COSI Connects Kits - little kid kit: A Dinosaur Story

: On-Demand Workshops
: Pre-Scheduled Connections

Snake Bites - Grades 4-6

Junior Star Safari - Grades PreK - 1

Animal Adventures - Grades 2-4

Dino Tales - Grades PreK - 1

Superhero Science - Grades 5-8

Introduction to Coding - Grades 5-8

Gadget Works - Grades 2-5

Forensic Psychology - Grades 9-12+

Genetic Counseling - Grades 9-12+

In Depth: Autopsy - Grades 10-12+

In Depth: Kidney Transplant - Grades 9-12+

Surgical Suite: Sports Medicine - Grades 6-12+

Surgical Suite: Total Knee Replacement - Grades 6-12+

You Become the Pharmacist - Grades 10-12+

: On-Demand Workshops : Pre-Scheduled Connections	Pre-K	K	Grade 1	Grade 2	Grade 3	Grade 4	Grade 5	Grade 6	Grade 7	Grade 8	Grade 9	Grade 10	Grade 11	Grade 12+
Junior Star Safari
Snake Bites
Animal Adventures
Dino Tales
Superhero Science
Introduction to Coding
Gadget Works
Forensic Psychology
Genetic Counseling
In Depth: Autopsy
In Depth: Kidney Transplant
Surgical Suite: Sports Medicine
Surgical Suite: Total Knee Replacement
You Become the Pharmacist

little kid kit: A Dinosaur Story - Resources

Hello Parents, Educators, and Caregivers,

We are so happy your littlest learners are taking part in COSI Connects science learning kits! We have designed this extra special Early Child STEM kit to be fun, engaging, and educational. We know education is important now more than ever, and COSI stands ready to be your partner with this little kid Kit. Together, we will engage, inspire, and transform our students and youth in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) at school and at home.

This box is full of experiences designed to engage learners ages 3+! A Dinosaur Story, COSI’s original picture book, will guide you and your learners through hands-on science activities, pencil and paper activities, and can be read over and over!

If you want to dig deeper into science content, additional experiences are available through our free COSI Connects digital platform, where you can filter videos and activities by topic and grade level. Check here to see new COSI Kit themes as they are released.

Click on the tabs below to find a description of each activity in this box, the Learning Standards that correspond to each of those activities, and additional resources.

Each little kid Kit is filled with engaging, hands-on STEM activities for your littlest learner. Inside each kit you will find all the supplies you need, as well as a COSI original picture book: A Dinosaur Story. A Dinosaur Story will guide your learner through six activities, and is included with pencil on paper activities for more learning!

Activity 1 - Make a dinosaur egg! Learners will learn how baby dinosaurs hatch out of eggs, and use modeling dough to cover your dinosaur toy.

Activity 2 - Do you have a good memory? See if you can match all the different types of dinosaurs! Using the deck of cards in the box, can test their memory by flipping two cards over at a time.

Activity 3 - Using modeling dough, children will make a dinosaur trackway: a series of footprints!

Activity 4 - In this activity, each child will learn how animal bones can become fossils in sedimentary rock. They will construct layers of sediment to bury a dinosaur, then test out their excavation skills!

Activity 5 - There is a REAL fossil in this box! Your learning will learn how to use their senses to document and identify their fossil.

Activity 6 - Did you know that modern-day birds descend from dinosaurs? In this activity, each child will step out into nature to observe animals and places, and specifically see if they can find any birds in their backyard. They will use their binoculars from the box and a list of common Ohio birds, and see how many different kinds of birds they can spot!

View the corresponding activity videos here.

Ohio
“Ohio’s Learning Standards emphasize skills like critical thinking and problem solving — qualities most sought by today’s employers. By teaching our students to apply these skills to what they are learning in school, we can make sure they are on track to graduate from high school and enjoy success in college, careers and life.” Ohio Department of Education

Small Muscle: Touch, Grasp, Reach, Manipulate
Coordinate the use of hands, fingers and wrists to manipulate objects and perform tasks requiring precise movements.

Memory
With modeling and support, remember and use information for a variety of purposes.

Reasoning and Problem Solving
Solve problems by planning and carrying out a sequence of actions.
Seek more than one solution to a question, problem or task.

Number Sense and Counting
Count to 20 by ones with increasing accuracy.
Identify and name numerals 1-9.
Identify without counting small quantities of up to 3 items. (Subsidize)
Demonstrate one-to-one correspondence when counting objects up to 10.
Understand that the last number spoken tells the number of objects counted.

Group and Categorize
Sort and classify objects by one or more attributes (e.g., size, number).

Identify and Describe Shapes
Understand and use names of shapes when identifying objects.

Identify and Describe Shapes
Understand and use names of shapes when identifying objects.

Analyze, Compare and Create Shapes
Create shapes during play by building, drawing, etc.
Combine simple shapes to form larger shapes.

Historical Thinking Skills
Demonstrate an understanding of time in the context of daily experiences.

Inquiry
Explore objects, materials and events in the environment.
Make careful observations.
Pose questions about the physical and natural environment.
Engage in simple investigations.
Describe, compare, sort, classify, and order.
Record observations using words, pictures, charts, graphs, etc.
Use simple tools to extend investigation.

Earth and Space Science
With modeling and support, recognize familiar elements of the natural environment and understand that these may change over time (e.g., soil, weather, sun and moon).

Explorations of Living Things
With modeling and support, identify physical characteristics and simple behaviors of living things.
With modeling and support, demonstrate an understanding that living things change over time (e.g., life cycle).

Want to learn more about dinosaurs? Columbus Metropolitan Library has recommended the list of books below for further exploration of the dinosaur theme.

Pre-K
Baby Dinosaurs by Dawn Sirett, 2017.
How Do Dinosaurs Stay Friends by Jane Yolen,  2016.
Dinosaurs by Ruth A. Musgrave, 2020.