Stegosaurus Coloring Pages
Stegosaurus coloring pages feature the dinosaur with tall plates along its back and spikes on its tail, in line art that ranges from big easy shapes for toddlers to detailed drawings for older kids.
Very simple stegosaurus coloring pages ages 2-4
Easy stegosaurus coloring pages ages 3-6
Medium stegosaurus coloring pages ages 6-10
Detailed stegosaurus coloring pages ages 10+ and adults
More ways to browse
The back plates are what children point at first, and they are fun to color in alternating colors. Scientists think the plates may have helped stegosaurus show off or recognize each other. Kids also enjoy hearing that its brain was small for such a big body. Stegosaurus lived long before T. rex, so it makes a good page for talking about how the age of dinosaurs lasted a very long time.
For older kids, try coloring the plates with a light color at the base and a darker color at the tips. Blending two colored pencils this way gives the plates a rounded, three-dimensional look.
Fun facts to share while you color
- Stegosaurus means "roofed lizard," because early scientists thought its plates lay flat like roof tiles.
- Stegosaurus was a plant eater with a small head and a toothless beak at the front of its mouth.
- The spikes on its tail are often called a thagomizer, a nickname that scientists picked up and kept.
- Stegosaurus lived millions of years before T. rex appeared.
- Its fossils have been found in the western United States and in Portugal.
Ways to use these stegosaurus pages
- Use the back plates for a pattern game: kids color them in a repeating sequence like red, yellow, red, yellow.
- Cut out paper plates in different sizes and glue them onto a finished stegosaurus page for a raised, layered craft.
- Count the tail spikes together, then have kids add their own spikes and count the new total.
- Make a timeline strip and place a stegosaurus and a T. rex far apart to show how many years separated them.
Questions parents and teachers ask
What were the plates on a stegosaurus for?
Scientists are not completely sure. Popular ideas include showing off to other stegosaurus, helping members of the same kind recognize each other, and possibly helping with body temperature.
Did stegosaurus live at the same time as T. rex?
No. Stegosaurus lived in the Jurassic period, and T. rex lived much later, near the end of the Cretaceous. More time separates them than separates T. rex from people today.
