University of California
Ucmp: A Relative Dating Activity
An learning activity to help students grasp the concept of relative dating and geologic time.
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College
Serc: American Field Guide: Relative Dating Telling Time Using Fossils
This website integrates video footage and information with lesson plans and activities to teach students about the concept of relative dating. Students will graph a range chart for ammonites, determine the geologic age for several rocks,...
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...
![Milton J. Rubenstein Museum: Determining the Age of Rocks and Fossils [Pdf] Lesson Plan](https://d15y2dacu3jp90.cloudfront.net/images/attachment_defaults/resource/large/FPO-knovation.png "Milton J. Rubenstein Museum: Determining the Age of Rocks and Fossils [Pdf] Lesson Plan")
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.
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
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....
US Geological Survey
Relative Time Scale
This is a good resource for anyone who wants to understand the historical development that led to our understanding of relative dating. This site also has links to index fossils and a table of geologic time.
Utah Education Network
Uen: Fossil Inferences
Arrange fossil pictures in sequence from oldest to youngest.
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
Index Fossils
If you need examples of index fossils for each of the geologic eras and periods, than this resource is for you. Diagrams of the index fossils and their scientific names are also provided.
CK-12 Foundation
Ck 12: Earth Science: Earth History and Clues From Fossils
[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] How scientists can learn information about the past from fossils.
CK-12 Foundation
Ck 12: Earth Science: Earth History and Clues From Fossils
[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] How scientists can learn information about the past from fossils.
CK-12 Foundation
Ck 12: Earth Science: Earth History and Clues From Fossils
How scientists can learn information about the past from fossils. [Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.]
CK-12 Foundation
Ck 12: Earth Science: Correlation Using Relative Ages
[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] How rock layers in different locations can be connected to make pictures of a region's geology.
CK-12 Foundation
Ck 12: Earth Science: Correlation Using Relative Ages
[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] How rock layers in different locations can be connected to make pictures of a region's geology.
CK-12 Foundation
Ck 12: Fourth Grade Science: Earth Science: Relative Ages of Rocks
[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] Looks at how stratigraphy can be used to determine the relative ages of rocks, how unconformities occur, ways to match rock layers in different areas, and how...
CK-12 Foundation
Ck 12: Biology: History of Life
[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] Describes how scientists learn about the past by examining and dating fossils.
CK-12 Foundation
Ck 12: Biology: History of Life
[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] This comprehensive lesson by CK-12 explains how scientists learn about the past by examining and dating fossils.
CK-12 Foundation
Ck 12: Life Science: 4.4 Fossils
Understand fossils and the fossil record as it relates to Earth's history.
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College
Serc: Layer Cake Geology
Using a cake analogy, this activity teaches concepts such as: geologic time, rock layers, fossils, Law of Superposition, and relative dating. Activity can be modified to grade level and appropriate content for students,
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...
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...
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College
Serc: Geo Logic: The Big Five Mass Extinctions
Using GEOLogic puzzles, students are asked to match the five largest mass extinction events with their relative dates, approximate duration, and severity based on clues given from various perspectives.
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.