Written in Stone: How Do Rock Layers Tell Us Which Fossil Is Oldest?
Sim Lesson
Students use the Written in Stone simulation to sweep a fossil finder across a Badlands cliff, uncover four fossils at different depths, and order the animals from oldest to youngest using the idea that deeper rock is older. Lesson Purpose Students are learning to read rock layers as a record of time. Finding fossils at different depths and ordering them builds the core idea that lower, deeper rock layers formed first, so they are older.
Layers of Time When you dig down into the ground, the deeper you go, the older the rock is, because new layers pile on top of old ones over a very long time. Fossils are buried in these layers. How can the depth of a fossil tell you how old it is? In this lesson, you will use the Written in Stone simulation to uncover fossils in a cliff and order the fossils from oldest to youngest.
Topics and standards: Science, Biology, Extinction, Earth Science, Simulation, Rocks & Minerals, Lithosphere, Grades 3-5, Earth Systems, Evolution & Species Dynamics, Earth's History, 4-ESS1-1, 4-ESS1-2, SC.4.E.6.1, TEKS Science 4.12.C, 3.3.4.A