As part of the UC Merced California Naturalist Course, I am making Plaster of Paris footprint castings of tracks I have encountered. My goal is to use the tracks in an elementary school discovery lesson. Each team of two students would be given a track to investigate. Depending on grade level, they would have a appropriate level worksheet to guide them in their discovery about the animal. After finding out as much as the can using reference books, internet sources etc. the students would be asked to write about a day in the life of their critter.

As part of the lesson, students would receive a written description and demonstration of how to make their own castings. less ↑