CHAPTER 2 LESSON 1

Producing Food

Objectives

Describe the first crops people grew and the first animals they kept

Describe how farming and keeping animals changed the way people lived

Identify ways that people changed the environment

Vocabulary

Drought – long period with little or no rain

Domesticate - to tame plants or animals for human use

Livestock – domesticated animals that provide resources

Agriculture – the knowledge of raising plants and animals

Slash and burn farming – system of farming in which think forestlands are cut and burned to prepare the soil for planting

Surplus – extra supply

Adapting to Change

Climate became warmer

Early humans found new ways to survive by adapting to climate changes as the last Ice Age ended

They became better at storing food

Made new weapons for hunting smaller prey

Became farmers

Agricultural Revolution

After domesticating plants and animals, some people changed from a nomadic way of life to farming

Early farmers lived in permanent settlements and developed new rules for working and living together

People began to collect and plant seeds from wild plants

Early Farming Areas

Tigris Euphrates Valley – 10,000 years agoAndean – 9,500 years agoIndus Valley - 8,000 years agoHuang He – 8,000 years ago Nile Valley – 8,000 years ago Middle America – 5,400 years ago

See map on page 50 in your textbook

Agricultural Revolution

Living in permanent settlements lead to new forms of organization and new rules

People started to work together to choose and use farmland

Order needed to be kept and conflicts resolved

Farming as a Way of life

Farming often involved more work than hunting and gathering

Agriculture provided a steady, more reliable food supply

Often a surplus could be traded for other resources, or stored for later use

Summary

After the last Ice Age, people developed agriculture

By growing crops and keeping livestock, people created surplus food

With extra food, groups of people could stay in one place and support more people

They could also share food with other groups

They could even trade for goods not found near their settlements

This trade was an important step toward building larger,

more advanced societies