Kids Discover Fossils, and A Passion for Science

CHISHOLM, Minn.– Believe it or not, you can find shark teeth in the state of Minnesota.
Kids are digging up those fossils, all while learning the ways of being a paleontologist.

There are many outlets to learn more about the world around us, and the Minnesota Discovery Center in Chisholm is no exception.

At Paleo-Camp, kids like Izzy Danger, are embracing their inner paleontologist while searching for some exciting discoveries. Some of these finds being around 90 million years old.

“It’s kind of a rare opportunity to do, because we don’t get a lot of fossils up where I live.” said camper Izzy Danert

Believe it not, scientists say Minnesota was nearly submerged with ocean water… leaving behind ancient discoveries.

“And what we mostly find, are shells and stuff, like this.” said Danert

Some campers, like Danert, are already very involved with the world of paleontology.

“So, it’s just fun to go hunting at least once in a while.” said Danert

John Westgaard is a Paleontologist with Minnesota Discovery Center.

“We find hundreds of, if not thousands of snails, and oysters, and clams and mussels.” said Westgaard

And it doesn’t stop there. The fossil material leftover in northern Minnesota involves some of the deadliest predators found on our coasts. Something Westgaard says many Minnesotans can’t believe is true.

“Even when we first started, collecting up here 11 years ago and we’d go into town at night. The people that we would interact with didn’t believe we would find shark teeth, and crocodile teeth.” said Westgaard “We actually have these types of deposits in about 60 percent of Minnesota.”

Westgaard says, this type of learning can be incredibly important to shape young minds.

“Having that field experience where you see where things actually start. You’re searching through the woods, digging through a pile of dirt.
And June came up and showed us her shark tooth that she found.
She’ll ask next, like, ‘What kind of shark is this?’ And maybe we’ll be able to help identify the species” explained Westgaard

Meanwhile back at the dig site, the kids collected their fossils and headed back to the lab to analyze and identify their findings.

“It’s kind of really exciting. Because they’re like ‘Oh my god, I found something exciting.'” said Danert

“And she will never forget that. You know, it’s part of the discovery. said Westgaard

It’s a real-life, hands-one, historical experience…
with one face-to-face appreciation for science.