Rocks, Fossils, and Time
Grade 4 - Science - On Level
Evidence: rounded river stones are cemented inside a rock layer. Which claim is best supported?
- plants lived there before later ash covered them
- water once moved stones through the area
- the area may once have been covered by water
- animals walked across soft mud that later hardened
What can ripple marks in a rock layer help scientists infer?
- the area may once have been covered by water
- animals walked across soft mud that later hardened
- water once moved stones through the area
- water or wind once moved sediment in a repeating pattern
In an undisturbed stack of rock layers, the fossil layer is usually what?
- evidence with no time pattern
- the same age as every layer
- always the newest layer
- older than rock deposited on top
Which evidence would weaken the claim "the desert has always been dry land"?
- shell fossils are found high in a desert cliff
- rounded river stones are cemented inside a rock layer
- ripple marks appear in sandstone
- fish fossils are found in a mountain rock layer
Which question belongs in a rocks, fossils, and time investigation?
- What color should the fossil display label be?
- Which claim can be made without looking at the layer?
- Can evidence be ignored if a rock is hard?
- What past environment is suggested by rounded stones?
Evidence: leaf fossils appear between layers of volcanic ash. Which claim is best supported?
- plants lived there before later ash covered them
- the rock records an environment that was once watery
- water once moved stones through the area
- water or wind once moved sediment in a repeating pattern
What can dinosaur tracks in a rock layer help scientists infer?
- the area may once have been covered by water
- the rock records an environment that was once watery
- water or wind once moved sediment in a repeating pattern
- animals walked across soft mud that later hardened
In an undisturbed stack of rock layers, the track layer is usually what?
- evidence with no time pattern
- the same age as every layer
- older than sediment that later covered it
- always the newest layer
Which evidence would weaken the claim "wind never affected the landscape"?
- ripple marks appear in sandstone
- shell fossils are found high in a desert cliff
- rounded river stones are cemented inside a rock layer
- leaf fossils appear between layers of volcanic ash
Which question belongs in a rocks, fossils, and time investigation?
- Can evidence be ignored if a rock is hard?
- Which claim can be made without looking at the layer?
- What past environment is suggested by dinosaur tracks?
- What color should the fossil display label be?