History & Sources
The study of events that happened in the past.
History
A timeline organizes events in this order.
Chronological order.
People who hunted animals and gathered wild plants for food were called this.
This hard stone was used to make sharp tools.
Flint
A historian finds an ancient stone axe. Is it a primary source or secondary source?
Primary source
People who study history.
Historians
A decade is equal to this many years.
10 years
A person who moves from place to place instead of settling permanently is called this.
Nomad
Spears and arrowheads made it easier for hunter-gatherers to do this.
Hunt large animals
Why did prehistoric people have difficulty developing new skills and technologies?
They spent most of their time and energy finding enough food to survive.
An object made or used by humans long ago.
Artifact
Which came first: 500 BC or 200 BC?
500 BC
Name two foods hunter-gatherers gathered.
Berries and nuts
Give two ways shelters helped hunter-gatherers survive.
They protected people from weather and dangerous animals.
Cause → Effect: Animals leave an area where a hunter-gatherer group lives. What will the group most likely do?
Migrate to another area to find food.
These specialists excavate and study artifacts to learn about early humans.
Archaeologists
Put these in order from earliest to latest:
1 AD, 500 BC, 500 AD, 1000 BC
→ 1000 BC → 500 BC → 1 AD → 500 AD
Why did hunter-gatherers migrate from place to place?
They moved to find enough food and natural resources.
Name three ways fire helped prehistoric humans.
Cooking, warmth, light, safety, and preserving food.
An archaeologist finds animal bones, stone tools, and evidence of fire in a cave. What can these artifacts help historians learn?
They can provide evidence that people hunted/ate animals, used tools, and used fire.
Why are artifacts especially important when studying prehistoric people?
Because prehistoric people did not have a system of writing, so artifacts provide evidence about their lives.
Explain why BC dates decrease as they get closer to AD.
BC dates count backward toward 1 AD.
How did relying on wild food affect the way hunter-gatherers lived?
They had to remain nomadic and move when food became scarce.
How could better tools and fire change the lives of hunter-gatherers?
They could make hunting and preparing food easier, saving time and energy for other activities and innovations.
A student says, “Prehistoric humans did not accomplish much because they had no modern technology.” Give two pieces of evidence from this unit that challenge the claim.
They developed stone tools, hunting weapons, shelters, and controlled fire.