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8th Grade United States History
The First Americans 8th Grade United States History Let’s learn about the Ice Age!!
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Vocabulary Words to Know
Beringia Nomads Migration Ice Age Maize Culture Artifacts Archaeology Carbon Dating Write each definition as we go through the lecture.
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Where did the first Americans come from?
They came during the Ice Age around 20,000 years ago. They traveled across Beringia (land bridge connecting Asia and North America). Light Brown (then)=Land Light Brown (now)=Water They came from Siberia (Russia).
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Beringia They crossed over on a land bridge made of ice from Siberia to Alaska. This land bridge is called Beringia.
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What were the reasons for coming to North America
They were following large game Mammoths/Mastodons Buffalo/Bison Saber-Tooth Tigers They came in a MIGRATION.- A large group of people moving from one place to another They were Nomads -People who move from place to place without a stable home
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This migration took centuries. They were nomads in search of food
This migration took centuries. They were nomads in search of food. They hunted bison and mammoths using stone tools
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What happened at the end of Ice Age
About 15,000 years ago the earth’s temperature began to rise and the ice melted. Cut off the first Americans from Asia. The mammoth and other large animals began to die out.
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What was the Ice Age? Sea levels were lowered.
Extremely cold temperatures on Earth. Much of the oceans were frozen into ice sheets, or glaciers. People and animals can move across the land, which was once covered by water. Lower sea levels exposed large areas of the seabed (ground).
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What was covered by ice? Representation of Europe during Ice Age
Green- land Blue- water White- ice/snow Representation of North America during Ice Age The “cloud” represents areas that were ice/snow during the Ice Age.
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What did they do when the animals died out?…
1.Learn to fish 2.Hunt smaller game (deer, rabbits, squirrels, etc…) 3.Begin planting seeds
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A New Way of Life N/A’s in modern day Mexico discovered how to breed plants like corn around 8,000 B.C. – called maize Population grew rapidly as a result Pumpkins, beans, squash, tomatoes, and potatoes were all developed by N/A’s
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STONE AXE
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Ceramics & Textiles Ceramics- anything made of clay
Textiles- anything woven with fiber
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FIRE Cooked food Dugout canoes Protection from animals
Light at night or in caves
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Transportation N/A’s did not have horses until Europeans arrived,
they either walked or used canoes
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Hunting Early N/A’s hunted large game like wooly mammoth.
Later, hunted deer, buffalo, and other smaller animals
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BOW AND ARROW B and A-big improvement over spear
Skilled archer could hit targets from over a thousand feet away One person can carry dozens of arrows
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How do historians know so much?
They use carbon dating - measures the amount of carbon that remains in something. This can tell us the age of something. They use artifacts, which are things left behind by early people. They study archaeology, the study of ancient cultures.
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Classwork/Homework; Chapter 1 section 1 Complete reading check on page 18 and reading check on page 19. Complete section assessment on page 19 #’s 2,3,5 Finish Textbook scavenger hunt for homework
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Central and South American Peoples
Large civilizations began in South and Central America. A. Olmec (12,000bc) Mexico B Maya replaced the Olmec (400bc) 1. lived in Central America and Mexico 2. Society was ruled by religious leaders(theocracy) 3. Developed a calender and used hieroglyphics.
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Central and South American peoples
C Aztec ( AD) Mexico 1. Capital was Tenochtitlan 2. Great warriors D Inca (South America) 1200 1. Capital was Cuzco 2. Largest of the 3
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North American Peoples
Civilizations in North America began 3,000 years ago. Evidence of the first NA in North America was in the Southwest. The Hohokam- Arizona B. The Anasazi (Utah, Colorado, Arizona,New Mexico) They built dwellings in the walls of steep cliffs
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Pueblo Bonito- New Mexico
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Mesa Verde - Colorado
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Mound Builders Region extending from Great Lakes to Gulf of Mexico
Adena, Hopewell, Mississippians Built earth mounds as burial chambers for important people and Chiefs Largest earth mound is in Illinois called Cahokia Local example is Lake Jackson Mounds built by the Appalachee
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Cahokia
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Regions of Native Americans
People of the North: Canada and Alaska Inuit People of the West: California and West Coast Tlingit, haida, Chinook, Nez Perce, Pomo, Shoshone People of the Southwest: Hopi, Acoma, Zuni, Apache, Navajo People of the Plains: Dakota
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People of the East and Southeast:
Iropuois, Cherokee,Mohawk, Creek, Chickasaw, Cherokee, Seminole First People of Florida: Timucua Apalachee Jeagas Tequesta Calusa Tocobaga
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Warm-up Page Put your answers on a sheet of paper in your warm-up section of your notebook
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