Earth's Changes Through Time: Geologic Time
In this component of the curriculum, students are introduced to geologic time and the history of the Earth. From the lessons provided, they are introduced to relative and absolute time which are used to understand the geologic time scale. Students also learn about and explore the different methods for dating rocks and fossils.
Understanding geologic time can be difficult for students (... and most of us) because they are used to thinking in terms of years, days, hours, and minutes. With the history of the Earth, an entirely different scale is required. Making the transition to hundreds of thousands, millions, and billions can be challenging. It is important for students to gain an understanding of the long history of the Earth in order to appreciate the processes of plate tectonics.