Archeology

Workbook Read the following

Jacob has always been interested in human history. He wants to know about how they lived thousands of years ago. He wants to learn about what they used to eat (did they eat Oreos?), what was their culture like (did they celebrate Christmas?), and how did they get their food (did they go to WalMart?). How would Jacob found out about the early humans. What would he be looking for and where would he be looking?

Archaeology What or who do you think of? pNlMgH2p-Yhttp:// pNlMgH2p-Y

Who is this?

The earliest people of North America left no recorded history of how they lived. Much of what we know about them comes from the artifacts they left behind. An artifact is any object made or used by people in the past. Artifacts can provide important evidence about past cultures, or ways of life. The study of past cultures is called archaeology. To study human behavior and to learn about past cultures, archaeologists recover buried artifacts. From artifacts such as spear points, archaeologists can figure out how people hunted or fought. Hoes, needles, or other tools provide scientists with clues about how people grew food or made products. When removing artifacts from an archaeological site, archaeologists generally dig in layers. Artifacts discovered nearest to the surface belonged to people who lived at the site more recently. Older objects are found in the deeper layers. By comparing artifacts from different times, archaeologists can see how cultures have changed or remained the same. What is an artifact? What do artifacts provide? What is the study of past cultures called? What is a culture?

THE BIG QUESTION: WHEN DID PEOPLE START AND HOW DID THEY GET TO NORTH AND SOUTH AMERICA? THE LONG WALK How did people first come to the Americas? Scientists cannot agree. For many years people believed that the first Americans walked here over a frozen chunk of land between Asia and what is now Alaska during the end of the last Ice Age—a period of time ending about 12,000 years ago when it was very cold and parts of the oceans began to freeze. New findings tell a more complicated story. People from other continents may have first crossed the Atlantic and Pacific oceans by boat about 20,000 years ago, and many American Indians believe that they have always been here—that this is the place where they were created. THE EARLIEST AMERICANS Scientists cannot agree on how or when people first came to the Western Hemisphere, but they do agree on this: the first artifacts left behind belonged to people they call Paleo-Indians or Paleo-Americans. “Paleo” means old. These ancient people were hunter-gatherers who moved from place to place, always chasing herds of animals, going hungry from hunt to hunt. What are the three ways that the Earliest Americans may have gotten or been here? – Do scientists know when people first came? What do we call the first people here? Why?

CACTUS HILL: THE GAME-CHANGER About 20 years ago a Virginia farmer noticed an odd stone spear point sticking up near a sandy dune on the Nottoway River in southeastern Virginia. His find drew scientists to an amazing discovery. DIGGING UP THE PAST AT CACTUS HILL The place the farmer stumbled upon, Cactus Hill, turned out to be very special. As a team of archaeologists began digging in the sandy soil, they found stone artifacts that had been carefully made by human hands more than 18,000 years ago. Archaeologists began digging at the Cactus Hill site, about 45 miles south of Richmond, in Since then they have unearthed hundreds of stone points and blades which were used for hunting, cutting meat, and scraping hides. They believe that this is one of the oldest sites in America. Who lived there? When did they first arrive? The answers were very surprising. This changed the way people thought about when people first came to the Americas!!! What river is Cactus Hill located? How old are the artifacts there? What did Cactus Hill do to people’s thoughts on when and how people came here?

Archaeologist Archaeologists study human behavior and culture through the recovery and analysis of artifacts

North America Scientists are not in agreement as to when and how people entered the Western Hemisphere

Cactus Hill, Virginia Cactus Hill is located on the Nottoway River in Southeastern Virginia. Evidence that human lived at Cactus Hill as early as 15,000 years ago makes it one of the oldest sites in North America. WHAT REGION? WHAT TRIBE LIVED HERE?

Archaeology Graphic Organizer

Activity Mixed Up Pots: Decorate five or six old clay flower pots with paint or magic markets. Put all the pots in a brown paper bag, and gently hit the pots with a hammer. Shake the bag. Remove half the pieces. Using glue, try to put together the pieces into something that "seems" to make sense.