Rev.

5/3/2018

Earth Science A Summer Intersession

Credit 3: The History of Planet Earth

Course Information

Teacher Contact Information

Supervising Teacher – Science Teacher –
Phone Number – Phone Number –
E-mail – E-mail –
Hours Available – Hours Available –
Tutoring Hours – Days and Times –
Tutor Names –

Grading Scale
Mark A B C D INC Indicator Points
Value 100 – 89 – 79 – 69 – 59 –
Assessment 50
90% 80% 70% 60% 0%
Homework 50

Total 100

Student Support Icons

Title Icon Description

Lab Wherever this icon is placed students know that they need to perform a lab.

Review This provides the student with a reminder that they need to answer
questions.

Technology Guides students through the tasks and assignments that require the use of
technology and manipulatives.

Textbook This icon lets the student know they will be reading out of the text.
Reading

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 1
 Rev. 5/3/2018

CREDIT 3A: THE HISTORY OF PLANET EARTH

Learning Goals for this Credit

Communicate scientific information clearly, thoroughly and accurately.

Collect, analyze and evaluate the quality of evidence in relation to a question.

Lesson Title Assignments

INTRODUCTION 
3.1 Determining Relative Age  Connect to Prior Knowledge
 Exploration Activity
 Reading and Questions
 Videos (optional)
 Relative Dating Activity
 Review Questions
3.2 Determining Absolute Age  Connect to Prior Knowledge
 Exploration Activity
 Reading and Questions
 Videos (optional)
 Understanding Radioactive Decay
 Review Questions
3.3 Dating Rocks with Fossils  Connect to Prior Knowledge
 Exploration Activity
 Reading and Questions
 Videos (optional)
 Dating Fossil Rock Samples
 Review Questions
ASSESSMENT  Complete Virtual Lab-Based Performance Task

Credit Materials
Materials Needed Technology Needs
 Pen  Internet
 HMH Earth Science  Computer
Textbook  HMH Online Resources
 Packet

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 2
 Rev. 5/3/2018

CREDIT 3A: INTRODUCTION

Read the introduction below and then answer the essential question.

Geology is often described as an 'historical science'. The geologist is not only interested in what the Earth is
made of and how the Earth 'works', but also the timing and sequence of events. The geologist wants to discover
and tell the Earth's story by answering the questions:

 What happened? Earthquakes? Floods? Drought? Volcanic eruptions? Meteorite impacts? Ice ages?
Emergence of life? Extinction of species? Appearance of continents? Invasion and retreat of seas?
 When did it happen? When did the Earth come into being? Acquire a moon? An atmosphere? An ocean?
When did life first adorn its surface? When did insects, fish, mammals, birds, dinosaurs appear?
Disappear?
 How quickly did it happen? Do mountains pop up and vanish in a flash? Did the dinosaurs vanish with a
whimper or a bang? Did ice sweep over the earth's surface or advance slowly, inch by inch?

Almost all the Earth's history, to the extent that it is recorded, is recorded in rocks. Rocks contain clues that
show how and when the Earth formed. Scientists study these clues to learn about Earth’s history. The most
recent events may leave their imprints in human artifacts, growth rings of trees, or the body and structure of
other living organisms. Composition, texture, structure and field relationships reveal the circumstances of rock
formation: what the environment was like and was going on at a particular place at a particular time.

By determining the relative ages of rock layers and structures, geologists can better understand the processes
that shape the world around us. A process not only takes place at a particular place and time but
also through time. In understanding process - for example, the creation, transport, deposition and lithification of
sediment - a small, local slice of the Earth's history is unraveled. In turn, the working out of history sheds light
on process: determining what came first, what came second, and so on, which places limits on causal
relationships. Consider the mechanism of dinosaur extinction. If it can be shown that the last dinosaur died
before a certain meteorite impact occurred, then the process that caused dinosaur extinction cannot have
involved that meteorite impact.

Adapted from http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/geology/leveson/core/topics/time/time_intro2.html

An essential question is something that allows you to explore the content of the credit. Before you
answer the question make sure to read the introduction. Then answer the essential question to the best of
your ability. You will revisit it at the end of the credit to see if your answer has evolved.

Essential Question
What connections are there between the changing surface of the Earth and the evolution of life?
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Depending on the environment of earths surface animals may evolve differently.

__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 3
 Rev. 5/3/2018

LESSON 3.1: DETERMINING RELATIVE AGE

Learning Goals for this Credit

Communicate scientific information clearly, thoroughly and accurately.

Collect, analyze and evaluate the quality of evidence in relation to a question.

Learning Goals for this Lesson

 State the principle of uniformitarianism.
 Explain how the law of superposition can be used to determine the relative ages of rocks.
 Compare three types of unconformities.
 Apply the law of crosscutting relationships to determine the relative ages of rocks.
Lesson Assignments
 Connect to Prior Knowledge
 Exploration Activity
 Reading and Questions
 Videos (optional)
 Relative Dating Activity
 Review Questions

Engage

Connect to Prior Knowledge

How can we determine the age of rocks and other materials?
Geologists commonly use radiometric dating methods, based on the natural radioactive decay of certain elements such as
__________________________________________________________________________________________
potassium and carbon, as reliable clocks to date ancient events.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 4
 Rev. 5/3/2018

Explore
Exploration Activity
Geologists estimate that Earth is about 4.6 billion years old. The idea that Earth is billions of years old
originated with the work of James Hutton, an 18th-century Scottish physician and farmer. Hutton was a keen
observer of the geologic changes taking place on his farm and wrote about agriculture, weather, climate,
physics, and philosophy. Using scientific methods, Hutton drew conclusions based on his observations and
concluded that the same forces that changed the landscape of his farm had changed Earth’s surface in the past.
He thought that by studying the present, people could learn about Earth’s past. Hutton’s principle of
uniformitarianism is that current geologic processes, such as volcanism and erosion, are the same processes
that were at work in the past. Geologists later refined Hutton’s ideas by pointing out that although the processes
of the past and present are the same, the rates of the processes may vary over time.

Watch the video “Great Minds: James Hutton, Founder of Geology” and then answer the questions.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKTXxZSz-9s
“Great Minds: James Hutton, Founder of Geology.” YouTube, SciShow, 4 July 2016.

1. To James Hutton, why were rocks more than just rocks?

They were the key's to earth's history.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
2. At the time Hutton proposed his ideas about the age of rocks, how old was Earth believed to be by most
people in Scotland?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
6,000 years old.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
3. What type of unconformity did Hutton see at Siccar Point and how was this uniformity formed?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
He saw different types of rocks. At Siccar Point, during the lower Silurian Llandovery epoch around 435 million years ago,
thin beds of fine-grained mud stone were laid down gradually deep in the Iapetus Ocean, alternating with thicker layers of
_______________________________________________________________________________________
hard greywacke formed when torrents swept unsorted sandstone down the continental slope.
4. What did Hutton conclude about the formation of granite rock and where did granite rock originate?
Hutton shrewdly inferred that high pressures and temperatures deep within the Earth would cause the chemical reactions that
_______________________________________________________________________________________
created formations of basalt, granite, and mineral veins.
_______________________________________________________________________________________

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 5
 Rev. 5/3/2018

Explain

Reading
Read the following section. Once you have completed the reading answer the questions below.

Holt McDougal Earth Science Chapter 8 Section 1 pages 201-206

1. Explain why it is important for scientists to be able to determine the relative ages of rocks.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
The relative ages of rocks are important for understanding Earth's history.

_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
2. State the principle of uniformitarianism in your own words.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
The Principle of Uniformitarianism states that the laws of nature that are in effect today, have been in effect forever.

_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
3. Explain how the law of superposition can be used to determine the relative age of sedimentary rock.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Geologists use the law of superposition to determine the relative ages of sedimentary rock layers. According to the law of
superposition, in horizontal sedimentary rock layers the oldest layer is at the bottom. Each higher layer is younger than the
_______________________________________________________________________________________
layers below it.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
4. Draw an example of an unconformity and nonconformity in the boxes below.

Unconformity Nonconformity

5. How is an angular unconformity different then a disconformity?

_______________________________________________________________________________________
Strata is deposited on tilted and eroded layers for angular unconformity

_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
6. Describe how the law of crosscutting relationships helps scientists determine the relative ages of rocks.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
the Law of Crosscutting Relationships stated that if a fault or other body of rock cuts through another body of rock then it
must be younger in age than the rock through which it cuts and displaces.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 6
 Rev. 5/3/2018

Videos

If you would like to learn more about this topic, watch the videos below for more information. (Optional)

Uniformitarianism and Catastrophism (HMH)

https://my.hrw.com/sh2/sh07_10/student/flash/visual_concepts/80063.htm

What is uniformitarianism? This video will discuss James Hutton’s findings related to the formation of Earth’s
surface features.

Law of Superposition (HMH)

https://my.hrw.com/sh2/sh07_10/student/flash/visual_concepts/80065.htm

What is the law of superposition? The following diagram explains how scientists can use the law of
superposition to determine if a rock layer is older or younger than the other layers surrounding it.

Unconformities (HMH)
https://my.hrw.com/sh2/sh07_10/student/flash/visual_concepts/80068.htm

What are unconformities? This video will explain that when geologists find unconformities, they ask whether
the "missing layers" ever really formed or whether they were somehow removed.

Types of Unconformities (HMH)

https://my.hrw.com/sh2/sh07_10/student/flash/visual_concepts/80069.htm

What types of unconformities can occur? This interactive diagram will explain the categories of unconformities
that can be found in rock layers.

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 7
 Rev. 5/3/2018

Elaborate
Relative Dating Activity
The table below explains relative dating techniques. Use the law of superposition, law of crosscutting
relationships, and principle of inclusions to determine the relative ages of the cross-sections of rock on the
following pages. (Hint: Determine the oldest event first.)

The Law of Superposition In any undisturbed sequence of

strata, the oldest layer is at the
bottom of the sequence, and the
youngest layer is at the top of the
sequence.

The Law of Crosscutting Any feature that cuts across a

Relationships body of sediment or rock is
younger than the body of
sediment or rock that it cuts
across.

Principle of Inclusions If one rock body contains

fragments of another rock body it
must be younger than the
fragments of rock it contains. OR
…The inclusions are older than
the rocks which contain
them.

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 8
 Rev. 5/3/2018
NOTE:
 A fracture is a crack in rock.
 A fault is a fracture along which movement has occurred.

1. Rank the following rock layers from youngest to oldest:

C
Youngest ______ ______
B ______
A Oldest

2. Rank the following rock layers from youngest to oldest:

A
Youngest ______ ______
D ______
C ______
E ______
B Oldest

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 9
 Rev. 5/3/2018
3. Rank the following rock layers from youngest to oldest:

B
Youngest ______ ______
D ______
E ______
C ______
A Oldest

4. Rank the following rock layers from youngest to oldest:

F
Youngest ______
I ______
D ______
H ______
E ______
A ______
B ______ ______
C ______Oldest
G

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 10
 Rev. 5/3/2018
5. For each of the following pairs of rock layers, identify the relative dating law that determines which bed
was older and which was younger. Circle the letter of the OLDER bed.

4
A & B ________________________ 2
C & D ___________________________
D & E ________________________
3 J & K ___________________________
1

6. In the box below, draw a sequence of strata and include five rock layers, with one inclusion and one
crosscutting body (fracture, fault, or dike). Color each event a different color. Label each event with a
letter and then identify the relative ages from youngest to oldest.

A ______
Youngest ______ B ______
C ______
D ______
E Oldest

D
E

Adapted from new.schoolnotes.com/files/K.Sultana/RelativeDating.pdf

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 11
 Rev. 5/3/2018

Evaluate
Review Questions
Answer the following questions.

1. What are strata?

_______________________________________________________________________________________
The layers of a rock.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
2. Explain what relative age can indicate.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
How old a rock is.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
3. Explain how unconformities can occur.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
It is caused by a period of erosion or a pause in sediment accumulation, followed by the deposition of
sediments anew
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
4. How are buried rock layers exposed to erosion?
They are lifted up by movements of earth's crust
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
5. According to the law of superposition, what is the age relationship of rocks on either side of an
unconformity?
all the rocks beneath an unconformity are older than the rocks above it.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
6. Think back to your answer of the question from page 4: “How can we determine the age of rocks and
other materials?” Revise your answer using evidence from the lesson.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
We can determine it from the layers rocks and how they are shaped.

_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 12
 Rev. 5/3/2018

LESSON 3.2: DETERMINING ABSOLUTE AGE

Learning Goals for this Credit

Communicate scientific information clearly, thoroughly and accurately.

Collect, analyze and evaluate the quality of evidence in relation to a question.

Learning Goals for this Lesson

 Summarize the limitations of using the rates of erosion and deposition to determine the absolute age of
rock formations.
 Describe the formation of varves.
 Explain how the process of radioactive decay can be used to determine the absolute ages of rocks.
Lesson Assignments
 Connect to Prior Knowledge
 Exploration Activity
 Reading and Questions
 Videos (optional)
 Understanding Radioactive Decay
 Review Questions

Engage

Connect to Prior Knowledge

The picture to the right shows rock layers formed in
Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Make 3
observations about this picture.
Different colors, multiple layers, and patterns.
___________________________________________
___________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 13
 Rev. 5/3/2018

Explore

Exploration Activity
Recall from the previous section that relative age indicates only
that one rock formation is younger or older than another rock
formation. To learn more about Earth’s history, scientists often
need to determine the numeric, or absolute age, of a rock
formation. Scientists use a variety of methods to measure the
absolute age. Some methods involve geologic processes that can
be observed and measured over time. Other methods involve the
chemical composition of certain materials in rock.

Watch the video “Absolute Dating” and then answer the questions.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hg7JJ36kaNM.
MrLaneScienceClass. “Absolute Dating.” YouTube, YouTube, 9 Oct. 2013.

1. In the video’s mind experiment, how many coins remain after three flips? After seven flips?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
125k coins for the 3rd flip and 7,812 coins for 7th flip.

_______________________________________________________________________________________
2. Define radioactive.
Something that emits radiation particles.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
3. Define half-life.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
The time it takes for something radioactive to decay to half of its original point.

_______________________________________________________________________________________
4. Briefly explain what happens to a radioactive atom over time.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
When radioactive atoms decay, they release energy in the form of ionizing radiation
_______________________________________________________________________________________
5,730 years
5. What is the half-life of carbon-14? _____________________ Nitrogen-17? _______________________
4.173 seconds

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 14
 Rev. 5/3/2018

Explain

Reading
Read the following section. Once you have completed the reading answer the questions below.

Holt McDougal Earth Science Chapter 8 Section 2 pages 207-211

1. In what way can the rate of deposition be used to estimate absolute age?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Scientists can also estimate absolute age by calculating the rate of sediment deposition. By using data collected over a long period
of time, geologists can estimate the average rates of deposition for common sedimentary rocks.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
2. Where and how do varves generally form?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Varves form due to seasonal fluctuations in glacial environments. These include processes like meltwater and sediment input, lake
ice cover, wind shear and precipitation.D
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
3. Identify the layers in a single varve.
Varves typically consist of two layers, a coarse sand or silt layer capped with a fine grained clay layer separated by a sharp contact
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
4. How are varves useful to geologists?
Varves are useful to the study of geochronology because they can be counted to determine the absolute age of some
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Pleistocene rocks of glacial origin.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
5. How is radioactive decay used to measure the absolute age of rock?
Absolute dating methods determine how much time has passed since rocks formed by measuring the radioactive decay of
_______________________________________________________________________________________
isotopes or the effects of radiation on the crystal structure of minerals.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
6. What do scientists measure when using radiometric dating?
The age of rocks is determined by radiometric dating, which looks at the proportion of two different isotopes in a sample.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
7. Differentiate between a parent isotope and a daughter isotope.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Parent isotopes are the isotopes of a particular chemical element that can undergo radioactive decay to form a different isotope
from a different chemical element. Daughter isotopes, on the other hand, are the products of radioactive decay of parent
_______________________________________________________________________________________
isotopes.
_______________________________________________________________________________________

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 15
 Rev. 5/3/2018
8. How can scientists determine the age of a rock sample using the half-life of a parent isotope?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
The abundances of parent and daughter isotopes in a sample can be measured and used to determine their age. This method
is known as radiometric dating
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
9. What does a higher percentage of daughter isotopes in a rock mean?
The higher the percentage the older the rock is
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
10. In radiometric dating, for what kinds of geologic samples containing uranium is uranium-238 most
useful?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Uranium238 is most widely used mineral in geological or archaeological dating. Explanation: U238 is generally used to date
the rock materials, to know the age.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________

Videos

If you would like to learn more about this topic, watch the videos below for more information. (Optional)

Isotopes (HMH)
http://my.hrw.com/sh2/sh07_10/student/flash/visual_concepts/70560.htm

What are isotopes? This video will explain what isotopes are and how they can form.

Half-Life (HMH)
http://my.hrw.com/sh2/sh07_10/student/flash/visual_concepts/75447.htm

How is half-life determined? This video will explain what half-life is, and how it is measured.

Radiometric Dating (HMH)

http://my.hrw.com/sh2/sh07_10/student/flash/visual_concepts/75456.htm

When and how do we use radiometric dating? This video will explain the process of radiometric dating using
isotopes of carbon as an example.

Radiocarbon Dating (9:28)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2io5opwhQMQ
"Radiocarbon Dating." YouTube. Bozeman Science, 29 Dec. 2010. Web. 17 July 2015.

How is radiocarbon dating used to date rocks and other ancient materials? This video will describe the process
of radioactive decay in carbon and how it can be used in absolute dating.

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 16
 Rev. 5/3/2018

Elaborate

Understanding Radioactive Decay

Part I

Scientists use line graphs as tools to communicate data, specifically to show how data change over time. Line
graphs make it easy to compare different sets of data over time. For example, in radiometric dating the
absolute age of rock is determined by comparing the relative percentages of a radioactive (parent) isotope and a
stable (daughter) isotope.

Half-life is the time it takes for half the mass of a radioactive isotope to decay into its daughter isotope. To
make a line graph of the half-life of any radioactive isotope, plot the amount of the parent isotope against the
amount of the daughter isotope over time. Even if you do not know the time-periods for each half-life of a
radioactive isotope, the relationship can still be plotted on a line graph.

For example, suppose the original mass of a radioactive isotope is 100 kg, or 100,000 g. A table and a line
graph showing the half-lives for this amount of radioactive isotope would look like the following:

Number of half-lives Parent isotope Daughter isotope

0 100,000 g 0g
1 50,000 g 50,000 g
2 25,000 g 75,000 g
3 12,500 g 87,500 g
4 6,250 g 93,750 g
5 3,125 g 96,875 g

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 17
 Rev. 5/3/2018
1. How many half-lives have passed when there are three times as much daughter isotope as parent
isotope?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
3 Half lives.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
2. How many grams of the parent isotope remain in the sample after three half-lives?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
12500g of the parent isotope will remain.

_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
3. Why is the line graph a curve instead of a straight line?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Because of the half lives.

_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
4. If a sample contained 94,000 g of the daughter isotopes, where on the line graph would the sample be
shown?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
The daughter isotope will be shown above the parent isotope in graph.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________

Part II

Younger rock layers may be dated indirectly by dating organic material found within the rock. The ages of
wood, bones, shells, and other organic remains that are found in the rock layers and that are less than 70,000
years old can be determined by using a method known as carbon-14 dating, or radiocarbon dating. The isotope
carbon-14 combines with oxygen to form radioactive carbon dioxide, CO2. Most CO2 in the atmosphere
contains nonradioactive carbon-12. Only a small amount of CO2 in the atmosphere contains carbon-14.

During photosynthesis, plants absorb CO2, which contains either carbon-12 or carbon-14. Then, when animals
eat the plants or a plant-eating animal, the carbon-12 and carbon-14 become part of the animals’ body tissues.
As a result, all living organisms contain both carbon-12 and carbon-14.

To find the age of a small amount of organic material, scientists first determine the ratio of carbon-14 to carbon-
12 in the sample. Next, they compare the ratio with the ratio of carbon-14 to carbon-12 known to exist in a
living organism. While organisms are alive, the ratio of carbon-12 to carbon-14 remains relatively constant.
When a plant or an animal dies, however, the ratio begins to change. The half-life of carbon-14 is only about
5,730 years. Because the organism is dead, it no longer absorbs carbon-12 or carbon-14, and the amount of
carbon-14 in the organism’s tissues decreases steadily as the radioactive carbon-14 decays to nonradioactive
nitogen-14.

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 18
 Rev. 5/3/2018
5. The table below shows the radioactive decay of a 10 kg sample of carbon-14. First, calculate the amount
of carbon-14 (g) in the column. Then, determine the number of half-lives.

Years passed Carbon-14 (g) Half-Lives

0 10,000 0
5,700 5,000 1
11,400 2,500 2
17,100 1,250 3
22,800 625 4
28,500 312.5 5
34,200 156.25 6
39,900 78.125 7
45,600 39.0625 8
51,300 19.53125 9

6. Create a graph using the data.

 Label the x-axis “Number of half-lives.”
 Label the y-axis “Amount of isotope (g).”
 Plot the decay of carbon-14 in terms of half-lives.

7. About how old is a sample of bone that contains 900 g of carbon-14? Mark its position on the line graph.
How many half-lives have passed?
The half-life of carbon-14 is about 5,730 years,
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 19
 Rev. 5/3/2018
8. Describe how all living organisms end up containing both carbon-12 and carbon-14.
Plants absorb CO2, which contains either 12C or 14C, during photosynthesis.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
9. Why does radioactive carbon-14 begin to decay after a plant or an animal dies?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
However, plants and animals that are still alive constantly replace the supply of carbon in their systems and so the amount of
Carbon-14 in the system stays almost constant. Once a plant or animal dies the Carbon is no longer being regenerated and so
_______________________________________________________________________________________
the Carbon-14 starts to decay.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
10. What is the daughter isotope for carbon-14?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
The daughter isotope of carbon-14 decay is nitrogen-14.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________

Holt McDougal. Holt McDougal Earth Science Chapter 8 Graphing Skills Worksheet. Austin, TX: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, 2010. PDF.

Evaluate
Review Questions
Answer the following questions.

1. What are three methods scientists use to determine absolute age?

Among the best-known techniques are radiocarbon dating, potassium–argon dating and uranium–lead dating.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
2. Explain how the age of a stream can be measured using rates of erosion.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
By measuring the rate at which the stream erodes its bed.

_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
3. Small amounts of what type of materials in rocks can act as natural clocks?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Radioactive material.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
4. What is an isotope and how is it used in radiometric dating?
A isotope is one of two or more species of atoms of a chemical element with the same atomic number and position in the periodic
_______________________________________________________________________________________
table. These isotopes decay within the rocks according to their half-life rates, and by selecting the appropriate minerals
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 20
 Rev. 5/3/2018
5. What type of rock layers may be dated using radio-carbon dating?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Sedimentary rocks

_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
6. What carbon isotope combines with oxygen to form radioactive carbon dioxide, CO2?
The carbon-14 atoms combine with the oxygen in the air to form carbon dioxide.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
7. Think back to the picture of Grand Canyon National Park on page 13. Give 1 relative aging technique
and 1 absolute dating technique that could be used to date these rock layers. Explain why you chose
these dating techniques to use for the Grand Canyon using evidence from the lessons.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Radiometric dating because there are layers to the Grand Canyon

_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 21
 Rev. 5/3/2018

LESSON 3.3: DATING ROCKS WITH FOSSILS

Learning Goals for this Credit

Communicate scientific information clearly, thoroughly and accurately.

Collect, analyze and evaluate the quality of evidence in relation to a question.

Learning Goals for this Lesson

 Describe four ways in which entire organisms can be preserved as fossils.
 List examples of fossilized traces of organisms.
 Describe how index fossils can be used to determine the age of rocks.
Lesson Assignments
 Connect to Prior Knowledge
 Exploration Activity
 Reading and Questions
 Videos (optional)
 Dating Fossil Rock Samples
 Review Questions

Engage

Connect to Prior Knowledge

The picture to the right shows fossilized trilobites.
Trilobites were among the most successful of all early
animals, roaming the oceans for over 270 million years.
They went extinct about 250 million years ago. Based on
this picture, how do you think these trilobite fossils could
have formed?
__________________________________________________________________________________________
There outer shells form the fossils.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 22
 Rev. 5/3/2018

Explore

Exploration Activity
Fossils — the remains and traces of organisms that have been preserved through time — are a key source of
information for understanding the history and development of life on Earth. Once buried within thick layers of
rock, fossilized remnants of plants and animals help scientists piece together a picture of geologic time. The
fossil record is like a diary of Earth, offering a glimpse into past conditions that have been preserved in
chronologically sequenced rock formations.

Fossilization only happens under particular circumstances. When an organism dies, it is exposed to a variety of
biotic and abiotic factors. Biotic factors, such as scavengers, predators, and decomposers, can break down and
destroy the organism. Abiotic factors, including weathering, erosion, and tectonic processes such as volcanic
activity and earthquakes, can also wear away or obliterate its remains. Thus organic matter left exposed to air
and microorganisms quickly decomposes, and soft tissue, muscle, and organs do not generally become
fossilized. However, hard, inorganic matter made of minerals, like bones and teeth, stands a better chance of
being preserved, especially once it is buried under sediment. Over a long period of time, as the material slowly
decays, it can be infused with minerals dissolved in ground water and become a fossil. Since the object is now
composed of hard minerals, it maintains its original shape.

Not every type of rock contains fossils, so paleontologists — scientists who study fossils — focus their
discovery efforts on areas with the type of rock most likely to contain them: sedimentary rock. Sedimentary
rock is formed by the deposition of new layers over time. As each new layer is added, the remains of organisms
from previous time periods end up farther and farther from Earth's surface. However, movement and interaction
of Earth's lithospheric plates eventually moves fossils around, enabling their discovery. For example, in a
process called uplift, deeply buried geological strata may be forced upward to the surface. Once close to the
surface, fossils in these deposits may be excavated or, as is often the case, uncovered by the processes of
erosion.

1. In what type of rock do paleontologists generally look for fossils?

_______________________________________________________________________________________
Sedimentary rocks.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
2. What must usually happen in order for a dead organism to be preserved as a fossil?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
For an organism to be fossilized, the remains usually need to be covered by sediment soon after death.

_______________________________________________________________________________________
3. What geologic processes can cause deeply buried fossils to be brought toward the surface?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
The only way for those sediments to reach the surface is for them to be pushed up during the process of mountain making
and then worn away by the forces of erosion.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
4. Why are most fossils found in sedimentary rocks?
So most fossils are found in sedimentary rocks, where gentler pressure and lower temperature allows preservation of past
_______________________________________________________________________________________
life-forms.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Adapted from University of California Museum of Paleontology. "How a Dinosaur Became a Fossil." PBS LearningMedia. WGBH, 2006. Web. 23 July 2015.
<http://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/ess05.sci.ess.earthsys.fossilintro/how-a-dinosaur-became-a-fossil/>.

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 23
 Rev. 5/3/2018

Explain

Reading
Read the following section. Once you have completed the reading answer the questions below.

Holt McDougal Earth Science Chapter 8 Section 3 pages 213-216

1. Briefly describe five ways in which an entire organism can be preserved as a fossil.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Fossils form in five ways: preservation of original remains, permineralization, molds and casts, replacement, and
compression.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
2. Explain how geologists use fossils to date sedimentary rock layers.
Through the process of evolution, different kinds of fossils occur in rocks of different ages, enabling geologists to use fossils
_______________________________________________________________________________________
to understand geological history.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
3. Compare the process of mummification with the process of petrification.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
The processes are similar in that they can show very well what the original organism looked like. In mummification, original
tissues of the organism remain. In petrification, the original tissues are replaced by minerals.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
4. Describe how index fossils can be used to determine the ages of rocks.
Index fossils are fossils of organisms that lived during only one short period of time. A layer rock with an index fossil in it is
_______________________________________________________________________________________
close in age to another layer of rock with the same type of index fossil in it. Even though rock layers are of different regions,
_______________________________________________________________________________________
index fossils indicates that the layers are close in age.
_______________________________________________________________________________________

Videos

If you would like to learn more about this topic, watch the videos below for more information. (Optional)

Becoming a Fossil (2:34)

http://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/tdc02.sci.life.evo.becfossil/becoming-a-fossil/
"Becoming a Fossil." PBS LearningMedia. NOVA, 2001. Web. 23 July 2015.

How do bones become fossils? This video will explain the process of fossilization to show how remains of
organisms can be preserved for millions of years.

Index Fossil (HMH)

http://my.hrw.com/sh2/sh07_10/student/flash/visual_concepts/80075.htm

What are index fossils? This video will explain what index fossils are, and how they are used to date rocks.
Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 24
 Rev. 5/3/2018

Elaborate

Dating Fossil Rock Samples

A paleontologist in California sent you nine rock samples containing various fossils. Your job is to arrange the
samples in order from oldest to youngest according to their fossil content and to determine their relative ages
using the process of relative dating. Results from absolute dating methods will not be available from a
laboratory for several weeks, and the paleontologist needs the information immediately. You know from
previous work that rocks of Sample 2 are the oldest.

Materials:

Set of nine cards representing rock samples (found at the end of this packet).

Procedures:

1. Cut out the nine fossil cards.

2. Arrange the fossils cards from oldest to youngest. Begin with Sample 2. You may need to try several
different arrangements to determine the correct order. Hint: After an organism becomes extinct, it does
not reappear in younger rocks (fossil cards).
3. In the data table, record the samples in order from youngest to oldest in the first column. Make sure that
the youngest sample is listed at the top. Sample 2, the oldest, has been filled in for you at the bottom.

FOSSIL KEY

Bananabana bobana

Bogus biggus

Circus bozoensis

Fungus amongius

Globus slimius

Microbius hairiensis

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 25
 Rev. 5/3/2018
Order Of
Age of
Fossil
Globus sample (in
Cards
slimius millions of
(youngest
years)
to oldest)

Sample 2 X

4 . Record the fossil names in order by age from left to right in the top row of the table. Write an “X” in
the appropriate column to indicate which fossil(s) are present in each sample. The fossil of Globus
slimius has already been recorded for you and an “X” has been marked to indicate it was present in
sample 2. Hint: Examine your fossil cards carefully to determine where each fossil appears in the
rock record.
5. You are preparing a timeline for the paleontologist in California. But when the results, shown here,
come in from the geology lab, you discover the dates have been separated from the appropriate rock
samples. Absolute dating is very expensive and you can’t have it done again. Wait! You have already
determined the relative ages of the fossil samples. Arrange the dates below from oldest to youngest
and add these dates to your Data Table.

The absolute dates provided by the geology lab are as follows:

 28.5 mya  17.6 mya  23.1 mya

 30.2 mya  26.3 mya  15.5 mya
 18.3 mya  14.2 mya  19.5 mya

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 26
 Rev. 5/3/2018

Evaluate

Review Questions
Answer the following questions.

1. Do the Xs make a certain pattern across the table? What would you conclude if there were an X outside
the pattern?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
2. Based on the information in your data table, which fossil is the youngest?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
3. From the information you have, are you able to tell the exact ages of the fossils? Explain.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
4. What information does relative dating provide to paleontologists?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
5. Based on absolute dating, which fossil organism lived for the longest period of time? The shortest?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
6. Think back to the picture of the trilobite fossils on page 25 and your answer to the question “How do
you think that these trilobite fossils could have formed?” Revise your answer using evidence from the
lesson.
I think that these
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 27
 Rev. 5/3/2018

Revisit the essential question. Did your answer change? Why or why not?

Essential Question
What connections are there between the changing surface of the Earth and the evolution of life?
Depending on earth's climate and state the evolution of may change to adapt.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 28
 Rev. 5/3/2018

Virtual Lab-Based Performance Task

During the Precambrian between 4 billion and 3.8 billion years ago, the early Earth began to cool which
allowed water vapor to condense and fall as rain. Once liquid water was present, organic compounds could be
formed from inorganic compounds. There are multiple hypotheses on how these organic molecules formed, and
how the first living cells arose, but once life was present on Earth it began to transform the planet. Some of the
most common fossils of Precambrian time are cyanobacteria. Cyanobacteria are unicellular (single celled)
organisms that are photosynthetic. They take in carbon dioxide gas and release oxygen gas into the atmosphere
similar to modern day plants.

Part I: Why It Matters: Long-Term Survivors

Read “Why It Matters: Long-Term Survivors” on page 234 of your textbook and then answer the questions
below.

1. Why would early Earth have been toxic for modern day animals? Why were cyanobacteria able to
survive?
The surface of early earth was mostly molten and volcanic. The atmosphere was hot and highly toxic.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
2. How did early photosynthetic organisms such as cyanobacteria affect Earth’s atmosphere?
Two and a half billion years ago, single-celled organisms called cyanobacteria harnessed sunlight to split water molecules,
_______________________________________________________________________________________
producing energy to power their cells and releasing oxygen into an atmosphere that had previously had none.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
3. How did cyanobacteria contribute to the evolution of multicellular organisms like the plants and animals
we see today?
By producing and releasing O2 , cyanobacteria are thought to have converted the early oxygen-poor, reducing atmosphere
_______________________________________________________________________________________
into an oxidizing one.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 29
 Rev. 5/3/2018
Part 2: Virtual Field Trip

Recall that stromatolites contain layers of sediments that are cemented together by mats of cyanobacteria.
Cyanobacteria are the most common Precambrian fossils. In Shark Bay, Australia there is an abundance of
stromatolites that scientists are currently studying. During this virtual fieldtrip, you will view and investigate
the stromatolites of Shark Bay.

Procedure:

1. Visit the website: http://vft.asu.edu/VFTSharkbay/panos/sharkbay/sharkbay.html

"Living Microorganisms - Shark Bay, Australia." Virtual Field Trips. Arizona State University, n.d. Web. 02 Oct. 2014.
2. Click and then watch the “Tutorial Video”.
3. Click and then watch the “Introduction”.
4. Click “Start Trip”.
5. Investigate Shark Bay and observe the stromatolites along the shoreline.
6. Record your observations in the data table on the next page for size, color, and shape of the stromatolites
along the shoreline.
7. Draw a picture of the stromatolites along the shoreline in the data table.
8. Find and click on “Underwater Location 1” and observe the stromatolites at this location.
9. Record your observations in the data table for this location.
10. Draw a picture of the stromatolites at this location in the data table.
11. Find and click on “Underwater Location 2” and observe the stromatolites at this location.
12. Record your observations in the data table for this location.
13. Draw a picture of the stromatolites at this location in the data table.
14. Find and click on “Hamelin Pool Pier”.
15. Click on “Under Pier View” and observe the stromatolites at this location.
16. Record your observations in the data table for this location.
17. Draw a picture of the stromatolites at this location in the data table.

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 30
 Rev. 5/3/2018
Data:

For each location in Shark Bay you will describe the size, color, and shape of the stromatolites. You will also
give a drawing of what the stromatolites at that location looked like.

Stromatolites of Shark Bay, Australia

Stromatolites Size Color Shape Drawing

Shoreline

Underwater
Location 1

Underwater
Location 2

Hamelin Pool Pier

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 31
 Rev. 5/3/2018
Analysis:

Answer the following questions.

1. What did you notice that was similar about the stromatolites at each location? What was different?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
2. What might be a reason for the difference in coloration between the stromatolites at different locations?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
3. How are stromatolite fossils evidence of Earth’s early life?
They were the first known organisms to photosynthesis and produce free oxygen.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 32
 Rev. 5/3/2018
Learning Goals for this Credit

Communicate scientific information clearly, thoroughly and accurately.

Collect, analyze and evaluate the quality of evidence in relation to a question.

Lesson Title Learning Goals For Each Lesson

3.1 Determining Relative  State the principle of uniformitarianism.
Age  Explain how the law of superposition can be used to determine the relative ages of rocks.
 Compare three types of unconformities.
 Apply the law of crosscutting relationships to determine the relative ages of rocks.
3.2 Determining Absolute  Summarize the limitations of using the rates of erosion and deposition to determine the absolute age
Age of rock formations.
 Describe the formation of varves.
 Explain how the process of radioactive decay can be used to determine the absolute ages of rocks.
3.3 Dating Rocks with  Describe four ways in which entire organisms can be preserved as fossils.
Fossils  List examples of fossilized traces of organisms.
 Describe how index fossils can be used to determine the age of rocks.

Summer Intersession Science Rubric

Credit Grading 4 3 2 1
 My responses show  My responses show  My responses show  My answers to the
clear reasoning and basic reasoning and basic reasoning but questions are either
use of evidence. use of evidence. limited evidence to unscientific or
support it. overly simplistic,
Responses to  My responses show  My responses show and have limited
Homework Packet clear reasoning and basic reasoning and  My responses show evidence.
50 pts. use evidence. use of evidence. basic reasoning but
limited evidence to  My answers to the
support it. questions are either
 I made connections unscientific or
to other ideas overly simplistic,
within and across and have limited
science credits. evidence. ___x 12.5 = ___/50
 I developed a  I developed a  I developed a  I struggled to
scientific claim scientific claim that scientific claim but develop a scientific
based on isolates a variable struggled to see claim on my own
research/prior to test out how one how the variables which made me
knowledge that thing affects affect one another. very dependent on
isolates a variable another. the teacher.
to test out how one  The way I recorded
thing affects  I accurately and presented my  The way I recorded
another. recorded and data was and presented my
presented my data. scientifically data didn’t make
Lab-Based
 I accurately questionable due to sense.
Performance Task
50 pts.
recorded and  My conclusion attention to details
analyzed my data answers my (ex. inaccurate  My conclusion is
to determine scientific claim labels, units of not connected to
patterns. using data from the measure). my scientific claim. ___x 12.5 = ___/50
experiment.
 My conclusion  My conclusion
answers my partially answers
scientific claim and the scientific claim
inspires future but either there is
questions/ limited or irrelevant
limitations using data to support it.
data from the
experiment.
Total: ___/100

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 33
 Rev. 5/3/2018

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 34
 Rev. 5/3/2018

FOSSIL INDEX CARDS

Sample 1 Sample 2 Sample 3

Sample 4 Sample 5 Sample 6

Sample 7 Sample 8 Sample 9

Summer Intersession Earth Science A Credit 3 L4L Earth Science A (2018) Page 35