Toilet paper analogy for geologic time activity collection. After reading a passage about geological time and fossil evidence, earth historians write answers to six questions about what they learned. Geological timeline activity significant developments and extinctions of plant and. To complete this exercise, you will need a roll of toilet paper preferably a roll with sheets, but any other will work, about onehalf hour before class to mark up your geologic time scale and about 510 minutes of class time. Geologic time scale events activity flashcards quizlet. Kentucky geological survey 228 mmrb, university of kentucky lexington, kentucky 405060107 phone.
Be careful to mark down when that event began, not when it ended. Roping geologic time randall richardson, the university of arizona after having talked about the geologic time scale, i ask for two volunteers from the class to hold a rope that is 50 feet long. A time span on the geologic time scale beginning about 65. Correlation establishing the equivalence of rocks of similar age in different areas. Understanding geologic time geologic time activity worksheet. Explain 1015 min students will be given a short inclass assignment to complete asking them questions about their timescales and the activity. To place all the scattered pages of earth history in their proper chrono. The chinle formation in the painted desert began forming over 200 million years ago.
Geologic time scale not to scale eon era period epoch age events phanerozoic cenozoic quarternary holocene 10 ka pleistocene 1. Eon era period epoch date at boundary ma million years ago holocene neogene previously quaternary 0. Gsa geologic time scale geological society of america. This vast span of time, called geologic time by earth scientists, is difficult to comprehend in the familiar time units of months and years, or even centuries. Many scientists also find it instructive to note the time period when certain groups of organisms were most abundant or were dominant.
The sweep of the minute hand around the dial twelve times from. Using a short video and a handson group activity, this lesson plan aims to break down the geologic time scale. Listen to episode 12 on podbean, itunes, youtube, or your favorite podcast place. Have the students walk with you to when rocks first appear on. Generally speaking, each year has 365 days, so each day represents 12. It includes independent tasks, opportunities for questioning and summary activities to examine progress. Geologic time scale south carolina aquarium online. If your students are not familiar with the geologic time scale, relative dating, or absolute dating, have them perform this short activity. Then, cut out the printed events and arrange these events along your time scale according to their date. The geologic time scale lesson includes a powerpoint with activities scattered throughout to keep the students engaged.
Pdf while studying the physical geography of the earth, it is necessary to. About the eras and periods that make up the geological timescalesome of the key geological and biological events over the last 4. In this pack you will find information and activities to help your class grasp the concept of geological time, just how old our planet is. Rather than include all of that information here, you can either use a textbook or online resource as a guide, or you can allow the illustrator ahem to do most of the work for you. The authors have been at the forefront of chronostratigraphic research and initiatives to create an international geologic time scale for many years, and the charts in this book present the most upto. Remember, these events only show chronological order, not exact dates. Student is ontask 90% of time, working positively towards completion of assignments. Index fossils activity geologic time scale with index fossils. The cretaceous period is a notable period in geologic history. I say that one end is the beginning of the earth 4. Geologic time activity compare geologic time to the length of a football field, which is 100 yards long.
This science printable challenges students to identify the era cenozoic, mesozoic, paleozoic, or precambrian in which each organism listed in the table first appeared on earth. Geological timeline challenge paleontological society. The geologic time scale is the calendar for events in earth history. The geologic time scale is roughly divided into four major erasprecambrian, paleozoic, mesozoic, and cenozoic. Triassic period the first geologic timespan within the mesozoic era, dating from 248206. It subdivides all time into named units of abstract time calledin descending order of durationeons, eras, periods, epochs, and ages. Geologic time scale activity lets make a scaled timeline of earth history. Joe gillman the age of the earth on the geological clock, the age of the earth is represented by the 12 hours on the face of the clock. They are also directed to design a board game that would teach players about the geological time scale. Example time scale relative time scale absolute time scale i was born. In map view, when the bottom of one formation is in contact with two or more underlying formations, the contact is an angular unconformity.
Geologic time scale 2012 publication arthur holmes, the father of the geologic time scale once wrote holmes 1965, p. Students will use their knowledge of earth science to answer questions about the geologic time scale. Scaling this large amount of time to our calendar year, each of the 12 months of the geologic calendar year represents 383 million years 4. A time span on the geologic time scale between the precambrian and mesozoic eras. Paper timeline today, you will create a scale timeline of earths history on a long sheet of adding machine paper scale.
The life and landscape around you are the products of change through geologic time. Explanations of stability and change in natural or designed systems can be constructed by examining the changes over time and forces at different scales, including the atomic scale. Student participates minimally, is ontask 75% of class time. The geological time scale worksheet is suitable for 6th 9th grade. Thousands and millions of years are used on a geological time scale.
This is a crosscurricular stem activity to help students visualize the immense amount of time needed for certain evolutionary events to take place. Period a basic unit of the geologic time scale that is a subdivision of an era. This activity allows students to practice matching significant events with the eon, era and period they occurred in. The dot scale of geologic time is adapted from an idea by charly zuppann of the indiana geological survey, bloomington, indiana the kentucky geological survey is a research and publicservice center of the university of kentucky. The study of the geological time scale is necessary to every student of earth and other sciences. Major mountainbuilding activity happened during this period. Over these billions of years since earths formation, layers upon layers of rock, called rock strata, have been piling up.
Before you assign this activity, you may want to try it, depending on the age of the. A geologic time scale article pdf available in newsletters on stratigraphy 452. Students also have a chance to practice the math concept. Index fossils activity geologic time scale with index. Objectivesby the end of this activity, students will be able to. To understand evolution, humans must think in units of time much larger than those we use to define our lives. Geological timeline activity manhattan beach unified. Near middle of page teacher resources page with activities. Divisions of geologic time major chronostratigraphic and. This episode, we discuss the history of our planet, and how scientists have converted the complex rock record into the iconic geologic time scale. A big diference in age between two adjacent formations, such as a cretaceous sandstone overlying a cambrian limestone with ages determined from fossils contained in the rocks, or from radiometric dates indicates the presence of a time gap or. A football field is not necessary but makes this activity a lot more engaging for students.
Time, space, and energy phenomena can be observed at various scales using models to study systems that are too large or too small. Students also have a chance to practice the math concept of proportions. Understand the scale of earth history in relation to human timescales. In this activity, students in groups of three will construct a vertical representation of a geologic time scale and research facts, events, and organisms that differentiate between time scale eras, periods, and epochs. The authors have been at the forefront of chronostratigraphic research and initiatives to create an international geologic time scale for many years, and. At gsa youll find the resources, confidence, and connections you need to reach fulfilling new heights in your geoscience career. How then do scientists reckon geologic time, and why do they.
Geologic time activity worksheet ottawa hills high school. The shapes of bird eggs a major analysis of bird eggs reveals that egg shape. Geologic time scale missouri geological survey fact sheet number 12 112016 missouri geological survey director. I personally have my kids assemble their timelines and then use their completed timelines on the quiz as an open book okay, open timeline quiz. Using studentcreated metaphors to comprehend geologic time. The geologic time scale and sequence of geologic events sc. The students will also be interacting with their journals using inb templates for the geologic time scale. Students can be easily confused by the multiple divisions of the geologic time scale. Geologic time the earth is very old 412 billion years or more according to recent estimates. To introduce students to the vastness of geologic time and the concept of scale. Learners construct a geologic timeline the size of a football field.
Student is idle in class, does not distract others but does not participate. Significant developments and extinctions of plant and animal life can be shown on a geologic time scale. Formal geologic time begins with the archean eon 4. The enumeration of those geologic time units is based on stratigraphy, which is the correlation and classification of rock strata. Relate changes of earths organisms to divisions on the geologic time scale. Each inb activity is designed to help students compartmentalize information for a greater understanding of the concept. Modern geologic time scales also include the hadean eon 4. The geologic time scale lays out the entire history of the earth, divided into eons, eras, periods, epochs, and ages.
Million years before present era, system, or event relative to a calendar year date time precambrian 4600 earth formed from planetary nebula 11 0. Geologic time scale analogy friends of the james river park. Use the geologic time scale to the right to find the missing dates and fill in the blanks under the. Geologic time is the chronology of the earths formation, changes, development, and existence. Students recreate and comprehend the geologic time scale. After all, evolutionary change occurs too slowly to be measured in days, months, or years. Since publication of a chart showing divisions of geologic time in the seventh edition of the usgs guide suggestions to authors hansen, 1991, no other time scale has been officially endorsed by the usgs. This is the time when an organism first appears in the fossil record and when it becomes extinct.
In part b of the activity you will construct a time line that is a scale model of the time scale that will show. After making a relative time scale, assign dates to the events that you chose, so that it is an absolute time scale. Now lay the rope out in your classroom for the next part of the activity. Informative project for ess regarding the geoligical time scale, and the beginning of earth itself.