ScienceDinosaurs & PaleontologyAges 9–11
Rock Layers & Relative Dating
Understand that rock layers (strata) form in sequence with the oldest at the bottom and the youngest at the top, and that fossils found in deeper layers are older — this is the principle of relative dating
Learning resources
Reviewed external links that reinforce this concept. They do not replace Gakuva’s teaching approach.
No reviewed resources for this concept yet.
The teaching approach above still stands. Curated practice links will appear here as the shelf fills.
Explore the learning path
4 before · 1 after
Loading map…
This concept
Rock Layers & Relative DatingConceptual concept
Next
Check understanding
- Explain that sedimentary rock forms in layers with the oldest at the bottom
- Use a diagram of rock strata to determine which fossil is older based on its position
- Define relative dating as working out the age of something by comparing its position in rock layers
“If your child saw a cliff with layers of rock, could they explain that the bottom layers are the oldest and that fossils found deeper down lived longer ago?”
Curriculum record
- Type
- Conceptual
- Subject
- Science
- Domain
- Dinosaurs & Paleontology
- Age range
- Ages 9–11