When my kids asked to learn about dinosaurs and mammoths this year, I happily agreed because prehistoric animals are a favorite topic of mine. We had studied dinosaurs in the past, but not in reference to where they fall in the geologic timeline, so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to introduce this concept to them and to teach them a little bit about what came before and after the dinosaurs. Before the dinosaurs roamed the earth, there were other equally fascinating creatures that filled the seas and eventually the land. The geologic era that came before the age of the dinosaurs was called the Paleozoic Era.   T his post focuses on the Paleozoic Era. Before we started our study of the geologic eras of the Phanerozoic Eon, we learned about fossils, you can find that post here . You can find my post about the Mesozoic Era (the age of the dinosaurs)  here , and my post about the Cenozoic Era  here . The Paleozoic Era  The first era of geologic history we studied was the Pa

  Norway was such a fun country to learn about. We tried Norwegian chocolate, made potato flatbread, learned about the Aurora Borealis, made our own Viking picture stones, and lots more! Basic Information: Norway is a country in northern Europe. It shares a border with Sweden, Finland, Russia, the North Sea, and the Norwegian Sea. Norway is mainly mountains and high plateaus, split up by fertile valleys. The coastline has deep indentations called fjords. Western Norway, along the coast, is rainy with cool summers and mild winters. The eastern inland region of the country has less rain, warm summers, and very cold winters. Capital: Oslo Population: 5.4 million  Size: 149,000 square miles  Currency: Norwegian krone Type of Government: Parliamentary democracy/ constitutional monarchy  Flag: National Anthem:  Ja Vi Elsker Dette Landet National Animal: Lion Famous Places and Monuments  Geirangerfjord- Fjords are narrow bodies of water off the ocean that extend deeply inland. They are usuall

My daughters love dinosaurs and so do I, so when they requested to learn about them again this year, I happily agreed. Since we've already studied dinosaurs in past years though, I decided to approach it from a slightly different angle, and make an entire unit study on geologic history and prehistoric animals. I figure it's a good idea to give my kids an idea where dinosaurs fit into the geologic timeline and to learn about what came before and after them.  We ended up covering so many topics while doing our geologic history and prehistoric animal study that it was just too much to reasonably fit into a single post. I decided to break it up into 4  sub-topics: Fossils, The Paleozoic Era , The Mesozoic Era , and The Cenozoic Era . This one will focus on fossils . What is a Fossil? Fossils are the preserved remains or impressions of prehistoric organisms. The remains go through a process called fossilization. There are several different methods through which an organism can becom

  We spent the last several weeks learning all about the United Kingdom. We learned about famous English castles, read about the legend of the Loch Ness Monster, made English pancakes, did several crafts, and watched loads of fun videos.  Basic Information  The United Kingdom is a union of 4 countries. It includes England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. It is an island nation off the northwestern coast of mainland Europe. It is boarderd by the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, and the English channel. It's only land boarder is with the Republic of Ireland.  The winters are generally cool and wet and summers are warm and wet. The northwest region is mostly hills and low mountains, while the south east is mainly rolling plains . Capital : London is the capital of both England and the United Kingdom. The capital of Scotland is Edinburgh. The capital of Northern Ireland is Belfast. The capital of Wales is Cardiff. Population : 66.7 million  Size : 94,525 square miles Currency : Po