Unit: Civilizations in the Americas
Lesson Title: The Early Cultures of the Americas
(See textbook pages 386-389)
No one is sure how the first people got to the
Americans or when, but most historians think they
came from Asia around 12,000 BC, either by a land
bridge or by sea.
How could a land
bridge form across
the Bering Straight?
(Clue: it was during
the Ice Age.)
The first people to arrive in the Americas were
hunter-gatherers who wandered the land living on
animals, grains, and nuts.
Why would these early people wander?
The first Americans hunted and ate huge wooly
mammoths and bison!
Eventually some early people began to settle down
along the coasts of North and South America.
As populations grew, people started to experiment
with seeds and learned to farm.
Why would it be easier to settle on the coasts?
The first permanent settlements appeared in
Mesoamerica. This region had rich soil, warm
temperatures and plenty of rain.
People were growing maize by 3500 BC. Later they
also grew beans, squash, and other crops.
Eventually the settlements grew and people began to
focus on trade, art, building, and religion.
The settlements developed into towns and cities.
In class reading activity
Read “First Farming Settlements” on page 387.
Copy and complete this chart to explain the causes and
effects of agriculture in the Americas.
CAUSE: People in the Americas planted seeds.
Development of agriculture in the Americas
Where:
Why:
What they grew:
When:
Effects of Farming
1.
2.
3.
Two important societies that formed in the very
early Americas were the Olmec and Chavín peoples.
The Olmec people formed the first urban civilization in
Mesoamerica. They developed religious and government
centers, and built the first pyramids in the Americas.
The Olmec developed writing, art, and scientific study.
They are known for their giant head sculptures.
The Chavín people arose in South America in the Andes
Mountains.
The Chavín also had a complex culture with large
buildings and sculptures, woven cloth, religion, and
trade.
They even had a real temple of doom – the Chavín de
Huantar .
Right Side Notebook Activity
You are an archeologist just returning from Mesoamerica
and the Andes mountain region of South America. You
have brought artifacts of the Olmec and Chavín
peoples with you from your digs. You will use the
artifacts to make a museum of these cultures in the
Vandenberg Middle School library.
Read “The Olmec” and “Farming and the Growth of
Other Civilizations” (387-389). Draw a picture of your
museum. Include 3 artifacts from the Olmec dig and 3
artifacts from the Chavín dig. Explain the significance
of each artifact in a phrase or short sentence.