America In The
BeginningWho were
the first
Americans?
How and
why did they
come here?
30,000 years ago
During a period of
low temperatures
called an Ice Age
The world was
covered in Glaciers
or sheets of ice.
This caused
ocean levels to
_____drop___
and expose
____land______.
In the Bering
straight a
_________land
bridge______
appeared
connecting Asia &
Americas
This land bridge
is known as
Beringia.
Animals like
mammoths
crossed the
bridge or
migrated to the
America's.
Hunter's in Asia
who moved from
place to place to
find food or
Nomads followed
the mammoths and
spread out or
_migrated________
__ to the America's
The ice age
ended
_warming______
_____ up glaciers
causing water
levels to
_rise________
covering up the
land
bridge_______.
Some animals
died off like
mammoths
____________.
Living in many
different parts of the
Americas the
Natives needed to
adjust or
__adapt_______ to
every thing in the
new surrounds that
made up each of
their own
environments______
_______
in order to survive
__________.
What
happened
when they
came to
America?
How did they
meet their new
needs?
America In The
Beginning
America In The
Beginning
Living in many different
parts of the Americas
the Natives used the
different natural
_resources__________
in their own different
environments for food,
clothing, and shelter.
Different groups in
different
environments
developed their own
beliefs and ways of
life or culture.
Groups in the same
environments
adapted similar life
styles, and language
creating cultural
region
Many Native
American have these
things in common.
1. Nature has a spirit
and believe in gods.
2. No one can own
land.
4. Only use what is
needed (no waste) .
5. Trade was
important to most
societies
How did
Native
Americans
adjust to the
new
environments
?
What did they
have in
common?
8 Cultural
Regions
California
West coastplateau
Great Basin
Plains
Eastern woodlands
southwestsoutheast
8 Cultural Regions
North West CoastWeather:
long cold winters
cool summers
heavy rainfall
Natural Resources:
ocean/beaches
thick forests of fir,
spruce, and cedar
rugged mountains
seafood/salmon
deer, moose, bear, elk,
beaver, mountain goats
Used cedar canoes to hunt
Fenced in salmon laying eggs
used cedar to make rope, mats and
baskets
shell needles
used wedges, sledge hammers,
drills, and knifes to carve wooden
masks
Clothing:
Cedar water proof clothing like
capes with
decorative shell buttons
Shelter: lived near the coast
Cedar Long Houses with cedar
bark roofs
CaliforniaWeather:
rainy winters
hot dry summers
Natural Resources:
ocean/coast
foothills
valley's
deserts
mountains
acorns, oak trees
grass, and plants
redwood trees
salmon/seafood/shellfish
deer, rabbits, ducks,
roots berries, pine nuts
Used Bows& arrows, snares, and nets, used
cooking stones to heat acorn meal
tools from antlers
Clothing:grass/leather aprons and skirts
Shelter: Cone shaped made of redwood bark,
pole, and reeds woven into mats
Great BasinWeather:
little rain
hot during the day
cold at night
Natural Resources:
mostly dessert
low areas surrounded by
mountains at the edges
with valleys that had
seasonal lakes and streams
plants that need little water like
grasses, sagebrush, pinon trees,
at the outer edges pine trees, and willow
small animals rabbits, lizards,
grasshoppers, snakes
sometimes ducks , duck eggs during certain
seasons
seeds,berries pine nuts, roots, cattail
Tools: water baskets sealed with tree sap
Floating duck decoys, nets, sharp sticks, flat
baskets for catching seeds
Clothing: rabbit robes in winter
Shelter: Nomadic temporary cone shelters of
willow, brush and reeds
PlateauWeather:
long cold winters
comfortable summers
Natural Resources:
mountains with
dense forests in areas
flatter in the center with
drier grass lands
rivers
driftwood, mud, dirt,
grass and sage brush
fish, antelope, deer, seeds
onions, carrots, camas
roots, salmon
Tools: woven baskets, willow digging sticks,
wooden fishing platforms, nets, and spears for
salmon
Clothing: antelope and deer hides leggings,
dresses and skirts, woven hats, seed and shell
designs
Shelter: near rivers, partly under ground out of
driftwood, mud, sap, and reeds
Great PlainsWeather:
cold winters
hot summers
Natural Resources:
mountains surrounding edges
treeless grasslands in the
center
east more water and softer
soil
west drier dense grass
Buffalo and smaller animals
Culture:
Tools: bow made of buffalo tendon, arrows,
V shaped stone trap, fire, bone knives,
shields,
Clothing: Buffalo robes and hides
Shelter: Houses called tipis
South WestWeather:
high temperatures
little rain
dry/arid
Natural Resources:
mountains, canyons
desserts, flat top mesas
rivers, little water
clay, brightly colored plants, cotton
corn, beans, squash, peppers,
rabbits
walled houses made of bricks
of adobe(sun baked clay). Up
to 4 stories and had hundreds
of rooms.
Clothes were made of cotton
that they grew. Using plants
and minerals, they dyed the
fabric
Lived near naturally flooded
areas. Men dug irrigation
ditches, and also built dams to
hold summer rain.
Women spend most
Eastern WoodlandsWeather:
snowy winters , rain
Natural Resources:
rivers, ocean/coast
lots of lakes and streams
Forests, plants,
maple trees, elm,
deer, bears, beavers, birds, fish
corn, sunflowers, tobacco,
vegetables,
nuts, berries
Long House: Sturdy, log-framed houses
covered with elm bark, about 20 feet wide
and over 100 feet long. Several related
families live in sections of the house.
Skirts, capes, and moccasins were made out
of deer skins.
Women ground corn with wooden sticks .
Men often paddled on the rivers and streams
in log and bark canoes . They trapped
beavers, hunted deer, bear, caught birds,
and speared fish.
For farming land, men burnt small sections
of trees and underbrush. Women did the
hoeing and planting. They planted many
different types of corn, beans and squash.
Made maple syrup and wooden storage
canisters.
South EastWeather:
long warm humid summers
mild winters
Natural Resources:
rivers, ocean/coast
Fertile coastal plains
mountains,
swamps
Trees, clay, shells,
corn, beans, squash,
pumpkins,
sunflowers, sweet potatoes
squirrels, rabbits, turkeys,
deer, alligators, turtles,
wild rice, persimmons
Houses were made from strips of young trees
woven into a rectangular frame, then plastered
with clay. These houses had pointed roofs made of
leaves.
Towns included many mounds, first mounds were
burial sights, but others were larger, and used as
platforms for temples. It took many months, even
years, to build these mounds, because they moved
the dirt 1 basket full at a time.
Simple clothing was made of deer skin. Jewelry
made of stones, shells, feathers, pearls, bones,
and clay.
Women used hoes made of stone, shell or animal
shoulder blades. Men hunted using small blow
guns, and bows and arrows.
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