SHS

General Biology 2
Activity Sheet
QUARTER 3 - MELC 3
Week 2
History of Life on Earth
K to 12 BEC

REGION VI – WESTERN VISAYAS

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General Biology 2
Activity Sheet No. 3: History of Life on Earth
First Edition, 2021

Published in the Philippines

By the Department of Education
Region 6 – Western Visayas

Republic Act 8293, section 176 states that: No copyright shall subsist in any
work of the Government of the Philippines. However, prior approval of the government
agency or office wherein the work is created shall be necessary for exploitation of such
work for profit. Such agency or office may, among other things, impose as a condition
the payment of royalties.
This Learning Activity Sheet is developed by DepEd Region 6 – Western
Visayas.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this learning resource may be
reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical
without written permission from the DepEd Regional Office 6 – Western Visayas.

Development Team of Science Learning Module

Writer: RAPHAEL KEVIN I. NAGAL

Content and Language Editing:

Dr. MARY CHERRY LYNN M. DALIPE

Division of Aklan Management Team:

Dr. MIGUEL MAC D. APOSIN, CESOV
Mr. JOSE NIRO R. NILLASCA
Dr. DOBIE P. PAROHINOG
Dr. MARY CHERRY LYNN M. DALIPE
Mr. MAHNNIE Q. TOLENTINO

Regional Management Team

RAMIR B. UYTICO
PEDRO T. ESCOBARTE, JR.
ELENA P. GONZAGA
DONALD T. GENINE
ROVEL R. SALCEDO
MOONYEEN C. RIVERA
ANITA S. GUBALANE
MINDA L. SOLDEVILLA
DAISY L. LOPEZ
JOSEPH M. PAGALARAN

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Introductory Message

Welcome to General Biology 2!

The Learning Activity Sheet is a product of the collaborative efforts of the Schools
Division of Aklan and DepEd Regional Office VI - Western Visayas through the
Curriculum and Learning Management Division (CLMD). This is developed to guide
the learning facilitators (teachers, parents and responsible adults) in helping the
learners meet the standards set by the K to 12 Basic Education Curriculum.

The Learning Activity Sheet is self-directed instructional materials aimed to guide

the learners in accomplishing activities at their own pace and time using the
contextualized resources in the community. This will also assist the learners in
acquiring the lifelong learning skills, knowledge and attitudes for productivity and
employment.

For learning facilitator:

The General Biology 2 Activity Sheet will help you facilitate the leaching-learning
activities specified in each Most Essential Learning Competency (MELC) with minimal
or no face-to-face encounter between you and learner. This will be made available to
the learners with the references/links to ease the independent learning.

For the learner:

The General Biology 2 Activity Sheet is developed to help you continue learning
even if you are not in school. This learning material provides you with meaningful and
engaging activities for independent learning. Being an active learner, carefully read
and understand the instructions then perform the activities and answer the
assessments. This will be returned to your facilitator on the agreed schedule.

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Name of Learner: ________________________________________________________
Grade Level/Section:__________ ____________________Date:

GENERAL BIOLOGY 2 ACTIVITY SHEET No. 3

History of Life on Earth

I. Learning Competency with Code

Describe general features of the history of life on Earth, including generally
accepted dates and sequence of the geologic time scale and characteristics of
major groups of organisms present during these time periods (STEM_BIO11/12-
IIIc-g-8)

II. Background Information for Learners

One of the great mysteries in the Universe is the origin of creation.
Biologists rely primarily on dating the rocks in which fossils are contained and
looking at the "molecular clocks" in living organisms' DNA to do this. Based on
the most accepted propositions, life started at least 3.5 billion years ago, since
that's the age of the world's oldest rocks with fossil proof of life. These rocks are
rare because the surface of our
planet has been reshaped by
subsequent geological cycles,
sometimes crushing older
rocks while creating new ones.
Scientists have broken
the Earth's 4.56-billion-year
history into units that
represent unique periods of
time based on their
interpretations of the rock
record. Taken together, the
geologic time scale is made up
of these time periods.
Eons represent the
greatest expanses of time. Eons
are divided into eras. Each era
is subdivided into periods.
Finally, periods are divided into
smaller units called epochs.
Each period within an era is
characterized by somewhat
lesser profound changes in life
forms as compared with the
changes that occur during an
era. The periods of the
Cenozoic era are divided into
still smaller units called
epochs, during which even
lesser profound changes in life
forms occur. During

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Precambrian time, there were fewer life forms. These life forms are more difficult
to identify and the rocks have been disturbed often.
The eon where life began was during the Phanerozoic eon. There are three
eras within the Phanerozoic eon: the Paleozoic, which means “ancient life,” the
Mesozoic, which means “middle life,” and the Cenozoic, which means “recent life.”
For ease in discussion and remembering, the eras will be the basis of
division of the history of life. The following are the four eras of the origin of life:
Precambrian, Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic chronologically.

Precambrian History

The Precambrian encompasses immense geological time, from Earth’s

distant beginnings 4.56 billion years ago until the start of the Cambrian period,
over 4 billion years later. Earth’s original atmosphere was made up of gases
similar to those released in volcanic eruptions today—water vapor, carbon
dioxide, nitrogen, and several trace gases, but no oxygen.
The oldest fossils of single-celled organisms date from 3.5 billion years ago.
Some single-celled organisms may be feeding on methane by this time. At 2 billion
years ago, Eukaryotic cells – cells with internal “organs” (known as organelles) –
came into being. One key organelle is the nucleus: the control center of the cell,
in which the genes are stored in the form of DNA. Eukaryotic cells evolved when
one simple cell engulfed another, and the two lived together, more or less
amicably – an example of “endosymbiosis”. The engulfed bacteria eventually
became mitochondria, which provided eukaryotic cells with energy. The last
common ancestor of all eukaryotic cells had mitochondria – and had also
developed sexual reproduction.
Later, primary plants evolved into those that used photosynthesis and
released oxygen. Oxygen began to accumulate in the atmosphere about 2.5 billion
years ago. The most common Precambrian fossils are stromatolites.
Stromatolites are distinctively layered mounds or columns of calcium carbonate.
They are not the remains of actual organisms but are the material deposited by
algae. Many of these ancient fossils are preserved in chert—a hard dense chemical
sedimentary rock.

Early Paleozoic (Life Explodes)

Following the long Precambrian, the most recent 540 million years of
Earth’s history are divided into three eras: Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic.
Life in early Paleozoic time was restricted to the seas. Laurasia is the
continental mass that formed the northern portion of Pangaea, consisting of
present-day North America and Eurasia. By the end of the Paleozoic, all the
continents had fused into the supercontinent of Pangaea.
Some 400 million years ago, plants that had adapted to survive at the
water’s edge began to move inland, becoming land plants. The amphibians rapidly
diversified because they had minimal competition from other land dwellers.

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 The world’s climate became very seasonal, probably causing the dramatic
extinction of many species. The late Paleozoic extinction was the greatest of at
least five mass extinctions to occur over the past 500 million years.

Mesozoic Era (Age of Reptiles)

The gymnosperms quickly became the dominant plants of the Mesozoic
era. Gymnosperms are seed-bearing plants that do not depend on free-standing
water for fertilization.
The development of the shelled egg characterized the animal life of this era.
Unlike amphibians, reptiles have shell-covered eggs that can be laid on the land.
The elimination of a water-dwelling stage (like the tadpole stage in frogs) was an
important evolutionary step. With the perfection of the shelled egg, reptiles
quickly became the dominant land animals. At the end of the Mesozoic era, many
reptile groups became extinct.

Cenozoic Era (Age of Mammals)

The Cenozoic era is divided into two periods of very unequal duration, the
Tertiary period and the Quaternary period. Plate interactions during the Cenozoic
era caused many events of mountain building, volcanism, and earthquakes in the
West.
Mammals—animals that bear live young and maintain a steady body
temperature—replaced reptiles as the dominant land animals in the Cenozoic era.
Adaptations like being warm blooded, developing insulating body hair, and having
more efficient heart and lungs allow mammals to lead more active lives than
reptiles.
Angiosperms—flowering plants with covered seeds—replaced
gymnosperms as the dominant land plants.
Large mammals started to become extinct at the later part of the era. In
North America, the mastodon and mammoth, both huge relatives of the elephant,
became extinct. In addition, saber-toothed cats, giant beavers, large ground
sloths, horses, camels, giant bison, and others died out on the North American
continent. The reason for this recent wave of extinctions puzzles scientists.

III. Activity Proper

A. Directions: Using the information above as reference, place the following

data (dominating life form/description) in the appropriate Era of Life.

gymnosperms angiosperms dinosaurs first fungi ice age

last universal common ancestor homo sapiens no oxyge
4.5 Billion years ago first terrestrial life first birds bacteria
ocean life rst flowering plants modern era breast feeding animal

Precambrian Paleozoic Mesozoic Cenozoic

1. 1. 1. 1.
2. 2. 2. 2.
3. 3. 3. 3.
4. 4. 4. 4.

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 B. Directions: Read the questions carefully and encircle the letter of the
correct answer.
1. Evidence from rocks allows us to understand the ____ of life on Earth.
a. Evolution b. uniformity c. rotation d. all of these

2. The first forms of life on earth were

a. single-celled b. multicellular c. photosynthetic d. plants

3. Simple, multicellular organisms like jellies and sponges evolved during

a. Precambrian b. Paleozoic c. Mesozoic d. Cenozoic

4. Earth has been around for about ____years.

a. 3.5 billion b. 4.6 billion c. 5 million d. 10

5. _______ of a species occurs when the environment changes and the

adaptive characteristics of a species are insufficient for its survival.
a. mutation b. adaptation c. evolution d. extinction

C. Once Upon a Time…

Directions: You can do this individually or in a group of at most 3
members. Create a timetable of the History of Life on Earth. You may use
varying materials and any kinds of arts/craft like collage, painting, drawing,
etc. Present your output. Place on a separate sheet.

RUBRICS (15 Points):

CATEGORY 1 3 5
Craft There is no Level of complexity in Complexity in creation
difficulty in creation required a characterized by details,
creation little difficulty materials used and skills
Concept Model does not Model slightly Model clearly exemplifies the
exemplify the exemplifies the History History of life on Earth
History of life on of life on Earth
Earth
Display Didn’t prepare Piece is prepared for Piece is prepared for display
Readiness piece for display display but will not either hanging, resting on table
at all. remain stable or securely attached to a stable
stand. Won’t fall off/fall over.

IV. Reflection
Directions: Complete the statements below.

I understand

I don’t understand

I need more information about

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V. Answer Key

VI. Links or Other References

Tarbuk, E.J. and Lutgens, F.K. (2015). Earth Science. 14th edition. Prentice
Hall.

Bayo-Ang, R.B et.al. (2016). Earth & Life Science for Senior High School.
Educational Resources Corp. Quezon, City.

Please also watch the following Youtube videos:

https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn17453-timeline-the-evolution-
of-life/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55oDyazPdTU