Sedimentary rock is formed when sediment collects at the bottom of a lake or sea.

A geologist is a scientist who studies what Earth is made of.

Evidence is information which helps us to prove that something is true or not true.

A fossil is the remains or imprint of living things that are sometimes preserved in rock.

A model is used to describe something that can't be experienced directly.

How living things have changed over time

Science

Where fossils are found (non-statutory)

What fossils can tell us about the past

Human skulls: using evidence from the past (non-statutory)

Offspring: similar but not identical

Family trees (non-statutory)

Inherited characteristics

Animal adaptations

Charles Darwin and finches

Plant adaptations

More about plant adaptations

The survival of the fittest

Evolution: evidence

Evolution: presentation

In this Evolution and inheritance unit, pupils learn that, normally, offspring vary and are not identical to parents. In the Heredity and DNA unit, they will build on this knowledge to learn about how genes and chromosomes work. 

In the New life unit, pupils learnt that animals, including humans have offspring which grow into adults. In this Evolution and Inheritance unit, pupils will build on this knowledge to recognise that living things produce offspring of the same kind, but normally offspring vary and are not identical to parents

This unit explores how living things have changed over time, using fossils as evidence of past life. It covers how offspring vary from parents and how adaptation leads to evolution. Emphasis is on planning scientific enquiries, recording data, and evaluating scientific evidence.

Evolution and inheritance

The layers at the bottom of {{}} rock are the oldest and the layers at the top are the newest.

They are more interesting than just reading words.

They help us to understand things that we can’t see for ourselves.

A scientist who studies rocks to learn about what was happening on Earth at different times is called a...

Fossils of the simplest organisms are found in the oldest rocks.

Fossils of the most complex organisms are found in the newest rocks.

Fossils of the simplest organisms are found in the newest rocks.

Which of these statements about fossils is correct?

In which layer of rock would geologists be likely to find fossils of animals with very complex structures such as sabre-toothed tigers?

Because it tells us how the organism moved.

Because it tells us what the animal’s diet was like.

Because it tells us which plants and animals lived in each time period.

Because it tells us how large the organism was.

Why is it useful for geologists to know which layer of rock a fossil was found in?

Fossils can tell us about things that lived ...

All fossils are the remains of dinosaurs.

The soft parts of living things don’t usually become fossilised.

All the fossils on Earth have already been discovered.

Fossils give us clues about life on Earth long ago.

Which of these statements about fossils are correct?

Rocks that are formed by layers of sediment building up over time are called {{}} rocks.

An organism dies and sinks to the bottom of the ocean.

The hard parts of the organism are covered with multiple layers of sediment.

After many years, the hard parts of the animal are replaced by minerals.

Starting with the first, order the steps in fossil formation.

Exit Quiz

The layers at the bottom of rock are the oldest and the layers at the top are the newest.