This resource is part of the Museum Snapshot collection - a collection of smaller resources perfect for starters, plenaries or spare moments to explore something fascinating.
Curriculum Links:
KS1 and KS2 Science: Rocks and Fossils
This starfish fossil is over 175 million years old. It dates from the Jurassic period, when dinosaurs walked the Earth, and the Yorkshire Coast was beneath a warm tropical sea!
The fossil was collected 150 years ago by someone from Scarborough, who gave it to the museum in Scarborough.
Discussion Ideas:
- This starfish has five 'arms', how you think they move?
- Starfish have eyes on the end of their 'arms', why do you think this is?
- Where do starfish live?
- What adaptations do they have to help them survive?
- What other kinds of fossils can you find on beaches? These might be shells, leaf imprints or even poo!
- Draw a comic strip to explain how this starfish became a fossil
- This starfish was alive when dinosaurs were walking the earth and swimming in the sea. Write a short story describing a day in the life of the starfish.
- What did it see?
- Where did it go?
- What happened to it?