen components are forced out, leaving a thin film of carbon showing the form and
impression of the original organism. Think of it as a “carbon copy” of the original plant.
All that is left of the original plant is this thin layer of carbon. This is often found with fern
fossils. It can occur in animals, but it is very rare.
The carbonization process is similar to the leaf press activity, but instead of preserving
the leaves, the activity can be done to demonstrate the staining as a model for
carbonization. If you think about a leaf, a leaf is made of water and elements. The color
of a leaf is caused by the chemistry of the leaf composed of different elements. When
pressing a leaf, you place the leaf between two pieces of white paper and then stack
heavy books on the paper and let it set for several weeks. When you remove the books
and the top paper, peel back the leave and the color left behind on the bottom paper
contains the elements that were in the leaf. This is similar to how carbonization works,
although carbonization heating from within the earth is also part of the fossil-forming
process.
2. Replacement: A buried plant or animal can become fossilized when groundwater filled
with dissolved minerals filters through the hard parts of the plant or animal and replaces
the original structure.
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3. Permineralization: In this method of fossilization, a plant or animal is preserved when
groundwater filled with dissolved minerals deposits those minerals in the pores or hollow
spaces of the plant or animal. The hard parts of the organism remain, but another
mineral is added to the pore spaces. Petrified wood is preserved this way.
Permineralization can be demonstrated using a piece of celery and colored water. The
colored water represents the groundwater filled with dissolved minerals and the celery is
the deceased plant or animal. The celery has pores in it just like a living specimen. Place
the celery in the colored water and over night the dye soaks into the leaves of the celery.
Examine the colored celery and examine the pores. The colored water models minerals
in groundwater that fill porous material when it is buried—just like permineralization in
nature.
4. Molds and Casts: Not all ancient plants and animals became fossils. The conditions
had to be just right. As soon as animals and plants die, they begin to decompose or rot.
The hard parts that are left (bones, teeth, wood, etc.) will often be scattered and broken
up by animals, wind, or flowing water. In order for something to become fossilized, it
must be buried quickly, usually by mud or sand.
Very often fossils are not the actual parts of the plant or animal, but a print or impression
that it has left behind. This is called a mold. For molded fossils to be found, the
impression must be left in mud that quickly hardens and is then covered by another layer
of mud. Footprints, leaf prints, shell prints, and even feather and wing prints can be
found as fossil molds. If the mold is filled in with sediment and minerals that harden to
become stone, a cast is formed. A cast is a stone replica of the plant or animal that
died.
Where are Ice Age fossils found in Indiana?
Recent Indiana fossils come from the Pleistocene period, which is known for the occurrence of
the Ice Age. These fossils are the remains of Ice Age animals, and can typically be found in
caves, swamps, washed-out riverbeds and bogs. These fossils are much harder to locate and
are often found by chance. Once a fossil site has been located, paleontologists are notified and
a dig is organized to recover any other animal remains.
How are fossils collected?
Once an area that contains fossils has been identified, the next step is to collect the fossils. This
may be difficult with Paleozoic fossils, since they can be trapped in the sedimentary rock.
Paleontologists often will use a hammer and chisel to remove fossils from rock such as
sandstone or limestone. Layers of shale can be picked apart by a pocketknife. Sometimes a
dental pick is used to scrape away at the rock. A brush is then used to remove any dust of
debris from the fossil. Many fossils are fragile, especially bone. These fossils could break or
crumble if not treated with care. Paleontologists are extra careful with fossilized bone. To
transport fragile bone of ancient animals, a paleontologist might wrap a bone in aluminum foil
and then cover it with plaster for safe transport.
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Most fossil skeletons do not come already assembled. In areas such as sinkholes, for example,
there may be a giant pile of bones from several different types of animals. Paleontologists have
the task of sorting out which bones belong to whom and then attempting to recreate what
happened at the site.
Caring for Fossils
Once a fossil has been removed from the rock or surrounding soil, care is taken to preserve the
fossil for study. If the fossil is a rare and valuable find, such as a complete skull of an extinct
animal, the paleontologist will make a plaster cast of it. These casts preserve the details of the
original and can be reproduced over and over for display or study. First, a rubber mold is made
from the fossil. The mold is then filled with plaster to form a cast. This cast is an exact replica of
the original. Many fossil skeletons on display at a museum are actually casts of the original,
since the original may be too heavy or fragile to display, or it may be incomplete.
Recording Information
Paleontologists record as much information about a fossil as they can. First, the paleontologist
will record where the fossil was found. Layers of rock in the Earth have different ages, and
knowing from which layer of rock a certain fossil came from will help the paleontologist
determine the age of the fossil. Location is also important when trying to reconstruct ancient
environments. Fossils that are found nearby could give clues as to what other types of plants
and animals were living at that time.
Fossils are labeled with a genus and species name. The genus is a group name give to plants
and animals who are very similar and who are closely related. For example, lions, tigers,
jaguars and leopards all belong to the same genus, Panthera. They are all big cats that share
many characteristics. However, they are different from each other as well, and they belong to
different species. A species is a more narrow classification, and is a name given to a group of
plants or animals that are all of the same type. Members of a species are defined by their ability
to breed with each other. A lion’s scientific name is Pantera leo, while a tiger’s is Panther tigris.
Leo and tigris are the species names. Jaguar skeletal remains (Panthera onca) have been
found as fossils in Indiana. These Indiana jaguars, which lived here during parts of the Ice Age,
belong to the same species of jaguar living in South America today!
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Indiana’s Ice Age Past Activity – Mold vs. Cast
Objectives: Students will be able to recognize a fossil mold and a fossil cast, and will be able to
distinguish them from each other.
Indiana Academic Standards:
Science: 3.2.4
Supplies:
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Mixing container
Stirring stick
Plaster of Paris
Sea shells
Non-hardening clay
Ice Age Giants: The Mystery of Mammoths and Mastodons Poster
Clingwrap
Background Information:
When Ice Age fossils are found, it is not uncommon for skeletons to be incomplete. For
example, it is rare to find a complete mastodon skeleton. So if the museum was to display a
complete skeleton, but doesn’t have all the parts, what can be done?
Museums sometimes have to result in creating casts, or copies, of actual fossil bones to display
a full skeleton. This was done during our exhibition in 2014 called Ice Age Giants: The Mystery
of Mammoths and Mastodons. Fred, the American Mastodon on display at the end of the
exhibition was part bone, part cast. Is there a way to tell the difference? It depends on the
quality of the cast. In the case of Fred, it was easy to see, as the casts were made of an even
brown color, unlike the look of his actual bone parts. To help students see Fred look at the
provided poster Ice Age Giants: The Mystery of Mammoths and Mastodons – Different Yet
Similar. The picture of Fred the Mastodon on the right shows the cast bones such as the tusks
and the scapulas.
Casts can happen in nature. Though they are not actual remains, they are still considered
fossils because they are proof that an animal or plant at one time lived in Indiana. A good way of
explaining how casts form naturally to students is to see if they have made a hand print before
in Plaster of Paris or cement. After drying, evidence of the student’s handprint remains. Now,
imagine a layer of mud covers that handprint and hardens. If found thousands of years later by
a paleontologist and opened, an impression of your hand, or the mold, and a raised cast of that
hand print now exist, creating a fossil record of the student’s existence. Another example of how
this works is when dinosaur footprints or leaf prints are found in rock. Though they are not
actual remains, those impressions left in the rock show those organisms once existed.
To demonstrate how casts are created, use the following activity instructions using sea shells to
create a mold and cast. It is recommended doing this activity at the beginning of the class so
that students can see the results of their work before the end of the day.
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Instructions:
1. Pre-mix a large batch of Plaster of Paris in a mixing container for use in step no. 3.
2. Hand out small lumps of clay, a paper cup and one shell to each student. Have students
roll the clay into a ball. Next, press the shell into the clay. Have students remove the shell.
This is the mold.
3. Pour the Plaster of Paris into the mold. The plaster should just cover the clay mold.
4. Wrap the mold in clingwrap and secure with masking tape and put aside to dry for at least
three hours.
5. Once dry, remove the cellophane and then the clay mold to reveal the cast of the shell.
Supply List/Cost for a class of 20 students:
Vendor
Cost
Plaster of Paris (5 lb.)
Seashells (1 lb.)
Masking Tape (1 roll)
Item
NASCO
S&S Worldwide
Walmart
$4.65
$6.99
$2.88/12 pack
Clingwrap
Non-Hardening Clay (2
lb.)
Walmart
NASCO
$2.98
$5.25
TOTAL
$22.75
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Indiana’s Ice Age Past Activity – Stratigraphy
Objectives: Introduce the basics of relative age dating. Students will understand what
layers of rock are older or younger in a given stratigraphic sequence.
Indiana Academic Standards:
Science: 7.2.3
Supplies:
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Glass cylinders (number needed to be determined by number of student groups in class)
3 layers of red, orange, green gelatin representing the rock layers (inside the glass
cylinders)
Food particles mixed in with the gelatin representing fossils (Lucky Charms cereal)
Handouts
Background Information:
Stratigraphy is the study of strata, or layers. When scientists dig through the earth, they dig
through these layers of history. The deeper the layer, the older the rock and material found in
that layer. The closer to the surface a layer is, the more recent (or younger) that material is.
This is the Principle of Superposition.
Key Relative Age Dating Terms
1. Relative Dating: Using layers of rocks to find out if one layer of rock is older or younger
than another layer of rock. This type of dating does NOT give a specific numerical age,
like 3.8 billion years, for example.
2. Principle of Superposition: If you see layers of rock on top of each other, then the layer
on the bottom is generally the oldest and the layer on the top is the youngest.
3. Principle of Original Horizontality: Dirt and rock carried by water or wind (sediment) is
always deposited first in flat layers. If you see layers of rock that have been folded or
tilted, then there must have been something pushing or pulling those layers, like an
earthquake.
4. Principle of Inclusions: When pieces of one type of rock are inside a layer of another
type of rock, then the pieces of the first type of rock will be older than the layer of rock they
are in.
Instructions:
1. Ask visitors if they are familiar with the term stratigraphy. If not, explain. You could create
an image on the board in front of the class to help explain.
2. Provide the students with the handout of 5 questions, using the gelatin mold as a visual
aid.
3. Discuss the four terms: Relative Dating, Principle of Superposition, Principle of Original
Horizontality, and Principle of Inclusions.
4. Ask visitors to complete their handout using the gelatin mold to answer their questions.
Visitors should use their observational skills to determine how many components
(layers/strata) there are to the gelatin mold. As they are drawing the “rock”, encourage
them to be thinking about which layers or features may have formed first and remind them
that the sketch of the gelatin mold need not be a masterpiece.
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Supply List/Cost for a class of 20 students:
Item
Vendor
Cost
5 Glass Cylinders
Walmart
$49.95
5 Red Gelatin Mix
Walmart
$0.66
5 Orange Gelatin Mix
Walmart
$0.66
5 Green Gelatin Mix
Walmart
$0.66
1 Lucky Charms Cereal
Walmart
$2.98
TOTAL
$54.91
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Name: ___________________________________
Gelatin Geology
1) Sketch a cross section view of your ‘rock.’
2) What is the oldest layer of this ‘rock’? How do you know?
3) What is the youngest layer of this ‘rock’? How do you know?
4) Which is older - the charms or the gelatin? How do you know?
5) Draw step-by-step pictures of how this ‘rock’ is formed.
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
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Indiana’s Ice Age Past Activity – Glaciation (Activity A)
Objective: Students will learn about the effects glaciers have on landscapes.
Indiana Academic Standards:
Science: 4.2.2, 7.2.7
Social Studies: 4.3.5, 4.3.13, 5.3.2, 8.3.1
Supplies:
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Sand
Aluminum Pan
Water
3 ounce paper cups
Pebbles
Water
Glacial Boundaries Map
Colored Pencils or Crayons
Background Information:
Though there were periods of glaciers covering Indiana during the Ice Age, glaciers are still very
much a part of our planet. What has been observed about glaciers today has helped scientists
understand how glaciers helped to form the landscape we call Indiana today.
Gravity is what drives glaciers and their land-forming abilities. Gravity causes glaciers to slide
over bedrock as water melts or by ice building up in the middle, forcing the glacier to expand.
We are seeing today how quickly the size of glaciers can change, sometimes overnight. But that
is not always the case. Often, the change in size, especially in how a glacier grows, can be less
than half a mile per year.
Many do not realize how each region of Indiana has been affected by glaciers. Today, our
rivers, lakes, southern hills and even the sand dunes in Northwest Indiana were shaped by
glaciers. Ever wonder why there may be a large rock in the middle of a cornfield? That is
because it was deposited here thousands of years ago by a glacier. In fact, the land that makes
up the northern two-thirds Indiana makes great cropland because of the fertile nutrients left
behind by these ancient mountains of ice. The hills of Southern Indiana too owe their shaping
due to the glacial melt water created its famous karst topography.
Instructions:
1. Before presenting the activity to students, please do the following:
a. Fill paper cups with three ounces of water and freeze. The number of cups frozen will
depend on the number of student groups in your classroom.
b. Fill paper cups with a few pebbles and the remainder with water and freeze. The number
of cups will depend again on the number of student groups in your classroom.
2. Now, prep one aluminum pan per student group. Inside the pan, leave a layer of sand
around two inches deep.
3. To help show how glaciers covered Indiana, pass out the Glacial Boundaries Map. This
map show how far south two specific glaciers went, the Wisconsin and Illinois glaciers. If
there is time, have students color the Indiana counties covered by the Wisconsin glacier
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4. one color, the counties that were affected by the Illinois glacier and then use a third color
for those counties in Southern Indiana that were not covered by glaciers.
5. Now explain to students that they are going to study the effects of glaciers by creating their
own glaciers and landscapes.
6. Pass out one cup of just frozen water and one cup of frozen water with pebbles to each
group. Have students remove the paper from the cups.
7. Give each student group an aluminum pan filled with sand and have student put a little
water in to dampen the sand.
8. Allow students to take turns taking the glacier (ice cube) with no pebbles and push it
around the sand to see what happens. Ask students to record their observations.
9. Now, have students do the same with the glacier containing the pebbles. Have students
record what they expect to happen this time. Then have students leave this glacier in the
middle of their pan (without changing the landscape already created) and observe what
happens. Have them record their observations.
Supply List/Cost for a class of 20 students:
Item
Vendor
Cost
Paper Cups
Walmart
$2.58
Bag of Pebbles
Lowes
$10.98
Bag of Play Sand
Lowes
$2.65
Aluminum Pans
Walmart
$7.96
TOTAL
$24.17
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Name: __________________________________
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Indiana’s Ice Age Past Activity – Glaciation (Activity B)
Objective: Students will predict and observe glacial flow.
Indiana Academic Standards:
Science: 4.2.2, 7.2.7
Social Studies: 4.3.5
Supplies:
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Borax
Elmer’s White Glue
Wood Blocks
Cooking Spray
Protractors
PVC Pipe – cut lengthwise
Sandpaper
Markers
Stopwatches
Small Mixing or Large Mixing Containers
Glacier Dynamics Worksheet
What to think about before doing activity:
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Length of PVC will need to be determined by teacher before starting activity. Length will
need to be determined by available space in classroom, outdoor space or wherever the
activity will take place. For this activity, the museum will be using 5 feet of PVC pipe.
Angled ramps can be determined by teacher in advance. To make sure there is a variety
in the experimentation, it is recommended to create two ramps at different angles for each
student group.
Number of ramps and PVC pipe will be determined by number of student groups in the
classroom.
Teacher should determine ahead of time if there is time in class for student to make the
glacier flubber. Below are instructions for doing both.
Instructions for Glacier Flubber (student-made)
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In a container, mix 1 cup warm water and 1/2 cup white glue. Mix thoroughly.
In a second container mid 1/3 cup of warm water and 2 teaspoon of Borax. Mix thoroughly.
Pour container with the glue into the container with the borax and gently lift and mix until
about a tablespoon of liquid is left.
Flubber will be sticky for a moment or two. Let the remaining liquid drop off, the flubber will
be ready.
Store in airtight container if planning to reuse.
Instructions:
•
Let students know that they are going to do an experiment to see what conditions work
best for a glacier to move the fastest. To do this, student groups are going to be given
three PVC pipes that will have three different types of surfaces. Students are going to see
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•
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how these surfaces, along with different sloped angles, will affect the speed of a moving
glacier.
Make sure that each student group gets a Glacier Dynamics Worksheet and pencil. Then,
pass out the following materials to each group:
o 1 PVC pipe cut lengthwise
o 2 Angle Ramps at different degrees
o Flubber
o Sandpaper
o Cooking Spray
o Protractor
o Marker
o Ruler
o Stopwatch
Let students know that the flubber will be their glacier. The open PVC pipes and angled
ramps will allow students to see how fast the glacier made of flubber will travel. Before
starting their experiment, have students write a hypothesis on their Glacier Dynamics
Worksheet to determine how far they think the flubber will travel with the first angled ramp
(the one that is least steepest).
To help make sure the experimentation runs smoothly, assign each student in the group a
position:
o Umpire: This person is responsible for making sure all the equipment needed to do
the experiment is set and ready to go. That includes prepping the PVC pipe surface
between experiments.
o Timekeeper: This person is responsible for keeping time using the stopwatch. They
will measure how long it takes the flubber to travel the PVC pipe before is stops.
o Measurer: This person is responsible for using the ruler to measure how far the
flubber traveled to the point it stopped as well as using the protractor to measure the
angle of the ramp.
o Recorder: This person is responsible for making sure all details of the group’s
hypothesis and experiment are recorded on the Glacier Dynamics worksheet.
Now, have students test how far the flubber travels before it stops. Once it does, have
distance marked on their PVC pipe with their marker. Then, using the ruler, measure the
length and record it on the table on the worksheet. Finally, they need to measure the angle
of the ramp using the protractor. That also needs to be recorded in the table on their
worksheet.
Were students’ hypotheses correct? Spend a few minutes discussing.
Now, have students move to the second phase of experimenting. Have them use the
sandpaper to cover the base of their PVC pipe. Then, students are to create a hypothesis
of what they think will happen this time to the flubber. Will it move faster or slower? Why?
Finally, have students test using the cooking spray, making sure to create a hypothesis
first. Discuss the final results of what happened to the flubber.
With time remaining, have student switch out the angled ramp for the ramp with the
greater angle and have them repeat the experiments.
21
Supply List/Cost for a class of 20 students:
Item
Vendor
Cost
Borax
Walmart
White Glue (1 Gallon)
NASCO
$13.15
Wood Blocks
Lowes
$6.54
Cooking Spray
Walmart
$1.94
Sandpaper (2 packs of 80
grit, 8 sheets)
Lowes
$11.34
Protractors
NASCO
$1.25
Black Markers (Box of 12)
NASCO
$8.60
Stopwatches (5)
NASCO
$19.75
TOTAL $62.57
22
Glacier Dynamics Worksheet
Name: _____________________________________
Objective: To find out what surface and angle allows a glacier to move the fastest.
Experiment 1: Least angled ramp
What do you think will happen to the flubber when it travels down the PVC pipe?
Hypothesis:
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Least Angled Ramp
PVC Pipe Only
With Sandpaper
With Cooking Spray
Distance Traveled
Rate of Speed (in
minutes and
seconds)
Questions to answer:
1. Did all parts of the glacier move at the same rate on all three surfaces? If not, why not?
2. On which surface did the glacier move the fastest and the slowest? Why?
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Experiment 2: Greatest angled ramp
What do you think will happen to the flubber when it travels down the PVC pipe at a greater angle?
Hypothesis:
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Greatest Angled Ramp
PVC Pipe Only
With Sandpaper
With Cooking
Spray
Distance Traveled
Rate of Speed (in
minutes and
seconds)
Questions to answer:
1. Did all parts of the glacier move at the same rate on all three surfaces? If not, why not?
2. How did glacier movement differ from the first experiment?
24
Indiana’s Ice Age Past Activity – Fossil Excavation (A)
Objective: Students will see how challenging it is to properly excavate “artifacts” during a
paleontological dig.
Indiana Academic Standards:
Social Studies: 6.3.11
Supplies:
•
•
•
•
•
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Toothpicks
Small Paper Plates
Bothwell Dig Video
Cookie Excavation Worksheet
Background Information:
Fossil excavation is not a quick process. In an effort to take the best care of the specimens
when they are found, several steps must be taken to ensure their safety so that the objects can
be properly studied and stored at the museum.
Before teaching this activity, preview the Bothwell Dig video. This video shows our
paleontologist Ron Richards discussing finding mastodon and mammoth remains in Indiana.
This video also shows the work that goes into excavating bones from a field in Northern Indiana.
Here are some things think about when discussing this topic with your students before doing the
activity:
• There is a lot of dirt to move! In fact, sometimes these digs require working in mud in the
heat of summer.
• Fieldworkers use trowels, brushes and sometimes water to help remove any dirt, mud or
natural residue from the bones. This can be a painstaking process, but it is worth it to
make sure that the bones are not damaged!
• Before the bones are completely excavated, their position is recorded through a grid
system. This step is very important! This allows scientists to 1) it can help scientists
determine how many skeletons have been found; 2) and note the location of the bones
that could help in understanding how these animals died.
• One thing you did not see in this video was the actual removal of the bones from the
ground. Bones are often covered of plaster or some type of protective material so that
when they are transported, these bones are damaged and can arrive safely for study at
the museum.
Instructions:
1. Have students view the Bothwell Dig video. Have them discuss what they viewed in that
video in regards to how the bones were being excavated from the ground. What types of
tools were being used? What type of care was taken to protect the bones from damage?
2. Let them know they are going to try their excavating skills using cookies.
3. Pass out the materials to each student
4. Pass out the “cookie excavation worksheet”
5. Students will follow the instructions on the worksheet while excavating their cookies.
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6. Tell students that they have to excavate the chocolate chips from their cookies while
keeping the cookie and the chips intact. This is important! The chip is taking the place of
an actual Ice Age animal bone. The greatest care is always taken to make sure that when
specimens are removed from the ground they are not damaged in any way.
Supply List/Cost for a class of 20 students:
Item
Vendor
Cost
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Walmart
$3.50
Toothpicks
Walmart
$0.58
TOTAL $4.08
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Cookie Excavation Worksheet
10
10
9
9
8
8
7
7
6
6
5
5
4
4
3
3
2
2
1
1
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
1. Place your cookie in the middle of the Cookie Excavation Site (left side). Do not move your cookie
from that spot.
2. Find the following coordinate pairs on your cookie:
Top:________________________
Bottom:______________________
Left side:____________________
Right Side:___________________
3. Transfer these coordinate pairs to the Grid Map and sketch the perimeter of your cookie.
4. Plot chips as you excavate them on your Grid Map.
27
Indiana’s Ice Age Past Activity – Fossil Excavation (B)
Objective: Allow students to go further from practicing the excavation of chocolate chips to
excavating in a different material
Indiana Academic Standards:
Social Studies: 6.3.11
Supplies:
• 1 cup sand
• ½ cup cornstarch
• ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
• ½ cup water
• Plastic knives
• Sand (to cover slabs)
• Trays to work on fossil slabs
• Large containers for excavation
Instructions
Mix 1 cup of sand with ½ cup cornstarch and1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar. Add ½ cup of
water and place on the stove over med-low heat. Stir as you would play dough. Once a
dough has formed, place it on a cutting board to cool. Once the dough is cool, break it
into small chunks and hide bones inside. Then, let the dough dry for 36 hours. Place in
a container and cover with sand. Once fossil slabs have been unearthed, participants
will use plastic knives to crack open their fossil cookie.
Item
Vendor
Cost
Bag of Play Sand
Lowes
$2.65
Cornstarch
Walmart
$0.78
Cream of Tartar
Walmart
$2.16
Plastic Knives
Walmart
$2.84
Plastic Trays (Small for
slabs)
NASCO
$2.50
Plastic Trays (Large for
excavation)
NASCO
$5.95
TOTAL $16.88
28
Indiana’s Ice Age Past Activity – Karst Kraziness
Objective: Visitors will learn about how karst topography is formed and why it is common in
Indiana.
Indiana Academic Standards:
Science: 4.2.1, 4.2.2, 7.2.7
Social Studies: 3.3.9, 5.3.12
Supplies:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Sugar Cubes
Plastic Tray
Water
Pipettes
Food Coloring
Trays
Karst Kraziness Worksheet
Background Information:
Southern Indiana is known for an extensive system of caves and limestone formations known as
karst. Karst topography is shaped when groundwater erodes the carbonate bedrocks. These
formations have taken thousands of years to form sinkholes, fissures, caves, disappearing
streams, springs, underground drainage systems and the rolling topography that Southern
Indiana is known for.
How does this work? When rain falls from the sky to the ground, it absorbs CO₂. When the CO₂
rich rain hits the soil it picks up even more carbon dioxide turning into H₂CO₃, or carbonic acid.
With the constant flow of acidic rain onto carbonate bedrock like limestone, cracks and crevices
already in the rock get larger. Soon, larger amounts of water can drain at faster rates, creating
the caves, sinkholes and other formations where Indiana paleontologists and cavers often
discover fossils
The Indiana State Museum excavates at Megenity Cave in Crawford County, Indiana every
summer, and has done so since 1987. Its knickname is “peccary cave” because of the rich
peccary bones that have been excavated. In fact, this cave has provided the largest collection of
peccary remains in North America! In the summer of 2014, the museum discovered a unique
fully articulate peccary skeleton. Other animal remains have been found there too.
But why is this one cave so rich in Ice Age animal remains? It is due to its combination cave and
sinkhole structure. Evidence suggests that as animals went to either hunt or shelter in the cave
they became unfortunate victims of the karst topography, falling into sinkholes with no chance of
escape.
Instructions:
1. Ask students if they know what karst is or where it is found.
2. Ask if they know of any underground springs or caves near where they live.
3. Explain that these are karst features which are common in Southern Indiana.
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4. Let students know that our karst topography, like at Megenity Cave, were popular places
for Ice Age animals to find shelter. The museum often relies on caves to help “dig up”
some of the state’s Ice Age history.
5. Show the model and explain how karst forms.
6. Allow students to use sugar cubes to create a tower or stack.
7. Instruct students to slowly add water drops to the top of their stack and observe what they
see happening. This represents how water and carbon dioxide seep into soluble rocks and
begin dissolving them.
8. Challenge participants to add water to specific spots on their stack and create a
depression, hole or even causing the stack to tumble.
9. Have students answer the questions on the Karst Kraziness Worksheet.
Supply List/Cost for a class of 20 students:
Item
Vendor
Cost
Sugar Cubes (1 lb. box)
Walmart
$1.72
Plastic Trays
NASCO
$5.95
Pipettes
S&S Worldwide
$4.79/pack of 12
TOTAL $12.43
30
Karst Kraziness Worksheet
Name: _____________________________________
Answer the following questions while you observe what happens to your
sugar cubes to create karst formations.
1. What causes karst topography?
2. What happens to your sugary karst formation why you drop water on to it?
3. How are sugar cubes like limestone?
4. If there was ground above your sugar cubes, what would happen to it?
31
Appendix A: Videos
A variety of videos produced by the museum has been provided as part of this curriculum. Here
is an explanation of those videos. Feel free to use those videos at any time for educational
purposes. They are very mastodon and mammoth heavy in subject matter, as these were
produced for our special exhibition Ice Age Giants: The Mystery of Mammoths and Mastodons.
1. Benedict Dig
This dig took place in 2008 in Northern Indiana. The highlight of this video is a find of an
articulate mastodon spinal column.
2. Bothwell Dig
This dig took place in 2007 also in Northern Indiana. This video highlights the largest
collection of mastodon bones excavated by the museum in one spot. We also found
evidence of Giant Beaver and Stag-Moose
3. Mike Smith Mastodon Mount
Chief Mount Maker for the Indiana State Museum Mike Smith details the difficult work of
creating a mount to hold the Fred the Mastodon skeleton.
4. Fred Mastodon Time Lapse
This video is a fun look at putting together the skeleton of Fred the Mastodon who has
been on exhibit at the museum.
5. Chris Widga Video
Asst. Curator of Geology Chris Widga of the Illinois State Museum details the diversity in
North American mammoths.
6. Jeff Saunders Video
Jeffrey Saunders is a Curator and Chief of Geology at the Illinois State Museum
discusses how mammoth skeletons are measured.
7. Ron Richards Collection Video
Indiana State Museum Curator of Paleobiology Ron Richards discusses some pieces of
the museum’s mammoth and mastodon collection.
8. Ron Richards Tusk Video
Interested in how we measure the age of mammoths and mastodons? Students will
enjoy a demonstration on how this is done by paleontologists.
9. ISM Peccary Discovery
This video was taken in Megenity Cave in August 2014 to announce the discovery of a
fully articulated peccary skeleton.
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