Mass Extinctions & Climate Change
📋 What it is
Several times, huge fractions of life died out fast — reshaping which creatures ruled after.
🗣️ Coach says
Earth has had at least five MASS EXTINCTIONS — times when a large share of all species vanished quickly, often from asteroid impacts or huge climate shifts. The most famous ended the big dinosaurs ~66 million years ago. Each extinction cleared the stage, letting new groups (like mammals) rise.
🧠 Memory hook
Mass extinction = many species die out fast → survivors get a fresh stage (mammals after dinosaurs).
😂 Giggle
What did the paleontologist say at the excavation site?
"I have a bone to pick with this sediment!"
😲 Whoa!
The asteroid that ended the dinosaurs hit with the force of billions of atomic bombs — but it opened the door for tiny mammals, eventually including us.
✅ Quick check: How did the extinction of the big dinosaurs help mammals?
Say your answer out loud first — then reveal.
It cleared the ecological stage — with dinosaurs gone, mammals could spread into new roles and grow.
Extinctions open niches for surviving groups to diversify.
🧪 Try it! (2 minutes)
Imagine a full playground suddenly cleared — who moves into the free space? That’s post-extinction life.