Virginia Department of Education
Determining Absolute Age
How can radioactive decay help date old objects? Learners explore half-life and radioactive decay by conducting an experiment using pennies to represent atoms. Young scientists graph data from the experiment to identify radioactive decay...
Cornell University
Exploring Rocks and Minerals
Investigate the properties of rocks and minerals through a rockin' hands-on activity. Learners test rocks for various properties and, using a guide, attempt to identify different samples. They use various properties including hardness,...
Curated OER
Absolute Ages of Rocks
In this age of rocks worksheet, learners answer five matching questions about terms related to the decay of atoms. They use a strip of paper to simulate half life of atoms and determine the total amount of time it took to deplete the paper.
Curated OER
Absolute Ages of Rocks
In this rocks worksheet, students review the process of absolute dating of rocks and compare it to the relative dating process. This worksheet has 16 fill in the blank questions.
Curated OER
Absolute Ages of Rocks
In this ages of rock worksheet, students review the processes involved with determining the ages of rocks which includes the radioactive decay of carbon-14. This worksheet has 5 matching and 5 short answer questions.
Columbus City Schools
The Mystery of Earth’s History
Every living creature can leave a fossil record, yet most fossils belong to extinct organisms rather than ones currently living. Scholars learn about dating rock layers, fossils, and the environment of the past. Pupils understand that...
Curated OER
Geologic Time: Relative and Absolute Dating
High schoolers investigate relative and absolute dating; determine the difference between the two dating systems; and apply this knowledge by creating a geologic timetable of their own.
Curated OER
How Old Is Mike?
Students examine the absolute dating of fossils, they use a list of names and ages to determine the difference between relative age and absolute age. They explore the relative age and absolute age of people and of fossils.
Curated OER
How Do We Measure Absolute Time?-Geologic Clocks
In this absolute time learning exercise, students define radiometric dating, tree rings and varves as means to measure absolute time. They are given information about each of these methods of dating.
Curated OER
Measuring Absolute Time
In this absolute time worksheet, students answer eleven questions about ways to measure the age of fossils. They define half-life, answer questions about radioactive dating, tree rings and varves.
Channel Islands Film
Arlington Springs Man: Lesson Plan 2
West of the West's documentary Arlington Springs Man and a two-page scientific article about the same topic provide the text for a reading comprehension exercise that asks individuals to craft a one page summary of information gathered...
Curated OER
Volcano Poster Project
In this volcano worksheet, students choose a volcano from a given list to do research on using the computer lab. Students gather information about the volcano and answer 20 questions. They create a poster with graphics and text about...
Curated OER
Understanding the Geologic Timescale
Learners identify and analyze how the geologic time scale was developed by investigating 11 periods of time and the vast expanse of time of the Earth's existence. They study their period, determine the important factors indicative to...
Discovery Education
The Time of Our Life
Mammals are some of the newest organisms to appear on Earth. Young scholars complete an activity that results in a timeline showing the appearance of different types of living organisms. Provided with a list that spans from prokaryotes...
Curated OER
Examining the Fossil Record
Learners create an evolutionary tree based on fossil morphology and their ages. In this fossil record lesson plan, students are given 23 pictures of fossil. They study their morphology and arrange the fossils by age and structures on a...
Other
University of Waikato: Science Learning Hub: Absolute Dating
Explains what absolute dating is as compared to relative dating and how they can work together. The characteristics of several different radiometric methods are compared. Includes three short videos and an interactive where students...
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of Natural History: Paleobiology: Absolute Dating
An explanation of radiometric or absolute dating of geological formations based on using the half-life of radioactive elements to figure out how old given rock layers are. A link on the left provides information about relative dating as...
Other
Milton J. Rubenstein Museum: Determining the Age of Rocks and Fossils [Pdf]
This set of activities from the Milton J. Rubenstein Museum of Science & Technology has students investigating how relative dating and absolute dating methods are used to determine the age of rocks and fossils.
Other
Planetary Society: Relative and Absolute Ages in Histories of Earth and the Moon
A lengthy scholarly article that discusses the geologic time scale, its history of development, age-dating events that occurred in different eras, and how absolute and relative dating are used to assess the ages of the Earth and Moon....
Other
Utah Geological Survey: How Do Geologists Know How Old a Rock Is?
Geologists generally know the age of a rock by determining the age of the group of rocks, or formation, that it is found in. The age of formations is marked on a geologic calendar known as the geologic time scale. Development of the...
Georgia Department of Education
Ga Virtual Learning: Historical Geology
In this interactive tutorial you will explore how geologists use clues in rocks to determine the order in which rocks formed. Learn how principles of radioactivity are used to assign actual ages to rocks. Students will explore fossils...
American Geosciences Institute
American Geosciences Institute: How Can We Tell How Old Rocks Are?
Find out how scientists can find out the age of the rocks they are studying.
Other
Western Oregon University: Earth System Science: Geologic Time [Pdf]
An 81-page slideshow that looks at the principles of geology with respect to relative dating, at different concepts describing geological processes, at absolute age and radiometric dating, at the eons and eras in the geologic time scale,...
US Geological Survey
The Numeric Time Scale
This is a good source for getting an in-depth description of using radioactive decay to measure the ages of rocks. In addition to describing the process of radiometric dating, this resource also includes a geologic time scale and four...