Hello everyone.

It's Mr. James here, and I'm delighted to be with you today because we're going to be learning about one of my favourite scientists.

Can you remember her name? Yes, that's right.

Her name is Mary Anning, and our lesson today is from the unit Rocks and soils.

And our outcome, our lesson outcome is this, that you will be able to talk about the importance of Mary Anning and her work as a fossil hunter.

So some key words that we will need in our lesson.

The first one is this.

I've already used it.

Can you repeat it after me? Fossil.

Palaeontologist.

That's quite a tricky one.

Should we try a second time? Palaeontologist.

Discovered.

Evidence.

So what is the fossil? Well, it's the bones or the remains of living things that are sometimes preserved in rocks.

A palaeontologist is a scientist who studies fossils and how life has, how life on earth has changed over millions of years.

Discovered is a word that we use when we're talking about things being found, places, objects, things that are found possibly for the first time.

And evidence is information which helps us to prove that something is true or not.

So we'll start by thinking about Mary Anning as one of the greatest fossil hunters, and then we'll go on to think a bit about her legacy.

And that means the things that she left behind after her life that are still useful to us.

This is a statue of one of the greatest fossil hunters of all time.

She is remembered for her amazing contribution to science.

Do you know who she is? I thought you might.

Yes, her name is Mary Anning.

She is known as a famous palaeontologist from England a long time ago.

Do you know what else made Mary Anning so amazing? You can pause the video if you want to talk about that.

She was born in 1799 in Lyme Regis, a coastal town in Dorset, and you can see a picture of Mary Anning hunting for fossils even while she was a young child.

You see, Mary's family was very poor.

Her father collected fossils to sell and that made some extra money for the family.

He taught Mary and her brother Joseph how to find fossils on the beach and cliffs.

When her father died, Mary carried on looking for fossils to sell, to pay for food and clothes for her family.

During this period of history, women rarely went out to work.

It was their job to look after the home and the children.

Because of this, most girls didn't go to school to learn.

Mary had other ideas.

She taught herself about geology so she could understand more about the fossils she discovered.

And here in the picture you can see fossils on the beach, just how you can find them even today.

So what type of scientist was Mary Anning? Was she a geologist, a physicist, or a palaeontologist? What do you think? Yes, Mary Anning was a palaeontologist.

Mary her brother discovered many fossils.

In 1810, they found the first known Ichthyosaurus fossil.

Here's a picture of an Ichthyosaurus.

Joseph found part of the skull and Mary, aged 12, spent days uncovering the rest of the fossil's body.

Scientists at the time first thought it was some sort of ancient crocodile.

Mary didn't think it was a crocodile.

Instead, she thought it was some sort of ancient type lizard that lived in the sea.

Ichthy means fishy and osaur means lizard.

Ichthyosaurus means fishy lizard.

As Mary grew older, she went on to make many more astounding discoveries.

In 1823, she was the first palaeontologist to discover the first complete Plesiosaur fossil in the cliffs of Lyme Regis.

Look closely at the fossil of Plesiosaur.

What do you think this animal would've looked like when it was alive and where do you think it lived? Pause the video so you can have a little talk about that now.

Here's a Plesiosaur.

It's computer generated.

But it's an image of what scientists think one would've looked like when it was alive based on the fossil evidence.

It had a very long neck compared to the Ichthyosaurus.

Plesi means close to.

Plesiosaur means close to a lizard.

Which of these things did Mary Anning discover? Electricity, fossils or space travel? What do you think? Yes, fossils.

Mary Anning discovered fossils.

Many other famous male palaeontologists of the time often took Mary's scientific evidence and claimed it as their own in scientific papers they wrote.

Mary was not invited to an important meeting at the Royal Geological Society where they discussed the Plesiosaur fossil that she had discovered.

Why do you think this happened? Pause the video to have a little discussion about that now.

It would be very interesting to hear some of your ideas.

Mary Anning's life was a difficult one.

Izzy says, "I read that Mary Anning was not recognised as a palaeontologist at the time because she was a woman and other fossil scientists were men!" Sam says, "She was not included in important meetings and discussions because she came from a poor background and had not been to school!" Talk to a partner about whether or not you think this was fair and why.

Pause the video now.

True or false time.

Male scientists in the 1800s often did not credit Mary Anning for her discoveries.

True or false? What do you think? Unfortunately, it's true.

So now think about why.

How can you justify your answer? Have a look at the two explanations that are given here and decide which one you think is the best fit.

So A, is this, they thought she had just copied her discoveries from other more famous people, or B, they thought she didn't know what she was talking about because she was a woman from a poor background.

Decide what you think.

Yes, sadly, you are right.

They thought she didn't know what she was talking about because she was a woman from a poor background.

Mary's fossil discoveries led to an increase in public interest in geology and palaeontology.

Before Mary's discoveries, people in the 1800s often thought that fossils came from monsters and creatures that lived in other parts of the world.

Mary discovered the long tail and wings of a Pterosaur in 1828.

Here's a picture of the Pterosaur fossil.

What do you think the other scientists and people thought this evidence showed? Some thought it was a dragon.

Mary thought it was some sort of flying reptile and she was right.

Ptero means wing or feather, and Pterosaur means winged lizard.

True or false? Mary Anning's discoveries led to an increase in public interest in space and the moon.

True or false? Yeah, that's false.

But think about why you think it's false.

Which of these answers is the most correct.

Justify your answer.

Is it A, Mary Anning's discoveries were not correct, so people ignored her.

Or is it B, Mary Anning's discoveries led to an increase in public interest in geology and palaeontology.

Have a think.

Yeah, it's the second of those.

Mary Anning's discoveries led to an increase in public interest in geology and palaeontology.

So task A time now.

Mary Anning often spent days uncovering different fossils.

She would need to decide how to put the fossils together to show an animal that she discovered.

Use the mixed-up fossil bones on the worksheet, arrange them to make a complete skeleton of one of Mary's famous fossil discoveries.

You can pause the video now.

How did that go? I'm sure you did a great job.

So, here is an example of one that we've already done for you, and this is the fossil skeleton of an Ichthyosaurus.

And I can't resist showing you because I was on the beach near Lyme Regis just the other day, and I found this.

And this is part of the spine of an Ichthyosaur fossilised.

It's vertebrae, an Ichthyosaur vertebrae.

Explain why it was difficult for Mary Anning to be a palaeontologist in the 1800s.

You could talk to a partner about your ideas or you could write a short diary entry as Mary Anning explaining some of the difficulties that she faced.

Pause the video so you can do this.

Here's an example of some writing about Mary Anning's life.

It was difficult for Mary Anning to be recognised as a palaeontologist in the 1800s because she was female, came from a poor background and had not gone to school.

Male scientists did not credit her work in scientific papers because they looked down on her and did not think she was as good as them, even though they sometimes said that her discoveries were made by them.

Time for us to move on to the second part of our lesson where we're going to learn about Mary Anning's legacy.

Mary died in 1847 at the age of 47, so that's quite easy for you to remember.

Sadly, because she was a woman, Mary's contribution as one of the greatest fossil hunters of all time was not recognised.

However, we now recognise how her discoveries have provided evidence for us to understand how the world has changed over time.

And if you look closely in this portrait of Mary Anning, you will notice her dog.

Her dog was called Tray.

We remember the life she led and how she has set an example for others.

We call this her legacy.

Today, the Natural History Museum in London showcases several of Mary Anning's spectacular fossils.

This is the Natural History Museum.

Many people visit this famous museum to find out more about Mary Anning's discoveries.

Have you ever been? Well, if you have, count yourself a very lucky person indeed, because it's always memorable to visit the museum.

You can visit it any number of times and always find something new to see and learn about.

At the museum you can look at some of the fossils that Mary discovered and read about each one to discover more about Mary, one of the greatest fossil hunters that ever lived.

The museum displays this famous picture to show what the fossils that Mary discovered would've looked like when they were alive.

The painter of the painting was called Henry, Sir Henry, Henry De la Beche.

And he was a good friend of Mary Anning and he painted this picture to illustrate what the fossils that Mary had discovered would've looked like when they were alive.

He sold copies of his painting to raise money to give to Mary Anning.

Can you spot Mary's discoveries in the painting? Pause the video while you have a better look at it.

Here you can see an Ichthyosaurus and here is a Pterosaur, and here a Plesiosaur.

You might like to pause the video so you can have a closer look at the painting.

There are some questions we might ask like whether all these creatures were actually alive at the same time.

Whether what we see in the painting could really have happened, but nonetheless, it's an absolutely marvellous painting.

I'm sure you agree.

So, which museum would you visit in London to see some of Mary Anning's spectacular finds? Is it A, the Florence Nightingale Museum, B, the Natural History Museum, or C, the London Transport Museum.

That's right.

It's the Natural History Museum.

One of the Mary Anning exhibitions in the museum has lots of these types of fossils.

Do you know what they are? They're coprolites.

These are called coprolites and they are fossilised poo from animals that lived millions of years ago.

Mary Anning was one of the first palaeontologists to discover coprolites and realise that they were the droppings left by animals.

She broke the coprolites apart to study them and found small bones and plants inside.

She used this as evidence of what the animal had eaten when it was alive.

Mary Annings discovery of coprolites has helped other palaeontologists to answer questions about what types of food animals ate millions of years ago.

A coprolite may have contained bits of fossilised leaves and seeds, which would show the animal was a, can you think? What kind of animal would be eating leaves and seeds? And yes, a herbivore.

A coprolite may have contained bits of fossilised bones and feathers, which would show the animal was a, can you remember the name? Yes, a carnivore.

A carnivore would be eating things that contain bones and feathers.

And by studying coprolite with microscopes, modern scientists can now answer questions about what types of plants grew millions of years ago.

Why was Mary Anning considered to be one of the greatest fossil hunters of all time? A, Mary lived in Dorset.

B, Mary discovered the first Ichthyosaurus and realised it was an ancient animal that lived a long time ago.

C, Mary had a dog called Tray, who she took fossil hunting with her.

D, Mary was able to show through her discovery of coprolites what animals ate millions of years ago.

What do you think? I'll give you a moment.

You can pause the video if you need to.

Yeah, Mary discovered the first Ichthyosaurus and realised it was an ancient animal that lived a long time ago.

And Mary was able to show through her discovery of coprolites what animals ate millions of years ago.

That's why Mary Anning's considered to be one of the greatest fossil hunters of all time.

Aisha says, "I think I would like to be a palaeontologist like Mary Anning when I get older, but I'm worried there won't be any fossils left to discover." What do you think? Are there any fossils left for Aisha to find? You can pause the video if you want to talk about this.

I hope you agreed that yes, there are still fossils that you can find.

Just like my Ichthyosaur vertebrae that I found near Lyme Regis just the other day.

Next time you're outside near some rocky cliffs or the seaside, you can follow in Mary's footsteps and search for fossils.

But I'm going to give you a little safety warning now, don't get too close to the cliffs because sometimes there can be rockfalls, which are extremely dangerous.

As weathering and erosion continues to break down rocks, more fossils come to the surface just waiting to be found.

There are still fossils to discover if you look carefully in the right types of rocks.

Animals and plants that die today may well become fossils and be discovered by people who live 10,000 years from today.

Who do you think is correct? Andeep, "Aisha will not be able to become a palaeontologist when she grows up as all the fossils have already been found." Izzy, "Anyone can become a palaeontologist as new fossils are being formed all the time when some animals and plants die." Jacob, "Aisha will be able to become a palaeontologist when she's older, as weathering and erosion continue to reveal new fossils." Yes, Izzy's right that anyone could become a palaeontologist.

And so is Jacob.

As weathering and erosion do continue to reveal new fossils.

Task B, imagine you work at the Museum of Natural History.

You've been given the job of writing a fact file about Mary Anning to explain to visitors why she was one of the most important fossil hunters of all time.

Research using secondary sources, which means books that have been written about Mary Anning and find at least five facts.

And those facts can help you to tell others about Mary Anning's life and what helped to make her so important as a palaeontologist.

Record the information in a way that visitors to the museum will find easy and interesting to understand.

So time for you to get busy.

Pause the video now.

Well done.

That was a good lot of work.

So what might you have written? Well, here's an example.

Mary Anning's father taught her how to look for fossils from an early age, which ignited her interest in fossils.

That means it sparked her interest.

Mary was curious and spent a lot of time on the beach looking for fossils to sell to help feed her family who were poor.

Because she didn't go to school, she thought a lot about her own ideas rather than listening to what someone else told her.

Mary was the first person to discover coprolites and use them as evidence about what animals ate when they were alive.

Mary didn't marry, but this gave her time to explore and discover more.

Let's think back over all that we've learned about Mary Anning.

She was a famous palaeontologist known as one of the greatest fossil hunters to have ever lived.

Male scientists at the time often did not credit her discoveries in their scientific papers because she was a woman.

Today, the Natural History Museum in London showcases several of Mary Anning's spectacular finds, and there are still fossils to discover, anyone could become a fossil hunter.

I wonder if the next famous fossil hunter is going to be you.

Well done for all your learning today.

See you next time, bye-bye.