PencilGo

Grade 10 · Science · Chemistry

10th grade Half-life: how much is left worksheet

6 printable versionsBuilding Confidence10 questions · answer keyFree · no account

Level: Building Confidence · On Level · Challenge Me

When it’s done, scan the sheet with your phone and PencilGo marks it and picks the next one. Create a free account

Version
Print

Half-life: how much is left

Grade 10 Science Worksheet - Building Confidence

NameDate

Circle the best answer, or write your answer on the line.

  1. A radioactive sample goes through 3 half-lives. What percent of it is left, Ari?

  2. A radioactive sample goes through 4 half-lives. What percent of it is left, Bo?

  3. A radioactive sample goes through 5 half-lives. What percent of it is left, Esme?

  4. Using the bar, what fraction is left after 2 half-lives, Jun?

    • 1/2
    • 1/4
    • 0
  5. Using the bar, after how many half-lives is 12.5% left, Kira?

    Use the picture in question 4.

    • 12.5
    • 8
    • 3
  6. Using the bar, does halving ever bring the amount exactly to zero, Luz?

    Use the picture in question 4.

    • No: it keeps getting smaller
    • Yes: after 4 half-lives
    • Yes: after 2 half-lives
  7. What is a half-life, Milo?

    • The time for half to decay
    • The sample's age
    • Half the time for the whole sample
  8. A 100 g radioactive sample passes one half-life. How much is left, Pia?

    • 0 g
    • 50 g
    • 25 g
  9. Which isotope is used to date ancient wood, Tala?

    • Fluorine-18
    • Carbon-14
    • Technetium-99m
  10. Why does carbon-14 work for things that were once alive, Zee?

    • Carbon-14 stays the same forever
    • Rocks are made of carbon-14
    • Living things take in carbon-14
PencilGopencilgo.com

10th grade Half-life: how much is left worksheet – printable
Print: 123456

About this worksheet

Half-life: how much is left. Every version has 10 questions, and the answer key prints on the second page.

What your child will learn

  • I can say a half-life is the time for half of a sample to decay, and that (1/2)ⁿ remains after n half-lives.
  • I can find the amount left, the half-life from data, and the time to reach a fraction.
  • I can date once-living things with carbon-14 (5,730 years) and say its limits.
  • I can say why short half-lives suit medical tracers.

Standard: supports HS-ESS1-5, HS-ESS1-6

Words to know

half-life: Time for half of a radioactive sample to decay

decay: A nucleus changing and giving off radiation

carbon-14 dating: Finding age from the carbon-14 left in once-living material

tracer: A small amount of a radioactive isotope followed by a detector

activity: Decays per minute, measured by counts

Common mistakes

Your child treated decay as losing the same amount each time. Each half-life halves what is left, so the amount shrinks by (1/2)ⁿ.

Questions parents ask

What is the most common mistake with half-life: how much is left?

Your child treated decay as losing the same amount each time. Each half-life halves what is left, so the amount shrinks by (1/2)ⁿ.

Are these 10th grade science worksheets free to print?

Yes. All 6 printable versions at each level are free to print, with the answer key, and no account is needed.

More chemistry

See all Chemistry

Every sheet you scan goes into your child’s record: dated, marked and ready for the year-end portfolio. Homeschool records