How to Make Dinosaur Fossils with Kids

When I started planning activities to do at my son’s birthday party I knew I had to have something fun that both the boys and girls would like. Teaching him how to make dinosaur fossils was the perfect activity!

If you’re planning a dinosaur themed party or just have a fan of dinosaurs in your family, this is a great project to do together!

How to Make Dinosaur Fossils

After searching around a bit we found a great recipe for do-it-yourself dinosaur fossils! As soon as I showed my son the fossils he was all aboard. And then when I told him he’d have to help make them he quickly ran to grab the measuring cups and flour.

The fossils were a big hit at the party and the kids took turns finding them all over the indoor play place we were at. Then they took all of the fossils to two buckets we had set out and started opening their fossils to reveal tiny plastic dinos inside.

DIY Dinosaur Fossils Materials

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup dirt
• 1/2 cup sand (play sand works the best)
• 1 cup water
• 12 tiny plastic dinosaurs
• Baking sheet covered with plastic wrap

Realistic Looking Dinosaur Figures

How to Make Dinosaur Fossils

1. Pour flour, dirt and sand into a large bowl.

2. Add water to the dirt mixture and stir.

You want to stir until it’s a thick, muddy, batter consistency. You can add more dirt, sand and flour as needed if your mixture is too liquidy.

3. Dip the dinos in the mixture and coat them well.

4. Place dinosaurs on a plastic wrap lined baking sheet.

5. Cover each one with a little more of the dirt mixture to make sure each one is coated well.

Cover any parts of the dinosaur that might be sticking out.

6. Set the tray in the sun for a few hours until they are completely dry on top.

7. Flip each fossil over and let the other side dry completely.

8. Let the kids have fun breaking the fossils apart to find the hidden dinosaurs!

Whether you’re having a dinosaur themed birthday party, learning more about dinosaurs or just looking for something fun to do with the kids, learning how to make dinosaur fossils is always a blast!

If you’re looking for some good children’s books to go along with this project, these are a few of our favorites:

Little Kids First Big Book of DinosaursDinosaur A-Z: For kids who really love dinosaurs!My Big Dinosaur BookWhat the Dinosaurs Did Last Night

If your animal-loving kids love getting their hands into things and being creative, you should try our ocean slime recipe too!

(Huge thanks to Danielle from A Crafty Spoonful for sharing how to make dinosaur fossils!)