Unit 1 The First Americans

Geography and Climate Change the World

By: Mr. Casey

How did they get here?

• Scientists believe Native Americans came from Asia to what is now North America between 10,000 and 40,000 years ago.

Two Ways Native Americans Came:

1. Land Bridges (Bering Strait)2.Watercrafts along the coast

The land Bridge (Bering Strait)

Migration Across North America

Why did they come?

•FOOD “I’m Hungry!”• Many nomads followed their food

American Mastodon Big-horned bison

Agriculture Changes A Way of Life

• American Indians began to grow food. They still hunted and gathered but were able to stay in one place by growing crops.

Three Main Crops: “Three Sisters”1. Squash2. Beans3. Corn

*Usually Men hunted and fished, women gathered and farmed

Cultural Regions

There are four cultural regions

1. Pacific Northwest2. Desert Southwest

3. Great Plains4.Eastern Woodlands

*Each region had to adapt to meet their survival needs

Native american Cultural regions

Cultural Characteristics

• Geography

• Climate

• Shelter

• Tools

• Food

• Clothing

• Government

Northwest Region

Climate and Geography

• Take 10 minutes and discuss: “How did climate and geography effect...”

1. Food2. Shelter

3. Clothing4. Agriculture

5. Hunting6. Tools

7. Government

NOrhtwest RegionGeography - Land stretching up the Pacific Coast

from northwest California to southern AlaskaClimate - Long winters, heavy precipitation

Shelter - Multifamily houses made of wooden planksTools - Wood Carving tools to build and shape canoes and household containers, dishes, and spoons made of

animal hornsFood - Fish, especially salmon; whales, seals, roots and

berriesClothing - Thick clothing made from animal skins and

fur

The Showoffs

• The tribes of the northwest region were rich in comparison to most other native american tribes.

• All the people in the tribe were not equal - your status was based on wealth, property and prestige

The Showoffs

Totem Poles

LifestylePotlatches

Long Wooden Homes

Desert Southwest

Climate and Geography

• Take 10 minutes and discuss: “How did climate and geography effect...”

1. Food2. Shelter

3. Clothing4. Agriculture

5. Hunting6. Tools

7. Government

Southwest RegionGeography - Between the rocky mountains and the

Mexican Sierra Madre (present day Arizona)Climate - Desert

Shelter - Villages of large stone and adobe dwellings known as pueblos

Tools - Looms for making textiles; pottery

Food - Corn and beans; game such as deer, antelope, and rabbit

Clothing - Breechcloths made of cotton, with deerskin leggings and moccasins, (men) wraparound dresses made

of cotton, and deerskin moccasins (women)

The “Pueblo” Indians• The Native Americans of the southwest were

called the Pueblo Indians because of the homes they built that looked like apartment complexes

• The word “pueblo” means village in Spanish

Pueblo IndiansPeaceful Tribes except for the Apache

They were great craftsman. They made very ornate baskets, sandals, and belts.

Pueblo indians• Sipapu - The Great Creator

Kiva- sacred, ceremonial building

Kachinas- supernatural beings that were the

messengers of the gods; they brought good

fortune

Plains

Climate and Geography

• Take 5 minutes and discuss: “How the climate and geography may have effected...”

1. Food2. Shelter

3. Clothing4. Agriculture

5. Hunting6. Tools

7. Government

Plains RegionGeography - Between the Mississippi River and the

Rocky Mountains, stretching north into CanadaClimate - Temperate with four seasons

Shelter - Tepees (Crow); Earth lodges (Cheyenne)

Tools - Bows and Arrows, knives

Food - Large game such as bison, deer, elk, and antelope; sometimes traded for corn

Clothing -Shirts, leggings and moccasins made from deer or bison skin (men); dresses of deerskin and

moccasins (women)

Different lives

Most tribes were nomadic

(Comanche, Sioux, and Blackfoot) and

carried their homes with

them teepees... these could be broken down and turned into a sledge

called a travois

THE HORSE

Different lives Some tribes were not nomadic (Mandans). They grew crops and stayed in one place. They did

hunt, but stayed close to their homes and lived in permanent dwellings

Most tribes’ lives revolved around

the...

Different lives

Some bison meat was eaten fresh but some was beaten into a pulp and mixed with berries and fat.

This was called pemmican.

Bison hide or rawhide would be

used for clothing by tanning it

Different lives

Eagle Feathers

War Bonnets

Coup Stick

Sun Dance

Eastern woodlands

Climate and Geography

• Take 5 minutes and discuss: “How the climate and geography may have effected...”

1. Food2. Shelter

3. Clothing4. Agriculture

5. Hunting6. Tools

7. Government

Eastern WoodlandsGeography - From Lake Superior to the Atlantic Coast

(present-day eastern United States)Climate - Temperate climate with four seasons

Shelter - Longhouses made from a tree frame and bark walls; other Eastern Woodlands used wigwams

Tools - Stone Blades; wood utensils such as ladles and bowls; pottery

Food - Crops such as beans, squash, and most importantly, corn; men fished and hunted deer and birdsClothing -Deerskin clothing, including moccasins, sewn

with thread made from deer sinew (shredded fibers of tendon)

Mound Builders(Eastern Ancestors)

Built large mound temples- some as large as a 10-story building

Mound Builders(Eastern Ancestors)

Slave society- the rich women marry slaves

(“stinkards”) in order to keep the genetic line strong

Both are hunters and farmers

Three Main Groups

Iroquois (Mohawk and Seneca)

Algonquians(Fox, Mahican, Ojibwa)

Both groups hunt and farm, but the Iroquois are farming

experts

Creek Confederacy(Seminoles)

Algonquian & Iroquois

• They have no written language but they have a complex system of picture writing using tiny shell beads (wampum). They sew the beads onto clothing. It is often used as money.

The AlgonquianVillages of small homes

called wigwams

Several different

tribes, but they all speak

a similar language and

trade with one another

PowwowA large meeting where they settled

arguments, had festivals, and formed alliances

The iroquois

They believe in peace and brotherhood. They want to bring the

Algonquians into their league of Indian nations.

Call themselves Haudenosaunee (ho-dih-no-SHAW-nee)

The Algonquians dislike the Iroguois and call them the “terrible people”

The iroquois

They live in Longhouses of 20 or more families

The homes are 150 - 300 feet long

The iroquoisHave an unique form of government

It is a democratic league of five Indian nations

1. Each tribe has its own laws 2. Matters of war - council of all the tribes makes a decision3. Sachems (SAY-chums), ten from each nation, sit on the council4. Heads of family (women) choose the sachem5. Everyone on the council has to agree in order for an action to take place

Native american Cultural regions

Cultural Regions

There are four cultural regions

1. Pacific Northwest2. Desert Southwest

3. Great Plains4.Eastern Woodlands

*Each region had to adapt to meet their survival needs