Fossil occurrences through time give Grade 6 science students a concrete way to examine biological evolution, unity and diversity, diversification, extinction, and changes in biodiversity. This resource uses fossil evidence and stratigraphic order to help students reason about how life has changed through time within an NGSS framework.

What Students Explore

Students examine how fossil occurrences and stratigraphic order support ideas about evolution, diversification, and extinction. They identify how relative dating and radiometric dating establish the age order of rock layers, then use fossil assemblage comparisons to infer changes in biodiversity and environments.

The practice moves beyond recalling vocabulary by asking students to interpret evidence, connect dating methods with rock-layer order, compare fossil assemblages, and explain what fossil patterns can reveal about biological change over time.

Question Formats That Build Different Skills

The worksheet includes multiple-choice questions, true/false statements, short-answer responses, a dialogue, a matching task, a cloze passage, a labeled diagram, a reading passage, and an essay. This variety gives students opportunities to recognize concepts, interpret information, communicate scientific reasoning, and apply ideas about fossils and relative and radiometric dating.

Included for Classroom Use

• Worksheet covering fossil evidence, stratigraphic order, relative dating, radiometric dating, biodiversity, environments, evolution, diversification, and extinction
• Separate PDF answer key for checking student responses
• Separate PDF teacher guide with learning objectives, teaching tips, discussion questions, and common mistakes

Flexible Grade 6 Science Practice

Use this fossil evidence worksheet as classroom practice, independent work, review, or a discussion-supported lesson activity. The teacher guide provides practical support for introducing the concepts, prompting discussion, and addressing common misunderstandings, while the separate answer key makes response checking straightforward.

For teachers covering biological evolution and fossil evidence, this resource brings together dating methods, stratigraphic order, fossil assemblages, biodiversity, and environmental change in one focused Grade 6 science activity.