Challenge your students to group and classify these dinosaurs by their common/uncommon characteristics with this FUN AND FREE Dichotomous Key Dinosaurs worksheet! Allow students to practice their skills in drawing visual (pictorial) and writing text-based dichotomous keys by discerning between 5 dino-organisms. Perfect for consolidation, quick-finishers, extra credit assessment, sub plans or just for fun! Enjoy and don’t forget to leave feedback!
✂ Contents
Teacher notes: Ideas and tips for teaching dichotomous keys and a brief explanation on how students can achieve success with the included practice problems.
Labelled Dinosaur Diagrams (Characteristics): Perfect for a quick refresher of dinosaur parts and to address key dinosaur vocabulary.
Dinosaur Dichotomous Key Problem: The worksheet tasks students to classify the 5 organisms by their characteristics first via a table of similarities and differences. This then scaffolds them to create text and visual dichotomous keys. I’ve provided you with two versions of the problem (characteristics given or no characteristics) for easy differentiation.
Answer Keys: Provided for your convenience!
Blank Master: For your own personal use in creating more practice problems, or for students to create their own, or even as an assessment piece.
✂ Teaching Suggestions & Ideas
Students should have prior knowledge of reading and drawing dichotomous text and visual keys prior to attempting this task. Print the single-sided problem individually, or print two copies back to back for the extra challenge (make TWO DIFFERENT keys of these 5 organisms!). Great for revision, homework, content work (handed straight to students after introducing the topic) or even assessment!