Earth Science

Quarter 2 – Module 9:
How Layers of Rocks
(Stratified Rocks) are Formed
Earth Science
Alternative Delivery Mode
Quarter 2 – Module 9: How Layers of Rocks (Stratified Rocks) Are Formed
First Edition, 2020

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 EARTH SCIENCE
Quarter 2 – Week 5
How Layers of Rocks
(Stratified Rocks) Are Formed
Introductory Message
For the facilitator:

Welcome to the EARTH SCIENCE Grade 11 Alternative Delivery Mode (ADM)

Module on How Layers of Rocks (Stratified Rocks) Are Formed) !

This module was collaboratively designed, developed and reviewed by educators

both from public and private institutions to assist you, the teacher or facilitator in
helping the learners meet the standards set by the K to 12 Curriculum while
overcoming their personal, social, and economic constraints in schooling.

This learning resource hopes to engage the learners into guided and independent
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their needs and circumstances.

In addition to the material in the main text, you will also see this box in the body of
the module:

Notes to the Teacher

This contains helpful tips or strategies that will help you

in guiding the learners

As a facilitator you are expected to orient the learners on how to use this module.
You also need to keep track of the learners' progress while allowing them to
manage their own learning. Furthermore, you are expected to encourage and assist
the learners as they do the tasks included in the module.

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For the learner:

Welcome to the Earth Science Alternative Delivery Mode (ADM) Module on

How Layers of Rocks (Stratified Rocks) are Formed)

The hand is one of the most symbolized part of the human body. It is often used to
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correct (100%), you may decide to skip this
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answers to the exercises using the Answer
Key at the end of the module.

This includes questions or blank

What I Have Learned sentence/paragraph to be filled into process
what you learned from the lesson.

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 This is a task which aims to evaluate your
Assessment level of mastery in achieving the learning
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Additional Activities to you to enrich your knowledge or skill of
the lesson learned. This also tends retention
of learned concepts.

This contains answers to all activities in the

Answer Key module.

At the end of this module you will also find:

References This is a list of all sources used in

developing this module.

The following are some reminders in using this module:

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the module. Use a separate sheet of paper in answering the exercises.
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We hope that through this material, you will experience meaningful learning and
gain deep understanding of the relevant competencies. You can do it!

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 What I Need to Know

This module was designed and written to introduce to you a better

understanding of stratification and how layers of rocks (stratified rocks) are formed.
It includes the study of how these rocks relate to time. The learners will study
Earth's history by studying the record of past events that is preserved in the rocks.

After going through this module, you are expected to:

1. Identify different types of rocks and how they form.

2. Explain the processes in the formation of sedimentary rocks.
3. Describe how layers of rocks (stratified rocks) are formed.

What I Know

Read and analyze the following questions. Choose the letter of the best answer.
Write the chosen letter on a separate sheet of paper.

1. What are the three types of rocks?

a. Weathering, erosion, deposition
b. Sedimentary, deposition, igneous
c. Igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic
d. Metamorphic, sedimentary, deposition
2. In which type of rock do most fossils appear?
a. deposition
b. Igneous rock
c. Sedimentary rock
d. Metamorphic rock
3. Which type of rock is formed when bits of rocks are layered and cemented
together?
a. Deposition
b. Igneous rock
c. Sedimentary rock
d. Metamorphic rock

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 4. The following are examples of sedimentary particles EXCEPT ONE.
a. Shale
b. Gravel
c. Sandstone
d. limestone

5. A series of processes on Earth's surface and in the crust and mantle that
slowly changes rocks from one kind to another is called_______.
a. Erosion
b. The Rock cycle
c. The water cycle
d. Crystallization
6. What step in the rock cycle would be required to change an igneous rock into
a sedimentary rock?
a. Heat and pressure
b. Melting and cooling
c. Melting and pressure
d. Weathering, erosion, deposition, compaction and cementation
7. During which process does layer upon layer of sediment build up, exerting
pressure on the layers below?
a. erosion
b. deposition
c. weathering
d. compaction
8. What is the moving of sediments from their original position called?
a. erosion
b. deposition
c. weathering
d. lithification
9. What is the settling out of the sediment called?
a. weathering
b. compaction
c. lithification
d. deposition
10. Which of the following statement is true or false?
I. The layers or rocks are piled one on top of the other.
II. Sedimentary rocks are formed particles by particles and bed by bed.
III. In sequence of layered rock, a given bed must be younger than any bed
on top of it.
a. statements I and II are true
b. statements I and III are true
c. only statement I is true
d. only statement II is false

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11. What is the process where sediment is glued together when minerals
dissolve?
a. cementation
b. compaction
c. deposition
d. weathering
12. The law of superposition states that _________.
a. objects are more than 1 million years old
b. older layers are generally deeper than more recent layers
c. more recent layers are generally deeper than older layers. .
d. older layers are generally thicker than more recent layers.
13. Process that leads to the formation or deposition of rock layers is _______.
a. compaction
b. sedimentation
c. metamorphism
d. stratification
14. The following leads to the formation of rocks layer EXCEPT ONE.
a. Successive lava flow
b. Erosion and weathering
c. Change in particle size
d. Rock sediments remain on its position
15. Law of geochronology which states that all rock layers are continues until
they encounter other solid bodies that block their deposition.
a. Law o Deposition
b. Law of Superposition
c. Law of Lateral Continuity
d. Law or Original Horizontality

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Lesson How Layers of Rocks
1 (Stratified Rocks) are
Formed

What’s In

Look around your garden. You can see many kinds of rocks either a single, big rock
such as boulder or small pieces like gravel and sand. Geologists says that rocks are
formed in different ways and the difference between them has to do with how they
are formed.

Analyze Figure 1 and answer the questions that follows. This summarizes the
transformational processes that change rocks from one kind to another. This will
show the entire journey of rocks formed as they changed. These may take millions
of years.

Figure1. The Rock Cycle

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Questions:

1. What are the three types of rocks?

_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
2. Can these rocks become one of the other through geologic processes?
How?
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
3. Describe the relationship between igneous rocks and sedimentary
rocks and the geological processes involved?
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________

Notes to the Teacher

Have the students be guided on their basic needs in What’s in.
Practically, basic necessities like materials needed in school, at
home or personal protective equipment during such situations.

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 What’s New

The Majesty of Petra is considered as one of the New Seven Wonders of the
World located in Jordan.Petra's two most significant attractions are the Treasury
and the Monastery, massive temples carved into the side of sandstone cliffs. Study
Figure 2., The Majestyof Petra carefully then answer the questions bellow.

Figure 2: The Majesty of Petra, Jordan

QUESTIONS:

1. What type of rock do you think is The Majesty of Petra made of?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

2. Can you describe the pattern of rock formation?

___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

3. What do you think are the reasons why these rocks have layers?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

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 What is It

ROCKS AND LAYERS

Most of the rocks exposed at the surface of Earth are sedimentary--formed
from particles of older rocks that have been broken apart by water or wind. The
gravel, sand, and mud settle to the bottom in rivers, lakes, and oceans. These
sedimentary particles may bury living and dead animals and plants on the lake or
sea bottom.

Sedimentary rocks are those rocks formed from sediment- material

consisting of sand, gravel, mud, ions in solution derived from preexisting rocks or
organic debris derived from living organisms.

With the passage of time and the accumulation of more particles, and often
with chemical changes, the sediments at the bottom of the pile become rock. Gravel
becomes a rock called conglomerate, sand becomes sandstone, mud becomes
mudstone or shale, and the animal skeletons and plant pieces can become fossils.

Figure 3. Basic steps in the formation of sedimentary rocks

1 2

3 4

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 Stratification is the process leading to the formation or deposition of layers,
especially of the sedimentary rocks. The layers range from several millimetres to
many metres in thickness and vary greatly in shape. Strata may range from thin
sheets that cover many square kilometres to thick lenslike bodies that extend only
a few metres lateral.
Refering on Figure 3, you may recognize this as sedimentary rock. It. is rock
that was formed by layers of sediment being laid down over the course of time.
These sediment layers create the banding pattern visible in stratified rock. The
sediments themselves also teach us about the environment in which the rock was
formed.

Figure 4: Stratification of Sedimentary Rocks

How layers of rocks are formed?

The rock layers is formed by erosion and weathering of mountains and the
particles is transported and deposited in the sedimentary basin, then the
sediment particles is cemented over hundreds of years to form layers. These
sediments are deposited horizontally by gravity.
Layered rocks may also result from successive lava flow or from the
formation of extrusive igneous rocks. We study Earth's history by studying the
record of past events that is preserved in the rocks. Most of the rocks which are
exposed at the surface of the earth are called sedimentary rocks.
Slight changes in particle size or composition result in the formation of
layers, also called beds, in the rock. Layering, or bedding, is the most obvious
feature of sedimentary rocks.
Sedimentary rocks are formed particle by particle and bed by bed, and the
layers are piled one on top of the other. Thus, in any sequence of layered rocks,
a given bed must be older than any bed on top of it.

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 Law of Superposition is a basic law of geochronology, stating that in any
undisturbed sequence of rocks deposited in layers, the youngest layer is on top
and the oldest on bottom, each layer being younger than the one beneath it and
older than the one above it. because at any one location it indicates the relative
ages of rock layers and the fossils in them.

Law of Original Horizontality was first proposed by Danish geological

pioneer Nicholas Steno in the 17th century. The law states that layers of
sediment were originally deposited horizontally under the action of gravity. It
suggests that all rock layers are originally laid down (deposited) horizontally and
can later be deformed. This allows us to infer that something must have
happened to the rocks to make them tilted. This includes mountain building
events, earthquakes, and faulting.

The law of lateral continuity states that the layers of rock are continuous
until they encounter other solid bodies that block their deposition or until they
are acted upon by agents that appeared after deposition took place such as
erosion and fault movements

What’s More

Complete the paragraph by filling in the blank spaces with the appropriate words
or phrases inside the box.

The rock layers is formed by ___(1)______ of mountains and the particles is

transported and ____(2)____ in the sedimentary basin , then the sediment particles
is cemented over hundreds of years to form layers . These sediments are deposited
horizontally by ____(3)___..Layered rocks may also result from successive lava flow
or from the formation of____(4)____.. Most of the rocks which are exposed at the
surface of the earth are called sedimentary rocks.

Sedimentary rocks are formed ____(5)______ and ____(6)______, and the

___(7)_____ is piled one on top of the other. Thus, in any sequence of layered rocks,
a given bed must be older than any bed on top of it. This ___(8)_____ is fundamental
to the interpretation of Earth history, because at any one location, it indicates the
relative ages of ____(9)_____and the _____(10)____ in them.

bed by bed layers

gravity extrusive igneous rocks
fossils particle by particle
Law of Superposition rock layers
erosion and weathering deposited

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 What I Have Learned

Answer the following questions.

1. How do you categorize rocks?

___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

2. Why do some sedimentary rocks have layers and how these layers are
formed?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

3. How do we learn about Earth’s history through the formation of rock layers?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

What I Can Do

What stories can sedimentary rocks tell us?

The labelled drawing of sediment strata is based on the story about rock
sediments to be written by you. Arrange the following sentences in a chronological
order in order to make a short story about rock sediment. Use phrases and words
that you might find useful in writing of your story such as: a very long time; a short
time; longer than; shorter than; soon after; after some time; rivers receded; water
dried up; salty water and living organisms.

Rock (no fossils)

Worn surface

Rock (no fossils)

Salt layer
Rock (no fossils)

Rock (contains
Figure 5. Rock at the Earth’s Surface

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ROCK SEDIMENTS

1. The rivers stopped flowing again and the rock became hard.
2. Much later, rivers covered the Earth’s surface again and they wore away
the rocks.
3. The rivers stopped flowing and the rock became hard.
4. Rivers covered the Earth’s surface.
5. Sometimes lakes formed and then dried up to form salt layers.
6. Rivers covered the Earth’s surface.
7. The salty water receded.
8. The Earth’s surface was covered by salty water in which there were living
organisms.

Assessment

Read and analyze the following questions. Choose the letter of the best answer.
Write the chosen letter on a separate sheet of paper.

1. Which is not true about the rock cycle?

a. Rocks are recycled.
b. It shows that rock is lost forever.
c. It shows that rock’s journey as it change
d. It is a summary of the processes that change rock from one kind to
another
2. What is sedimentary?
a. Formed by heat and cooling.
b. Formed by heat and pressure.
c. Layered rock formed by compaction.
d. All of the above
3. Limestone is formed from layers of sand, shells and animals remains that
have been compacted together. Limestone is a _______.
a. Igneous rock
b. Indigenous rocks
c. Metamorphic rock
d. Sedimentary rock
4. What process is used to form sedimentary rocks?
a. Lava cools and hardens to form a rock.
b. Magma trapped under the Earth’s surface cools and solidifies.
c. Bits of sand and gravel from layers that turn into rock from pressure.
d. Extreme heat and pressure from inside the Earth turn rocks into new
rocks.

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5. Which type of rock usually contains fossils?
a. Igneous rocks.
b. All types of rock
c. Metamorphic rocks
d. Sedimentary rocks.
6. Where do sediments come from?
a. rock weathering produces sediment
b. there have always been sediments on Earth
c. sediments accumulated as dust fell to Earth from outer space
d. sediment is transported and deposited all over the Earth
7. What is the Law of Superposition?
a. Igneous rock is older than nearby sedimentary rock, which is older than
nearby metamorphic rock.
b. A sedimentary rock layer in its original position is older than the layer
above it and younger than the layers below it
c. Metamorphic rock is older than nearby sedimentary rock because
sedimentary rock is deposited before metamorphic rock
d. The exact age of a sedimentary rock layer can be found using the layers
above and below it
8. In a cliff, where are the oldest layers of rocks made of sedimentary rocks are
usually found?
a. At the top
b. In the middle
c. At the bottom
d. Nowhere to be found
9. Compaction and cementation are two common processes associated with:
a. erosion
b. lithification
c. transportation
d. sedimentation

10. Sedimentary rocks provide clues about:

a. polar climates.
b. tropical climates.
c. temperate climates
d. Earth surface conditions at the time the sediment was deposited

11. Which statement is FALSE on how layers of rocks are formed?

a. Volcanic activity
b. Sediments are deposited vertically by gravity
c. Occurrence of erosion and weathering on flat fields
d. Sediments are cemented over hundreds of years and form layers

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12. Superposition means that in an undisturbed sequence of sedimentary
rocks, which of the following is true?

a. The oldest rocks are on top.

b. The youngest rocks are on top.
c. The youngest rocks are in the middle.
d. There is no way to know which layers are older.

13. Which of the following causes the formation of rock layers?

a. Particle size does not changed

b. Inactive volcanoes
c. Erosion and weathering
d. Rock remains on its position

14. An undeformed sedimentary layer is ______than the layer above and

_____than the layerbelow.

a. older, older
b. older, younger
c. younger, older
d. younger, younger

15. The Principle of Original Horizontality states that:

a. in rare cases, horizontality of rock layers occurs.

b. in most cases sedimentary beds are deposited as horizontal units.
c. not all layers of the rock are generally deposited horizontally to begin
with and then tectonic forces tilt or bend
d. answers b and c

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Additional Activities

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 Answer Key

Assessment What's More What I Know

1. B 1. erosion and 1. C
2. C weathering 2. C
3. D 2. deposited 3. C
4. C 3. gravity 4. B
5. D 4. extrusive igneous 5. B
6. A rock 6. D
7. B 5. particle by particle 7. D
8. C 6. bed by bed 8. A
9. B 7. layers 9. D
10. D 8. Law of 10. A
11. C Superposition 11. A
12. B 9. rock layers 12. B
13. C 10. fossils 13. D
14. B 14. D
15. B 15. C

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References

Books

Bayo-Ang, Roly B., Coronacion, Maria Lourdes G., Jorda, AnnaMae T., Restubig,
Anna Jamille. 2016. Earth and Life Science for Senior High School. Educationl
Resources Corporation.
Olivar, Jose, Rodolfo, Raymond and Cabria, Hillel. 2016. Exploring Life Through
Science Series. Phoenix Publishing House, Inc.

Web Resources
Retrieved on May 30, 2020: https://www.britannica.com/science/stratification-
geology
Retrieved on May 30, 2020: http://sciencenetlinks.com/lessons/how-sedimentary-
rocks-are-formed/
Retrieved on May 30, 2020:https://www.barrons.com/articles/great-escapes-the-
majesty-of-petra-jordan-01559338200
Retrieved on May 30, 2020: https://study.com/academy/lesson/stratification-
definition-theory-examples.html
Retrieved on May 31,2020: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_8eI0H1tR0&t=8s
Retrieved on May 31,2020: https://www.rsc.org/education/teachers/resources
Retrieved on May31, 2020: https://www.usgs.gov/natural-hazards/earthquake-
hazards/science/tracking-stress-buildup-and-crustal-deformation?qt-
science_center_objects=0#qt-science_center_objects
Retrieved on May 31, 2020: https://www.geolsoc.org.uk/ks3/gsl/education
Retrieved on May 31, 2020: https://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/fossils/rocks-layers.html

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