Fishing for fossils

School parties visiting the BBC ‘Walking with Dinosaurs’ exhibition at the Hancock Museum, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, are being given the opportunity to dig for real fossils. Lafarge Aggregates have donated 20 tonnes of marl slate from Thrislington Quarry for the museum’s ‘Fishing for Fossils’ activity. The stone has proved to be an excellent source of 250-million-year-old fossil fish.

Steve McLean, curator of the Hancock Museum, said: ‘This special activity, made possible by Lafarge Aggregates, will provide an exciting, hands-on way of exploring the world of fossils with children able to take home their finds. Linking in with our ‘Walking with Dinosaurs’ exhibition, pupils will also be able to see first-hand the fossils and dinosaurs used in the internationally acclaimed BBC series.’