Early Earth: A dynamic and changing place

Travel back billions of years and discover how microscopic organisms changed the conditions for life on Earth forever.

Investigate the structures they formed and the chemical processes they used to create oxygen-rich oceans and an atmosphere creating conditions for multicellular life to flourish.

Explore the iron rich deposits they helped create providing a wealth of mineral resources supporting the Western Australian economy.

Student experience

Students will

• Travel back in time to explore Archean Earth
• Investigate the Great Oxygenation Event and the formation of stromatolites
• Use digital microscopes to observe and record cyanobacteria
• Handle authentic stromatolites
• Explore the origins of life through examples in the Origins Gallery

Skills development

This program links to the following strands of the Western Australian Curriculum:

Science

Year 4

• Earth and space sciences: Earth’s surface changes over time as a result of natural processes and human activity (ACSSU075)
• Biological sciences: Living things depend on each other and the environment to survive (ACSSU073)

Year 5 

• Biological sciences: Living things have structural features and adaptations that help them to survive in their environment (ACSSU043)

Year 6

Science

• Biological sciences: The growth and survival of living things are affected by physical conditions of their environment (ACSSU094)