America In The Beginning

Who 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 riseand expose

land.In the Bering straight a land bridge appeared connecting Siberia (Asia)

& The 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 environment

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 land.2. No one can own land.3. Only use what is needed (no waste).4. Trade was important to most societies.

How did Native Americans adjust to the new environments?

What did they have in common?

8 Cultural Regions

North West Coast

California

Plateau

Great Basin

South West

Great Plains

Eastern Woodlands

South East

8 Cultural Regions

North West Coast Weather:long cold winterscool summersheavy rainfall

Natural Resources:ocean/beachesthick forests of fir, spruce, and cedarrugged mountainsseafood/salmondeer, moose, bear, elk, beaver, mountain goats

California Weather: rainy wintershot dry summers

Natural Resources:ocean/coastfoothillsvalley'sdesertsmountainsacorns, oak treesgrass, and plantsredwood trees

salmon/seafood/shellfishdeer, rabbits, ducks, roots berries, pine nuts

Great Basin Weather:little rainhot during the day cold at nightNatural Resources:

mostly dessertlow areas surrounded by mountains at the edgeswith valleys that had seasonal lakes and streams

plants that need little water likegrasses, sagebrush, pinion 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.

Plateau Weather:long cold winterscomfortable summers

Natural Resources:mountains with dense forests in areasflatter in the center with drier grass landsrivers

driftwood, mud, dirt,grass and sage brushfish, antelope, deer, seedsonions, carrots, camas roots, salmon

Great Plains Weather:cold winters hot summers

Natural Resources:mountains surrounding edgestreeless grasslands in the centereast more water and softer soilwest drier dense grass

Buffalo and smaller animals

South West

Weather:high temperatureslittle rain dry/arid

Natural Resources:mountains, canyonsdesserts, flat top mesasrivers, little water

clay, brightly colored plants, cottoncorn, beans, squash, peppers, rabbits

Eastern Woodlands

Weather:snowy winters , rain

Natural Resources:rivers, ocean/coastlots of lakes and streams

Forests, plants, maple trees, elm,

deer, bears, beavers, birds, fishcorn, sunflowers, tobacco, vegetables,nuts, berries

South East

Weather:long warm humid summersmild winters

Natural Resources:rivers, ocean/coastFertile coastal plainsmountains, swamps

Trees, clay, shells, corn, beans, squash, pumpkins, sunflowers, sweet potatoessquirrels, rabbits, turkeys, deer, alligators, turtles,wild rice, persimmons