How fossils form

CONCEPTUAL

Science›Space Systems & Earth's History|Ages 9—10|ID: mt_GheLsWvrJ4

Identify evidence from patterns in rock formations and fossils in rock layers to support an explanation for changes in a landscape over time

Mastery Evidence

Explain that rock layers (strata) form over time, with the oldest at the bottom
Describe how fossils in different layers provide evidence of organisms that lived at different times
Use patterns in rock formations to explain how a landscape has changed over millions of years

Assessment Prompt

“If [child] sees layers of rock in a cliff face, can they explain that the bottom layers are oldest and any fossils tell us what lived there long ago?”

Curriculum Standards1 alignment

4-ESS1-1Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) K-5codes only

Standard code — full text not included in this dataset.

Prerequisites3

Types of rocks
hardAges 9—11
How fossils form
hardAges 7—8
Rapid earth changes
hardAges 7—8

Show full prerequisite tree

Types of rocks hard
Identifying evidence in rock formations and fossil layers requires sediment, strata, and fossil vocabulary
How fossils form hard
Must understand fossil formation before interpreting fossil patterns in rock layers
- Properties of materials hard
  Must examine rocks before understanding how fossils form within rock
  - Grouping Materials soft
    Grouping materials by properties supports grouping rocks by properties
    - Describing Material Properties hard
      Must describe properties before using them to group materials
      - States of Matter Vocabulary soft
        Describing physical properties of materials uses solid/liquid/gas vocabulary introduced in the states of matter LANGUAGE node
      - Naming Everyday Materials hard
        Must name materials before describing their properties
        
        Objects vs Materials hard
        Must distinguish objects from materials before naming specific materials
- Living, Dead & Never Alive soft
  Understanding living vs dead supports understanding what gets fossilised
  - Common Plants & Trees soft
    Knowing plant names helps distinguish living from non-living
  - Living Things Vocabulary hard
    Comparing living, dead, and never-been-alive things requires the life processes vocabulary to give reasons
  - Naming Common Animals soft
    Knowing animal groups helps distinguish living from non-living
Rapid earth changes hard
Must understand fast vs slow Earth changes before analysing rock layer evidence
- Preventing Erosion hard
  Must understand erosion before comparing fast vs slow Earth events
  - Shapes of land and water hard
    Must know about landforms before designing solutions to prevent wind/water erosion
    - Seasonal changes soft
      Seasonal observation supports understanding land and water features
      - Days, Weeks, Months & Years soft
        Observing and describing seasonal changes requires basic date and time vocabulary (months, seasons, year)
        
        Ordering Events in Time hard
        Understanding days/months/years builds on sequencing events chronologically
- Properties of materials soft
  Rock knowledge supports understanding geological events
  - Grouping Materials soft
    Grouping materials by properties supports grouping rocks by properties
    - Describing Material Properties hard
      Must describe properties before using them to group materials
      - States of Matter Vocabulary soft
        Describing physical properties of materials uses solid/liquid/gas vocabulary introduced in the states of matter LANGUAGE node
      - Naming Everyday Materials hard
        Must name materials before describing their properties
        
        Objects vs Materials hard
        Must distinguish objects from materials before naming specific materials

Unlocks0

No topics build on this one.