 By comparing and analyzing artifacts, researchers believe that early people lived in parts of East Africa nearly 3.5 million years ago.  Archaeologists believe that humans moved, or MIGRATED, from East Africa to Europe and Asia thousands of years ago.

 Eleven thousand years ago, Earth was in an Ice Age. During this time—from about 1.6 million years ago until about 10,000 years ago—huge ice sheets, called GLACIERS, covered great stretches of land.

 During parts of the Ice Age, the seas were lower than they are today. When the seas were lower, a vast area of land, called BERINGIA stretched from Asia to North America.  This is sometimes called a “land bridge.”  Animals and people from either side of the “bridge” were able to migrate between Asia and the Americas.

6th Grade-Unit 2: Hunters, Gatherers, Farmers

 The first humans and their ancestors lived during the Stone Age, a time when humans relied primarily on stone tools.  A tool is a handheld object that has been modified to help a person accomplish a task.

 From 3.5 million years ago-10,000 years ago  Humans relied on pebble or stone tools, as well as hand axes.  Rough surfaces and uneven cutting edges characterize tools made during the Old Stone Age.

6th Grade-Unit 2: Hunters, Gatherers, Farmers  Earliest tools found in East Africa  About 2.6 million years old  Each stone was hit with another to create a sharp edge.  One unsharpened side could be used as a handle.  Scientists think these first tools were used mostly to cut and grind food.  As the Old Stone Age progressed, humans began to use wood, horn, antler, and bone tools.  Bone was useful for fishhooks and needles.

 It is also around this time that fire is discovered.  Think…what benefits would fire bring to a group of hunter-gatherers?  Warmth  Protection from predators and insects  Can cook food  Stay up later to accomplish tasks

 10,000-5,000 years ago  Humans made great improvement in technology.  Polished rock tools.

6th Grade-Unit 2: Hunters, Gatherers, Farmers  Improved tools were made out of flint.  People learned how to attach wooden handles to tools.  Because they no longer had to stand next to the animals they were hunting, people were able to kill larger animals from a distance.