Vertebrate

High school (ages 12+)
Human Body

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/vertebrate

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 scientific name?Subphylum Vertebrata
2. What is the related topics?Chordata, Osteichthyes (bony fish), Chondrichthyes (cartilaginous fish), Amphibia, Reptilia, Aves (birds), Mammalia
3. Why do vertebrates have a skull?The skull protects the brain and lets vertebrates develop big brains and good senses. It helps them think, see, hear, and feel better.
4. How did vertebrates become so many different kinds?Over more than 500 million years, vertebrates added new features like jaws, limbs, and warm blood. These changes let them live in oceans, deserts, mountains, and even the sky.

Notochord: A flexible, rod-shaped body found in embryos of all chordates, providing skeletal support before the vertebral column develops.
Cranium: The part of the skull that encloses the brain, a defining characteristic of vertebrates.
Adaptive Radiation: The diversification of a group of organisms into forms filling different ecological niches.