Geologic Time Football Field - Hicksville Public Schools / Homepage

Name______________________________________________ Date___________
Geologic Time Football Field
Procedure 1: Calculate the corresponding distance on a football field that each event
represents and fill in the blanks under the Distance category.
For this activity, 1 yard = 50 million years.
Mark the events on the Geologic Time Football Field. One end zone is labeled "TODAY" and
the other is "BEFORE EARTH 4.6 Billion years ago".
As you place your events on the football field, pay close attention to which end is which.
Place events at the nearest yard.
Geologic Event
Approximate Age
First known fish
510 million years
Earliest humans
2 million years
Formation of the Earth
4.6 billion years
First known mammal
200 million years
First single-celled organism
1.2 billion years
Oldest rock
3.8 billion years
Extinction of the dinosaurs
65 million years
First known plant
498 million years
First known reptile
325 million years
First multi-celled organism
700 million years
First known amphibian
375 million years
First known bird
160 million years
Distance (yards)
Procedure 2:
Using page 8 of your reference table (a copy is on the back of your football field page)
complete the following on your football field.
Color the Precambrian Eon blue.
Draw stripes in the Phanerozoic Eon.
Color the Paleozoic Era red.
Color the Mesozoic Era green.
Color the Cenozoic Era yellow.
Investigation:
1. What event is near in the middle of the football field? ______________________________
2. Put these in order as to when they first appeared and list the era in which they first
appeared (oldest is number 1 and youngest is number 5)
Fish, mammals, reptiles, plants, humans
1 ___________________________ Era_________________________
2 ___________________________ Era_________________________
3 ___________________________ Era_________________________
4 ___________________________ Era_________________________
5 ___________________________ Era_________________________
3. How many years does the first 10 yards represent? ____________________________
4. What events occurred within 10 yards from the TODAY end zone?