PhET
Radioactive Dating Game
Uranium 235 has a half-life of over 700 million years and is the fuel used in the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Japan. Pupils see the half-lives and decay rates of Carbon-14 and Uranium-238. They also take measurements of these two...
CK-12 Foundation
Radiocarbon Dating
How do we know how long ago a dinosaur lived or an ancient fire pit was used? Scholars learn about the application of carbon dating and half lives to discover things about the past. They adjust the amount of radioactive carbon in the...
Virginia Department of Education
Determining Absolute Age
How can radioactive decay help date old objects? Learners explore half-life and radioactive decay by conducting an experiment using pennies to represent atoms. Young scientists graph data from the experiment to identify radioactive decay...
Curated OER
Radioactive Dating
In this radioactive dating learning exercise, students use their reference guide in their text book to find the half-lives of 4 isotopes. They use a decay chart to help determine the half-lives and age of given bones and samples of...
Curated OER
M&M Science and Math
A series of math and science activities feature M&M's® as manipulatives to help kids work through equations. The resource includes exercises on finding averages, percent of compositions, moles in chemical reactions, genotypes and...
Illustrative Mathematics
Accuracy of Carbon 14 Dating II
The scientific issue of carbon-14 dating and exponential decay gets a statistics-based treatment in this problem. The class starts with a basic investigation of carbon content, but then branches out to questions of accuracy and ranges of...
Curated OER
I'm Late, I'm Late, for a Radioactive Date!
Through the use of an interactive Web site, students explore C-14 and C-14 dating. Then students analyze an article written about the C-14 dating of the Shroud of Turin and draw conclusions.
Curated OER
Math in Science-Radioactive Decay and Half-Life
In this radioactive decay and half-life worksheet, learners use given half-lifes to calculate the amount of time it will take for certain amounts of elements to decay. They also find the age of samples and determine how many grams of...
Columbus City Schools
The Mystery of Earth’s History
Every living creature can leave a fossil record, yet most fossils belong to extinct organisms rather than ones currently living. Scholars learn about dating rock layers, fossils, and the environment of the past. Pupils understand that...
Pace University
Grades 9-12 Earth Science
How has Earth changed over time? Pupils explore the topic in a differentiated instruction unit on the geological time scale. After a pre-assessment to gauge knowledge, class members divide into groups based on their ability levels and...
Curated OER
Earth System Science
Students investigate the age of the earth by using accepted scientific methods. They conduct research about the use of radioactive dating and there is a simulation activity of the process. Finally, students measure the radioactive decay...
Curated OER
Absolute Dating/Radioactive Dating
Students explore radioactive decay. In this radioactive atoms lesson students complete a lab to help them understand the relationship between radioactive atoms vs stable atoms.
Curated OER
Determining the Age of Fossils
Students examine the concept of radioactive dating. In this radioactive dating lesson, students investigate how to determine the ages of fossils and rocks as they learn about half-life radioactive decay.
Curated OER
Teaching Radioactive Decay: Radioactive Half-life And Dating Techniques
Students generate a radioactive decay table for an imaginary element using a box filled with pinto beans and M&M's. They use their data to plot a decay graph, develop the concept of half-life, and use the graph to "age" several samples.
Curated OER
Frosty the Snowman Meets His Demise: An Analogy to Carbon Dating
Students read and discuss an article about carbon dating, then participate in a hands-on lab to discover how carbon dating works. Students also write a letter to a friend explaining the process, and how archeologists use the process to...
Curated OER
The Nucleus-Radioactivity
In this nucleus and radioactivity worksheet, learners collect class data and the students represent radioactive atoms decaying. They plot their data and answer two questions about the results. They solve seven problems given the half...
Curated OER
Connection to Fine Arts: Carbon-Dating Masterpieces
In this carbon dating worksheet, learners read about how carbon-14 is used to date historical paintings. They answer questions about carbon dating and its importance.
Curated OER
Determining the Age of Fossils
Young scholars explore radioactive dating using a radiometric Dating website. In this chemistry lesson plan, students will work in small groups to collect data that shows how fossils are dated. As a follow-up, young scholars will...
Utah Education Network (UEN)
Utah Open Textbook: Chemistry
Technology can help save money and add convenience. The resource offers a free textbook for a complete Chemistry course. The text begins with a review of the scientific method and continues to explain topics such as chemical bonding,...
Science 4 Inquiry
Layers and Laws: The Law of Superposition and Index Fossils
What can layers of rock teach us about the climate? Young scientists solve a mystery about who stole a cookie by applying the law of superposition. Then, they apply the same concept to solve a more difficult mystery, trying to determine...
Curated OER
WS 6.7 Effects & Applications of Nuclear Chemistry
In this nuclear chemistry worksheet, students are given the biological effects of nuclear radiation. They are also given a list of uses of nuclear chemistry and Einstein's theory of special relativity to calculate the energy change in...
Curated OER
Who Was Here First? Relative Dating
Learners read about and complete question activities for the topic of relative dating. In this relative dating lesson, students read information for the topic and then complete two activities to further their understanding of geologic...
Curated OER
Measuring Absolute Time
In this absolute time worksheet, students answer eleven questions about ways to measure the age of fossils. They define half-life, answer questions about radioactive dating, tree rings and varves.
Curated OER
Dating Popcorn
Young scholars simulate the dating process with popcorn. In this geology activity, students discuss how geologist find the age of rocks by gauging the amount of decay of radioactive elements. They have 6 bags of popcorn and each group...