History · 2nd Year

Active learning ideas

Mary Anning: Fossil Hunter

Active learning brings Mary Anning's story to life by letting students handle replicas, step into her shoes, and build timelines. These hands-on methods help second-year students grasp how fossils reveal Earth's past and how curiosity drives scientific discovery.

• NCCA Curriculum Specifications
• NCCA: Primary - Story
• NCCA: Primary - Using Evidence

• 25–45 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Stations Rotation
• 45 min · Small Groups

Stations Rotation: Fossil Discovery Stations

Prepare stations with replica fossils, sketch paper, and fact cards on Anning's finds. Students rotate to examine, draw, and label specimens, then write one sentence on how each changed science. Conclude with a class share-out.

Explain how Mary Anning's discoveries changed scientific understanding of ancient life.

Facilitation Tip

During Fossil Discovery Stations, circulate to ask guiding questions like 'What clues suggest this fossil came from a swimming animal?' to push student reasoning.

What to look for

Pose this question to small groups: 'Imagine you are a scientist in the 1830s. Based on Mary Anning's discoveries, would you argue that species can go extinct? Why or why not? Use evidence from her finds.' Have groups share their reasoning.

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

Activity 02

• Outdoor Investigation Session
• 30 min · Small Groups

Role-Play: A Day in Mary Anning's Life

Assign roles as Anning, family, or scientists. Students script and act a scene of a fossil hunt, facing scripted challenges like weather or doubt. Perform for the class and discuss evidence from the play.

Analyze the challenges she faced as a woman in science during her time.

Facilitation Tip

For A Day in Mary Anning's Life, provide props such as a basket, magnifying glass, and replica fossils to immerse students in her daily routine.

What to look for

Provide students with a short biographical excerpt about Mary Anning focusing on a specific discovery. Ask them to identify one challenge she faced and one scientific idea her discovery influenced. Collect responses to gauge comprehension.

• Remember
• Understand
• Analyze
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness
• Decision-Making

Activity 03

• Outdoor Investigation Session
• 35 min · Pairs

Timeline Build: Anning's Discoveries

Provide timeline strips; pairs place dated events from Anning's life and add drawings of fossils. Groups connect to a class mural, explaining one change to scientific understanding.

Predict what new discoveries might be made by paleontologists in the future.

Facilitation Tip

When building the Timeline, have students use sticky notes to adjust dates and events, scaffolding their understanding of long stretches of time.

What to look for

Students write down one question they still have about Mary Anning or paleontology. They should also list one similarity between Anning's work and modern scientific investigation.

• Remember
• Understand
• Analyze
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness
• Decision-Making

Activity 04

• Outdoor Investigation Session
• 25 min · Small Groups

Prediction Debate: Future Fossils

Show images of current digs. In small groups, students predict new finds and evidence needed, linking to Anning's methods. Vote on most likely via class poll.

Explain how Mary Anning's discoveries changed scientific understanding of ancient life.

Facilitation Tip

In the Prediction Debate, assign roles such as 'scientist,' 'skeptic,' and 'historian' to ensure balanced participation and deeper discussion.

What to look for

Pose this question to small groups: 'Imagine you are a scientist in the 1830s. Based on Mary Anning's discoveries, would you argue that species can go extinct? Why or why not? Use evidence from her finds.' Have groups share their reasoning.

• Remember
• Understand
• Analyze
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness
• Decision-Making

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teachers should emphasize Anning's observational skills and persistence rather than focusing solely on the fossils themselves. Avoid romanticizing her struggles; instead, use primary sources to highlight real barriers. Research shows students better retain concepts when they connect them to human stories, so anchor lessons in Anning's firsthand accounts and challenges.

Successful learning looks like students using fossil evidence to explain Anning's contributions, describing her challenges and achievements, and sequencing deep-time events accurately. They should also discuss how her work connects to modern science.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During Fossil Discovery Stations, watch for students who dismiss fossils as 'just rocks.'

  Ask them to examine textures, shapes, and patterns in the replicas to identify features like teeth, bones, or shells that reveal the organism's identity and life.

• During Role-Play: A Day in Mary Anning's Life, watch for students who assume she was taken seriously by all scientists.

  Have them act out moments when Anning was ignored or doubted, then discuss how her persistence overcame bias in small groups.

• During Timeline Build: Anning's Discoveries, watch for students who place her discoveries in the same time period as dinosaurs.

  Provide geological time scale cards to clarify that marine reptiles lived millions of years before Anning and modern humans.

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Methods used in this brief

• Stations Rotation
• Outdoor Investigation Session