Make Your Own Fossil Project

A simple project for children to make while learning about fossils! As they learn in school about dinosaurs, they can make their own dinosaur fossil or maybe they just like sea shells or butterflies. The possibilities are endless!
Things You’ll Need:
2 cups of quick-setting plaster of Paris
1 cup of water
a pan of sand

Step1 Give your child a pan of sand for doing this project (your container can be anything large enough to make a fossil of your toy or item). Your sand needs to be about 1 1/2 to 2 inches deep. Sprinkle the sand lightly with water until it is moist enough to hold an impression.

Step2 Using an item that fits in the pan of sand, make an impression by pushing the item into the sand. It can be a rubber dinosaur, a butterfly trinket, a starfish, a toy figurine or anything that will leave an impression. Carefully remove the item.

Step3 Mix the plaster as directed on the container. Immediately pour the plaster mixture into the sand impression. Be careful to keep the plaster in the impression. It will be hard to remove from the pan if it touches the pan.

Step4 Let the plaster dry for 45 minutes or until hard. Remove the fossil from the sand.

Step5 You can make a great gift by using your child’s hand print as the fossil. Once it dries and you remove it from the sand, your child can paint it and give it to grandma and grandpa as a gift. If they are making a fossil of their hand, caution them not to wiggle their fingers or the mold won’t look like their hand. A foot would also be fun but again, no wiggling.

Tips & Warnings
1. If you want to make the fossil a certain color, mix 1 tablespoon of powdered tempera paint to the plaster before adding water.
2. You can paint your fossils with ceramic paints. Let them dry completely before painting and completely again before touching after you paint them.