: United States History The Earliest Americans
: If YOU Were There... You are living in North America about 10,000 years ago, close to the end of the Ice Age. For weeks, your group has been following a herd of elk across a marshy landscape. This trip has taken you far from your usual hunting grounds. The air is warmer here. There are thick grasses and bushes full of berries. You decide to camp here for the summer and perhaps stay a while. How would settling here change your way of life?
: Vocabulary Bering Land Bridge - Land bridge that once connected what is now Alaska with Siberia.
Paleo-Indians - The first Americans who crossed from Asia to North America sometime between 38,000 and 10,000 BC.
Migration - A movement of people or animals from one region to another.
Hunter-gatherers - People who hunted animals and gathered wild, plants for food.
Environment - The climate and landscape that surrounds living things.
Culture - The common values and traditions of a society, such as language, government, and family relationships.
: First Migration To The Americas Many scientists believe that the first people arrived in North America during the last Ice Age.
This migration took place over a very long time.
About 8000 BC, Earth's climate grew warmer, and the Ice Age ended.
The warmer climate at the end of the Ice Age created new environments.
Varied environments influenced the development of different Native American societies or groups that share a culture.
Like all societies, Native American groups changed over time.
: Questions How did climate change affect early peoples' migration?
In what general direction did early peoples migrate?
What natural features affected the route people took from Alaska to southern North America?
: Early Mesoamerican & South American Societies Olmec
Maya
Aztec
Inca
PLANT THESE FOUR CIVILIZATIONS INTO YOUR MEMORY BANK!
: Review What was the Ice Age?
Why were early peoples able to use the Bering Land Bridge?
Why do you think early peoples in the Americas migrated south?
What was the earliest known civilization in the Americas, and where was it located?
How did the Aztec build such a powerful, rich state?
Which of the four civilizations discussed do you think was the most highly developed?
: United States History Native American Cultures
: If YOU Were There... You live in the North American Southwest about 1,000 years ago. You've been working in the fields for several hours today. The maize crop looks good this summer, and you are hoping for a successful harvest. After finishing your work, you walk home. The opening to your house is in a cliff wall 30 feet above a canyon floor. You must use ladders to get to the opening. Do you like the location of your home? Why?
: Vocabulary Pueblos - Aboveground houses made of a heavy clay called adobe that were built by Native Americans of the southwestern United States.
Kivas - Underground ceremonial chambers at the center of Anasazi communities.
Totems - Images of ancestors or animal spirits; often carved onto tall, wooden poles by Native American peoples of the Pacific Northwest.
Teepees - Cone-shaped shelters made of buffalo skins used by Native Americans in the Plains region.
Iroquois League - A political confederation of five northeastern Native American nations of the Seneca, Oneida, Mohawk, Cayuga, and Onondaga that made decisions concerning war and peace.
: Early Societies By 1500 BC the people who lived in the North American Southwest, like those who lived in Mesoamerica, were growing maize.
The early Anasazi lived in pit houses dug into the ground.
The Anasazi often built their houses in canyon walls and had to use ladders to enter their homes.
The Anasazi thrived for hundreds of years.
Several farming societies developed in the eastern part of North America after 1000 BC.
The Hopewell culture had declined by AD 700.
The Mississippian built hundreds of mounds for religious ceremonies.
Several other mound-building cultures thrived in eastern North America.
: Native American Culture Areas The far north of North America is divided into the Arctic and the Subarctic culture areas.
South of the Arctic lies the Subarctic, home to groups such as the Dogrib and Montagnais peoples.
Native Americans in the Pacific Northwest carved images of totems.
Farther south along the Pacific coast was the California region, which included the area between the Pacific and the Sierra Nevada mountain range.
The area east of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, the Great Basin, received little rain.
The Southwest culture region included the present-day states of Arizona and New Mexico, and parts of Colorado and Texas.
Pueblo peoples were settled and built multistoried houses out of adobe bricks.
: Shared Beliefs Although they were different culturally and geographically, Native American groups of North America shared certain beliefs.
Ceremonies maintained the group's relationship with Earth and Sky, which were believed to be the sustainers of life.
Native Americans also shared beliefs about property.
Despite their shared beliefs, the diverse culture groups of North America had little interest in joining together into large political units.
: Review Why did the Anasazi build kivas?
What different types of housing were built by the Anasazi?
Why do you think that some mounds were built in the shape of birds and snakes?
What are culture areas?
How did food sources for Native Americans of the North and Northwest differ from those of Native Americans living in the West and Southwest?
Why was the formation of the Iroquois League considered to be a significant political development?
How did Native Americans view land ownership?
What role did religion play in the lives of Native Americans?
Why do you think most Native American groups did not form large empires like the Aztec and the Inca did?