Senior High School

SH

Earth Science
Module 14
The History of Earth Through
Geologic Time

AIRs - LM
LU_Earth Science_Module14
STEM – EARTH SCIENCE
Quarter 2 - Module 14: History of Earth Through Geologic Time
Second Edition, 2021

Copyright © 2021
La Union Schools Division
Region I

All rights reserved. No part of this module may be reproduced in any form without written
permission from the copyright owners.

Development Team of the Module

Author: Eden C. Labeste

Editor: SDO La Union, Learning Resource Quality Assurance Team
Content Reviewer: Lani P. Gatchalian
Language Reviewer: Agnes T. Bucsit
Illustrator: Ernesto Ramos Jr.
Design and Layout: Cristita C. Ferrer

Management Team:

Atty. Donato D. Balderas Jr.

Schools Division Superintendent
Vivian Luz S. Pagatpatan, PhD
Assistant Schools Division Superintendent
German E. Flora, PhD, CID Chief
Virgilio C. Boado, PhD, EPS in Charge of LRMS
Rominel S. Sobremonte, EdD, EPS in Charge of Science
Michael Jason D. Morales, PDO II
Claire P. Toluyen, Librarian II

Printed in the Philippines by: _________________________

Department of Education – SDO La Union

Office Address: Flores St. Catbangen, San Fernando City, La Union
Telefax: 072 – 205 – 0046
Email Address: [email protected]
 Senior High School

Earth Science
Module 14
The History of Earth Through
Geologic Time
Introductory Message
This Self-Learning Module (SLM) is prepared so that you, our dear
learners, can continue your studies and learn while at home. Activities,
questions, directions, exercises, and discussions are carefully stated for you
to understand each lesson.

Each SLM is composed of different parts. Each part shall guide you
step-by-step as you discover and understand the lesson prepared for you.

Pre-tests are provided to measure your prior knowledge on lessons in

each SLM. This will tell you if you need to proceed on completing this
module or if you need to ask your facilitator or your teacher’s assistance for
better understanding of the lesson. At the end of each module, you need to
answer the post-test to self-check your learning. Answer keys are provided
for each activity and test. We trust that you will be honest in using these.

In addition to the material in the main text, Notes to the Teacher are
also provided to our facilitators and parents for strategies and reminders on
how they can best help you on your home-based learning.

Please use this module with care. Do not put unnecessary marks on
any part of this SLM. Use a separate sheet of paper in answering the
exercises and tests. And read the instructions carefully before performing
each task.

If you have any questions in using this SLM or any difficulty in

answering the tasks in this module, do not hesitate to consult your teacher
or facilitator.

Thank you.
 Target

Our history and our age as humans can be recorded and measured upon
birth; however we are not curious to know if how old is our planet Earth and how
its history began. Do we know when life started on Earth or do we have an idea if
we the human beings are the first one who invaded this planet? It is pretty obvious
that the Earth is older than anyone had previously imagined and that its surface
and interior have been changed over a period of time and it continues today.
Geologists and paleontologists measure the Age of the Earth and the History
of Life in millions and billions of years. The whole account of human race is but a
wink of an eye next to the vastness of geological time.
In your previous lesson, you are done explaining how relative and absolute
dating was used to determine the subdivisions of geologic time.
This module will provide you with information and activities that will help
you comprehend about the important events happened throughout Earth’s history.

Most Essential Learning Competency

After going through this module, you are expected to describe the history of the
Earth through geologic time (S11ES-II-j-39).

Learning Objectives
At the end of the module, you are expected to:
A. identify the major events in the history of the earth;
b. explain how the geologic time scale was created; and
c. recognize the time span of eras and eons of geologic time.

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 Jumpstart

Activity 1: Events and Geological History

Procedure:

A. 1. Cut rope for a timeline

2. Measure out and cut 4.6 m of straight rope or yarn.
This 4.6 m length of rope will represent the entire 4.6 billion years since the
formation of Earth. Wrap the two rope ends with masking tape to prevent
fraying.
3. Label one end of the rope as “present day” and the other end as “4.6 billion
years ago.”

B. 1. Prepare event index cards

On one side of a blank index card, write the name of the major event of
the Earth and a brief description of it.
Write the event date on the opposite side of the index card.

 The major event of the Earth are as follows:

Youngest : Modern humans - 100,000 yrs ago

First elephants – 37 million yrs ago
First mammals – 222 mya
First dinosaurs – 245 mya
First reptiles – 360 mya
First insects – 408 mya
First fish – 505 mya
Oldest: First plants (algae) – 3.2 bya
 For more information about the major events of Earth kindly visit the given link
below:
https://acad.carleton.edu/curricular/BIOL/classes/bio302/pages/TimelineBack.ht
ml

B. 2. Attach event index cards to the timeline at the appropriate locations.

Present your timeline to your classmates thru sending picture via messenger
or discuss it via Google meet.

Questions:
1. If the entire 4.6 m-long rope represents 4.6 billion years, how much time
is represented by the following lengths?
* 10 cm
* 1 mm

2. Beginning around 2.5 million years ago, there was an increase of oxygen
gas in the Atmosphere, how do you think the organism survived before it?

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 Discover

Read and understand thoroughly about the history of Earth.

I. The History of Earth Through Geologic Time

A. Precambrian
The most part of Earth’s history occurred during the Precambrian Period
wherein it takes about 88 percent or approximately 4.1 billion years. This Eon
was broken into 3 parts namely:

1. Hadean Eon
It is considered that the most chaotic eon for the reason that there are
severe volcanic activities and meteorites constantly bombarding the Earth.

Figure 1. Meteorites and volcanic activities on Earth was

constantly happening during the Hadean Con

Source: url.com/PrCNBL

2. Archean Eon
The Archean lasted over 1.3 billion years. During this period, the Earth
became warm however its atmosphere contained only methane with little to no
oxygen. The most part of Earth is covered with water. Apparently, during this
time the continent was formed. The Earth’s atmosphere became orange due to
the abundance of methane and the oceans were green because of iron and
stromalite field shorelines.

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 Figure 2. Continent began to form during the Archean Eon
Source: url.com/9wFWzq

3. Proterozoic Eon
The Proterozoic took almost half of the age of Earth. During this period
the oxygen level of Earth reaches to 3% which cause to rise of multicellular
organism.

Figure 3. Multicellular animal existed during the Protezoroic Eon

Source: url.com/r4NMMI

Phanerozoic Eon
The Phanerozoic Eon lasted for 540 million years wherein during this
period many life forms became evident. This period is known to be the Eon of
“visible life”. It is broken into 3 parts namely:

1. Paleozoic Era ( Early Life)

Paleozoic Era lasted for 540–245 million years where fossils of marine
invertebrates that lived near shallow water were formed in sedimentary layers.
Marine life forms had developed shells during the middle Paleozoic Era. Land
plants, such as giant ferns and marsh plants colonized the land at about 480
million years. Reptiles began to appear during the late Paleozoic Era. They seemed
like their Amphibian ancestors but were unlike in that they were capable of laying
their eggs. Scientist considers that the remains of these plants formed the huge
coal deposits in many part of the world. It is also believed that the oxygen level in
the atmosphere approaches present day concentration.

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 Figure 4. Marine invertebrates became dominant during Paleozoic Era
Source: url.com/w1zk99

2. Mesozoic Era (Middle Life)

The Mesozoic Era took place at about 246-65 million years, which is known
as the Age of Reptiles. During this time, the Pangaea starts to break apart at
about 200 million years. North America began to part from Europe and South
America, and Australia, New Zealand and India began to separate from Africa.
Reptiles and dinosaurs became dominant during this period. Early mammals
started to appear at about 220 million years ago while the first bird appears at
150 million years ago. The first flowering plants were seen in the face of the
Earth at 130 million years ago.

Figure 5. Reptiles and Dinosaurs became dominant during Mesozoic Era

Source: url.com/ uq-22v

3. Cenozoic Era (65 million years ago - present/Late Life)

This Era is known to be the “Age of Mammals”, where warm-blooded
animals such as marsupials like kangaroo, and primitive mammals roamed the
land. During this period, mountains were uplifted and volcanic activities became
extensive, forming massive flows of lava and basalt. It was during the 0.2 Ma that
human beings appeared and left their marks on the land, as observed and seen in
the stone tools that were used.

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 Figure 6. The first hominids appeared at about 5.2 Ma
Source: url.com/5Ute3j
Retrieved 10/22/20

II. The Geologic Time Scale

Age Time
Eon Era Period Epoch (Mya) Scale
(Ma)
Quaternary Helocene 0.01
Cenozoic Pleistocene 1.8 1.79
Tertiary Pliocene 5.3 3.5
Miocene 23.0 17.7
Oligocene 33.9 10.9
Eocene 55.8 21.9
Paleocene 65.5 9.7
Phanerozoic Cretaceous 145 79.5
Mesozoic Jurassic 200 55
Triassic 251 51
Permian 299 48
Pennsylvanian 318 19
Mississippian 359 57
Paleozoic Devonian 416 28
Silurian 444 28
Ordovician 488 44
Cambrian 542 54
Bacteria and 2500 1958
Proterozoic blue green
Precambrian algae
Archean Oldest Fossil 3800 1300
Hadean Beginning of 4600 800
Earth

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 The Geologic Time Scale is used as the calendar of events in Earth history.
The name units that are used to subdivide the time are eons, eras, periods, epochs
and ages. This is also being used by the geologist, paleontologist and other scientist
to describe the timing and relationship between events that occurred during the
long history of the Earth.
The 4.6 billion years of Earth’s history was divided into span of time to better
explain the major events that took place. The spans of time are:
 Age (millions of years)
 Epoch (tens of millions of years)
 Period ( tens of millions of years)
 Era (several hundred million years)
 Eon (half billion years or more)

In the geologic time scale, Eons have the biggest spans of time. Eons are
divided into smaller units called eras. Eras are subdivided into periods. Periods are
subdivided into even smaller time spans called epoch.

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 Explore

Activity 2. My Earth Clock

Direction: Draw the clock pictured at the bottom on a separate paper. Then label it
with the following events on the clock.

a. Formation of Earth
b. Formation of ocean and atmosphere
c. Fossils of trilobites and brachiopods
d. Free oxygen
e. Giant ferns and marsh plants
f. Dinosaurs
g. First bird

Source: https://www.google.com/search?q=clock+free+clipart&rlz=1C1AVFA_enPH864PH864&source
retrieved 10/23/20

Do you think human invaded the Earth with the longest period of time? Why or
Why not?
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________

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 Deepen

Activity 3: Match Me
Direction: Match the eon and period in Column A with their respective era in
Column B with the proper subdivision of the geologic time scale. Each
term can be used only once. Write your answers on a separate paper.

Column A Column B
___ 1. Hadean, Archaean and Proterozoic A. Cenozoic
___ 2. Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous B. Mesozoic
___ 3. Tertiary and Quartenary C. Paleozoic
___ 4. Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, D. Precambrian
___ 5. Devonian, Carboniferous and Permian

Activity 4. Find Me
Direction: Color the words listed below. Words may appear straight, across, up, and
down. Write your answers on a separate paper.

Mesozoic Hadean
Paleozoic Archean
Phanerozoic Pangea
Devonian Proterozoic
Precambrian Cenozoic

E E M E S O Z O I C I P O L P
A D A S D F G H J K L A G K A
R A T G H J K L A S D N D B L
T A R W E R T Y Q F G G E N E
H H R L K J H G F H E E V M O
P R E C A M B R I A N A O S Z
A T E R H A D E S D A R N E O
N Y O U R E R A R E F T I W I
G U E D E N A R T A H J A E C
E R E R A E O N I N A R N R Z
P H A N E R O Z O I C F G T X
A S C E N O Z O I C H J K G C
C D I N O S P A L E O Z O I L
D F L A B E S T E R T G H H B
F G B P R O T E R O Z O I C N

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 Gauge

Direction: Choose the letter of the correct answer. Write your answer in your
answer sheet.

1. Which of the following does NOT belong to Paleozoic Era?

A. Cambrian B. Devonian C. Jurassic D. Ordovician
2. Which of the following eon was considered as the MOST chaotic eon?
A. Archean B. Hadean C. Paleozoic D. Proterozoic
3. Which of the following eon was characterized as the period when Earth became
warm?
A. Archean B. Hadean C. Paleozoic D. Proterozoic
4. Which of the following eon last almost half the age of Earth?
A. Archean B. Hadean C. Paleozoic D. Proterozoic
5. What is the LARGEST creature that existed during the Mesozoic era?
A. dinosaurs B. fern C. flowers D. fossils
6. What era is considered as the “Age of Mammals”?
A. Archean B. Cenozoic C. Proterozoic D. Paleozoic
7. In Geologic time, what unit has the BIGGEST span of time?
A. days B. eons C. epochs D. periods
8. What time units are eras subdivided into?
A. days B. eons C. epochs D. periods
9. Which era did plants appear?
A. Cenozoic B. Mesozoic C. Paleozoic D. Precambrian
10. In what era do we human belong?
A. Cenozoic B. Jurassic C. Mesozoic D. Paleozoic
11. What does the term “Paleozoic” mean?
A. ancient life B. future life C. middle life D. recent life
12. Which combinations represent the Phanerozoic?
A. Eocene, Cretaceous, Jurassic B. Cenozoic, Mesozoic, Paleozoic
C. Precambrian, Cenezoic, Eocene D. Cenezoic, Precambrain, Paleozoic
13. What is used as the calendar of events in geologic history?
A. Geological Time Scale B. Gregorian Calendar
C. Geologic Time D. Time Scale
14. How old is the Earth?
A. 4.6 billion years B. 4.06 billion years
C. 46 billion years D. 46.6 billion years
15. The word “Hadean” came from the word “hades”. What does “hades” mean??
A. chaos B. earth C. hell D. life

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Answer Key

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References

Book
Olivar, J.T. III and Ramos, A. M. Exploring Life Through Science. Phoenix
Publishing House Inc. 2016.

Websites

https://manoa.hawaii.edu/exploringourfluidearth/node/1343

https://www.britannica.com/science/geologic-history-of-Earth/The-pregeologic-
period

http://geology.teacherfriendlyguide.org/index.php/geohist-mw

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 For inquiries or feedback, please write or call:

Department of Education – SDO La Union

Curriculum Implementation Division
Learning Resource Management Section
Flores St. Catbangen, San Fernando City La Union 2500
Telephone: (072) 607 - 8127
Telefax: (072) 205 - 0046
Email Address:
[email protected]
[email protected]

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