Rocking and rolling: USU Rock-n-Fossil Day teaches geosciences

Kids squealed over dinosaur bones and sparkly rocks on Feb. 24 for Rock-n-Fossil Day, put on by Utah State University’s geoscience department. With three floors filled with exhibitions, presentations and activities, people wandered throughout the building soaking in science and unlocking secrets of the past. 

Ellen Imler, a program assistant with the geosciences department, said planning started for the event about two months prior. The group thought about which aspects of geoscience were a priority to highlight and figured out how to make the event interactive and interesting.  

“We start probably in January to make sure that we have all the stations sorted out, because we have new stations every year,” Imler said. “There’s some that happen the same each year, but we still have to get the helpers organized.” 

This event included many programs celebrating geology and paleontology, even across statewide campuses.  

Josh Lively, the curator of paleontology at USU Eastern, presented findings from archeological digs he’s been a part of studying ankylosaurs. 

“We’re associated with USU Eastern, one of the campuses of Utah State University,” Lively said.  

There were not just presentations at the event. Kids also played games teaching them about archeological digs or the rock cycle.  

Chloe Danos, the outreach and recruitment coordinator for the geoscience department, said she loves teaching the kids with interactive experiences. 

People look at rocks in the museum on the second floor of the USU geology building on Feb. 24 for Rock-n-Fossil Day.

“I’ve been at the rock cycle game,” Danos said. “Kids get a little keychain, and they get to pick a rock that they want to go start at, and so they started at a sedimentary rock or whatever, and they roll a die, and the die makes them randomly go to a different rock station, and then they get a different bead at every station.” 

“It’s just so funny how excited the kids learn about rocks being exploded out of a volcano or melted by a meteorite or eroded down a river,” Danos said. “The kids’ enthusiasm is what is my favorite part.” 

Imler said seeing the sparking of curiosity and excitement for geosciences was another favorite part. 

Volunteers from the department of geosciences teach attendees about rocks on Rock-n- Fossil Day on Feb. 24.

“The kids’ enthusiasm is just so exciting,” Imler said. “At all the different stations, each kid will have something different that they like about it, and it’s just it’s so cute to watch them, and then those kids that do actually know things about science that are like, ‘Oh, I’m going to tell you everything I know.’ It’s just adorable.” 

Imler said watching them make connections between things they learned at the museum and school work was fun. 

“They just took flight,” Imler said. “They’ve learned about some sort of related topic in school. And they’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, we did this, and we talked about this.’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, you should keep asking questions about this and keep thinking about it.’” 

Danos said the kids with a passion for rocks and fossils are told about further resources at the event. 

“Lots of kids like to watch geology-related YouTube videos, and I said, ‘You should follow Benjamin Berger!’ He is a professor here, and he does really good videos,” Danos said. 

According to Imler, even parents got in on the fun. 

“Parents are really funny because they usually stand off, but they’re totally engaged, and you see it from a distance,” Imler said. “They’ll be nodding their head like, ‘Ah, yes, I vaguely remember that.’” 

The event allows the geosciences department to spark curiosity and a passion for STEM on a Saturday morning, which made it a tradition. 

“We do it every year, and we always do it the same weekend, always on a Saturday,” Danos said. “Come ask questions. Talk about rocks and other things!”