This lesson introduces absolute dating and a few ways in which scientists accomplish it.

The majority of the lesson focuses on radiometric dating, including an activity where students date their own "rocks and fossils".

Learn about different types of radiometric dating, such as carbon dating.

Understand how decay and half life work to enable radiometric dating.

Basic understanding of how radiometric dating works is useful.

This lesson is highly simplified, and the powerpoint describes everything the student will need to know for the activity.

We could be sure that a mineral containing parentium originally had no daughterium.

Radioactive rocks offer a similar “clock.” Radioactive atoms, such as uranium (the parent isotopes), decay into stable atoms, such as lead (the daughter isotopes), at a measurable rate.This hands-on activity is a simulation of some of the radiometric dating techniques used by scientists to determine the age of a mineral or fossil.The activity uses the basic principle of radioactive half-life, and is a good follow-up lesson after the students have learned about half-life properties. Absolute-age dating is way for scientists to tell the exact age of a rock, fossil, or other object. Isotopes are atoms of the same element that have the same chemical properties. These isotopes are found in igneous and metamorphic rocks. This process involves measuring the rate of decay of radioactive isotopes.