Lesson 1:
Why do you think the Maya used different stones in construction?
They used whatever they could get.
When did the last Ice Age occur?
The last Ice Age occurred between 1000,000 and 10,000 years ago.
Why did Aztec construct causeways?
They needed to link the capital of Tenochtitlan to the main land.
Why do you think American Indians might have assumed if there was a lack of rain?
They might've assumed that they have offended the spirits.
How did the Aztec benefit from digging canals?
Canals helped the Aztecs farm and digging canals provided dirt to fill part of Lake Texcoco.
How did farming affect communities in the Americas?
Farming produced more food. Great numbers of people could live together in a permanent settlement.
How did the Aztecs' religious beliefs weaken their empire?
The Aztecs sacrificed thousands of people to appease their gods.
They needed the rivers water to grow crops such as corn, pumpkins, and beans.
Why did priests have great power in the Maya social structure?
The Maya believed that only priest could only perform the ceremonies that should good harvest and victory in battle.
How did an extra surplus of food lead to the first civilizations?
Extra food allowed the population to grow. People work together to form societies with language, territory, and economy.
What role did women play in the Iroquois culture?
They chose clan leaders and could remove the leader from the position if he did his job poorly.
What did the Anasazi and Hohokam do to adapt to their environment?
The Hohokam and Anasazi also irrigated the desert in order to farm.
How might the last Ice Age have helped hunters reach North America?
What major impact did the development of farming have on the settlers of the Americas?
Once farmers could grow a surplus of food, cities, marketplaces, and trade routes began to develop.
How did the Hohokam adapt to living in a desert region?
The Hohokam dug irrigation ditches from rivers to their fields, so they could grow crops like corn and beans.
What were the buildings in the Anasazi culture made from and what did the Spanish call them?
They were made from adobe, and the Spanish called them pueblos.
What features of Olmec society indicate that it was a civilization?
They built large stone temples, which suggests they had central government and religion. They had different social classes. Some were workers and some had to study the stars and develop a calendar.
What is a key similarity between the Aztec and Maya civilization?
Both studied the heavens to create complex calendars.
What technological solutions enabled the Pueblo people to thrive in the dry climate of the Southwest region?
They dug networks of irrigation for farming and made networks for roads to travel.