How Do You Make A Fake Fossil?
Fossils are imprints of objects pressed into soft surfaces (like mud). Over time, the mud hardened, leaving the imprint as hardened mud. Fossils can be leaves, bones, sea shells and twigs. Step 1 Create a soft clay or dough using water, flour and salt. Some people will use coffee grinds to give the dough a more authentic appearance. Step 2 Use plaster of Paris if you don’t want to use a soft clay. Follow the directions on the package for mixing plaster of Paris. It should be fairly thick. Step 3 Pick objects to use as a fossil. Hard objects such as twigs, chicken bones, and sea shells work better than softer objects such as leaves. Feel free to have some fun with this one-you can use plastic insects or animals if you want. Step 4 Press your fossil objects firmly into the plaster of Paris or dough. Step 5 Lift the objects out of the plaster Paris or dough being gentle so as not to make extra marks in your fossil. Depending on the age of your kids, an adult may have to do this. Tweezers
Instead of trying to find a real fossil, spend a little time making your own from Plaster of Paris or cement. • Prepare the Plaster of Paris or cement mixture and pour into a bowl or milk carton. • Place the object to be ‘fossilized’ in the mixture and press down until it is about half submerged. Stick a nail in the mixture if you want a hole to hang it from. • Let the mixture dry. • Remove the fossil. When it is dry, either gently take the fossil out of the bowl/carton or break the bowl/carton if needed. Pull out the nail (if you placed one in the plaster at step 2). • Pry the object out of the bowl/carton, and you have your fossil. • Chip the round side of the fossil to make it look more authentic. Display it. It might be suitable as a class decoration or to hang up in your bedroom.
