Agricultural Revolution

Preview

Cultivation and Domestication- The Agricultural Revolution was the beginning of farming and settlement. This period represents a complete change in the way of life for the earliest hunter-gatherers.Growth of Towns and Cities- As farming systems improved, food supplies increased and became steadier. This meant that settlements could support more people.

Reach Into Your Background

Farmers used to work small

farms by themselves. They

produced enough food to

provide for their families and

traded any surplus. How do you

think food production in the

United States has changed in the

past 150 years? (5 minutes)

Partner Activity

Work with a neighbor and compare your answer with theirs. What things are the same and what things are different? (3 minutes)

Key Ideas- Cultivation and Domestication

Groups of hunter-gatherers lived for short periods in areas with plenty of natural resources.Women began to plant seeds from wild crops to get more food. This was the start of agriculture as we know it today.Early people also began to tame and breed animals. The animals were used as sources of food and as labor in the fields.

Agricultural Revolution

This was a time when humans largely shifted away from living as roaming hunter-gatherers. Instead, they began living in farming communities. The Agricultural Revolution,did not happen quickly. It occurred gradually, over several thousand years.

Agricultural Revolution

The cold temperatures of the Ice Age ended about 11,700 years ago. Climates around the globe began to warmAs these nomadic peoples moved from region to region, they began to find areas with lots of animals and plants and other natural resources.

Agricultural Revolution

People settled in the area that is

today known as the Fertile

Crescent.

This region used to have rich plant

life and many kinds of animals.

People who settled in such areas

learned how to help the local plant

life grow.

Key TermAgriculture- The practice of cultivating the land or raising stock

Key TermAgricultural

Revolution- The time when human begins first domesticated plants and animals and no longer relied entirely on hunting and gathering.

The First Crops

When there were no longer enough food and plants in an area, people needed to move to a new location. Over time, they learned how to plant and grow certain crops. Then they were able to better control their food supply. At that point, they could begin to settle in one place.

The First Crops

Most historians believe that women were the first people to begin farming. This led to a slow change as women began to raise and harvest plants while men continued to hunt for food.

Trial and Error

Early farming was most likely a process of trial and error. Many Neolithic settlements had pits or buildings to store crops. Storing crops allowed early farmers to keep their food supply steady.

Trial and Error

Farming developed in several parts of the world at about the same time. What early farmers grew depended largely on their region’s climate. Researchers generally believe that barley and wheat were the first crops that were planted and harvested.

The First Farm Animals

Scientists think dogs descended

from wolves.

They also think that dogs were

the first animals tamed and

raised by humans.

Dogs were most likely

domesticated by early nomads

to help with hunting.

The First Farm Animals

People began taming and

raising farm animals about

10,000 years ago. They did this

by herding local wild animals

and leading them to pastures.

Goats and sheep were the first

domesticated farm animals.

The First Farm Animals

They were used not only for food

but also for wool, hides, and milk.

Their manure, or droppings, was

used to make land more fertile for

growing crops. People later tamed

pigs and cattle, along with larger

herd animals.

These animals could be used as

labor in the fields.

The First Farm Animals

Living in close quarters with

animals created some problems. Sometimes diseases spread from

animal populations to humans. Despite this problem, the

domestication of animals allowed farmers to increase the amount of

food they could grow.

The First Farm Animals

With the use of tamed animals, fewer people were needed in the fields. People could specialize in other activities that they were good at, such as making tools. Specialization led to new ways of working that brought improvements to people's lives.

Sophisticated Stone Tools

Tools and the methods for making them got better in the Neolithic era. Tool making advanced most quickly in places with large populations and a steady food supply. People in the Neolithic era made tools from stone, wood, antlers, and bone.

Sophisticated Stone Tools

The creation of pottery reveals people’s increasing skill in controlling fire. Fire was a useful tool for Neolithic people. Over time, people learned to use fire to melt metals for tool making. This advance ended the Neolithic era and brought in the Bronze Age.

Key TermBronze Age- A period characterized by the manufacture and use of bronze tools and weapons.

Key Ideas- Growth of Towns and Cities

By planting seeds that produced more and better plants, farmers could feed more people and cities could grow.Animals working in the fields made the farms more efficient. People could specialize in other things. This led to the growth of culture and new advances.Growing cities, new tools, and better farming systems made it possible for people to spread far and wide. They moved into regions they could not have lived in before.As people migrated, they brought their knowledge and farming methods with them. Agriculture spread across the globe.

Birth of Cities

Early settlements grew into

villages and then towns. The larger

towns were the centers of religion

and government.

After hundreds of years of growth,

the largest settlements had

enough people, power, and wealth

to be called cities.

Birth of Cities

Permanent settlements did not mean that people were no longer on the move. People continued to migrate. As people moved from place to place, they shared ideas and cultures. Farming and the use of tools and technology spread, and the world’s population rose.

Key TermMigration- The

movement of

people from one

country or

locality to

another.

Gradually Change

People in settled farming communities had an advantage over hunter-gatherer groups. Their communities had advanced tools and large populations. They could produce a steady supply of food. These communities could grow and spread faster.

Gradually Change

Over time, people changed from nomadic hunter-gatherers to settled members of farm-based communities. This was a major change in early people’s way of life. It led to better health, longer life, and the beginning of civilizations. This change happened gradually over thousands of years

Independent Activity

What has been the

“muddiest” point so far in this

lesson? That is, what topic

remains the least clear to

you? (4 minutes)

Wrap Up Activity

$1.00 SummaryEach word is worth 10 cents.So your sentence has to be _____ words EXACTLYWith your sentence, summarize how the agricultural revolution helped human society advance.