LEARNING—FOCUS STRATEGIES
Lesson Planning Form
Teacher(s)
Brunegraff, E. Cooper, O’Connor
Grade Level
6
Subject
Earth Science – Sept. 12th - 19th
CCGPS
S6E5.b Students will investigate the contribution of minerals to rock composition.
S6E5.d Students will describe processes that change rocks.
S6E5.g Students will describe how fossils show evidence of the changing surface and climate of the Earth.
Concept, Topic, Skill
Chapter 9, Earth and Time: Relative Dating, Geologic Time
Essential Question(s)
What can sedimentary rock tell us about its age?
What is relative dating and how it is used?
How do scientists use superposition, and other relative dating principles, to determine the
relative age of a rock?
How would you describe the evidence fossils provide of the changing surface and climate of
the Earth?
Show how you interpret illustrations to determine relative order of events.
Understand how geological time is divided into eras and periods.
Explain the difference between relative and absolute dating.
How can cross-sections of tree rings determine age and climate of a region?
Activator(s):
(ex: kwl, word maps, wordsplash, etc)
Questioning, KUD
What’s your state fossil? www.statefossils.com
Teacher demo.: A Closer Look at Steno’s Ideas – As described in TE, p. 177
Key Vocabulary to Preview
vocabulary word wall, QUIA
Teaching Strategies
Chapter 9 pre-test
Graphic Organizer: Relative Dating
Skill and Practice: Relative Dating, Nicolas Steno Biography, Edmund Schulman Biography
Read section 1 Relative Dating: pages 207-212
Guided reading Section 1
Read section 2 Geologic Time: pages 214 -218
Guided reading Section 2
LAB: Time and Tree Rings
Skill and Practice: Andrew Douglass Biography
Video: Bill Nye Fossils – Reflection piece
Include Graphic Organizer(s)
(Which one and how will it be
used?)
Summarizer(s)
How can you use superposition, or see it used in daily life?
Explain why is it important to understand Relative Dating?
Extended Thinking
Connection: It’s all in the rings
Extension: “My Life in Rings”
Chapter Activity: Relative vs. Absolute Dating
Chapter Project: What’s your time scale?
Highlight an example or examples of differentiation.
Italicized entries address the Common Core literacy standards.