Carboniferous

High school (ages 12+)
Environment & Earth

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/carboniferous

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the geologic system?Carboniferous System, part of the Paleozoic Era
2. What is the primary geological product?Formation of extensive global coal deposits
3. What does the name "Carboniferous" mean?It comes from Latin words meaning "coal" and "to bear," showing that this time had a lot of coal.
4. Why were insects so big during the Carboniferous?The air had more oxygen—up to 30%—which let insects grow huge, like the 2.5‑meter millipede Arthropleura and dragonflies with 70‑centimeter wings.

Lycophytes: Ancient vascular plants, often tree-like, that were abundant in Carboniferous coal swamps.
Amniotic Egg: An egg with a protective membrane, allowing vertebrates to reproduce on land without returning to water.
Orogeny: The process of mountain formation, especially by folding and faulting of the Earth's crust.