Relative Age Dating

Relative
and Absolute Dating

This age is a comparison between multiple rocks. It is not an exact number.
"This rock is older than that rock."

​​Relative Age

​This age is a numerical date found using a process called radiometric dating.

"This rock is 38 million years old."

Absolute Age

Dropdown

Scientists have two ways of dating rocks. They are relative dating and

Select answer

.

Multiple Choice

Which type of scientific dating tells you when an object is older or younger compared to another object?

• Relative Dating

• Absolute Dating

• Internet Dating

• May 24th

Categorize

Options (8)

Mr. Prior is older than Ms. Bass

Rock B is younger than Rock A

The Super Nintendo is older than the Switch

The Super Nintendo is 33 years old.

My dog is 8 years old.

My dog is older than my cat

The bicycle is 3 years old.

This rock is 415 million years old.

Place the examples in the correct category.

Relative Date

Absolute Date

Relative Dating

• Relative Dating is when you give the age of a rock or fossil compared to another rock or fossil.

  • An actual age in years is NOT determined.
    

  • Example: Rock A is older than Rock B.

  • Real-world Example: Mr. Prior is older than Ms. Bass.

When rock layers are deposited, younger layers form on top of older layers.

1. Law of Superposition

​Rock layers are deposited horizontally. If they are tilted, folded, or broken - those happened later.

2. Law of Original Horizontality

​But What Are the Rules?

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Labelling

Using Relative Age, place the labels in the correct location.

Drag labels to their correct position on the image

Youngest

Oldest

Young

Old

Reorder

Put the Letters in order from OLDEST to YOUNGEST.

(1 is the oldest, 4 is the youngest.)

• N

• A

• T

• S

1

2

3

4

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4

​If an intrusion or a fault cuts through existing rocks, the intrusion/fault must be YOUNGER than the rock it cuts through.

Think About it: Can you cut a cake before the cake is made?

3. Law of Cross-Cutting Relationships

Multiple Choice

If a rock has a fault in it, the fault must be OLDER than the rock

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

Which color rock is the YOUNGEST rock?

• Blue

• Red

• Yellow

• Pink

Rock layers in different places can be correlated, or matched up, by matching the rocks and fossils in the layers.

​

4. Correlation

Draw

Correlation tells us that we can match rock layers that are very far apart if they have the same fossils in them. If all these layers have the same fossils, draw lines between the matching layers.

Multiple Choice

Which of the rock layers is the oldest?

• A

• B

• C

Multiple Choice

Which of the options below happened most recently (newest)?

• D

• E

Reorder

Put the letters in the correct order from OLDEST to NEWEST (most recent).

• C

• B

• A

• D

• E

1

2

3

4

5

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

Reorder

Try your best to put the letters in the correct order from OLDEST to NEWEST (most recent).

• G

• K

• M

• S

• D

1

2

3

4

5

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5