Unit 2 – American Indians Before European Exploration KEY
Use the Venn diagram to compare the between the American Indian Cultures.
Apache
Nomadic
Great Plains
Region
Teepees
Women cured
buffalo hide
Traded
buffalo
products for
other goods
Apache
Warrior/chief
Caddo
Sedentary
East Texas
Gulf Coastal
Plains Region
Settlements
Dome-shaped
homes
Farmers
Pottery
Confederation
Chief
Traders
Comanche
Nomadic
Great Plains
Region
Teepees
Women cured
buffalo hide
Traded
buffalo
products for
other goods
Chief &
Council
Long hair
Caddo
East Texas
Gulf Coastal
Plains Region
Settlements
Dome/Beehive
shaped homes
Jumano
Traders
Farmers
West Texas
Mountain & Basin
Region
Pueblos – Adobe
Earthen homes
1. Explain how American Indians of Texas arrive here.
They crossed the Bering Strait from Asia and migrated southward over many years.
2. Think about what life might be like as a 9-year-old child living in a Caddoan Village.
Write a journal entry explaining what your life is like. Be sure to cover the following
points:
a. What does your mother do?
b. What does your father do?
c. What kinds of foods do you eat?
d. What kinds of clothing do you wear?
e. What is your house like?
Responses will vary, but should describe what each parent does (Mom – makes pottery, Dad –
farm, crop trees for wood), that they eat corn and other vegetables (corn) and game (small
animals), their clothing consists of loin cloths for the males and doe-skin dresses for the females,
the houses are dome-shaped and made from grasses.
Central
Plains
Tonkawa
Mountain
& Basin
Jumano
Great
Plains
Apache
Comanche
Gulf Coastal
Plains
Caddo
Karankawas
3. Divide the map of Texas into 4 regions and label each region.
4. Place a different symbol on the map of Texas showing where each of the American
Indian groups lived. Create a key for the map defining each of the symbols. Symbols
are not shown on this map. Be sure to create a symbol for each tribe. Example:
teepee for Apache, wikiup for Karankawas, dome for Caddo, pueblo for Jumanos
a. Karankawas
b. Jumanos
c. Comanches
d. Caddoes
e. Apaches
f. Tonkawa
5. An American Indian group that lived in an area that met its needs for food, shelter,
and clothing was usually SEDENTARY
6. An American Indian group that lived in a place that did not always meet its need for
food, shelter, or clothing was usually NOMADIC
Vocabulary Review
• Region – an area that is used to identify and organize areas of the Earth’s
surface for various purposes
• Political – areas defined by government (e.g., cities, urban area, counties,
political parties)
• Population – the number of people in an area
Economic – the types of industries, how people make a living
7. Complete the table
Region &
Resources
Way of life
(sedentary,
nomadic)
(teepees, huts,
beehive/dome
shaped huts,
pueblos,
wikiups)
Wikiups
Economy
(farming,
trading/barter,
hunting/gatherer)
Government
System
(chief,
confederation,
council)
Hunter/Gatherer
of small animals
and fish
No central
government
system
Chief
Confederation
Karaankawas
Coastal Plains
Sedentary
Land with
fertile soil
Corn, beans
Caddo
Coastal Plains
Sedentary
Corn, beans
Dome/behive
shaped huts
Hunter/Gatherer
of small animals
and fish
Apache
Great Plains
Nomadic –
hard climate
during winter
Teepees
Hunted buffalo
Warriors
and farmed a little Chief
Raided other
tribes because
food was scarce
Jumano
Mountain &
Basin
Sedentary
Tonkawa
Pueblo – made
Homes
from Earthen
materials mud
& straw (adobe)
Central Plains
Hunted buffalo
Sedentary – did
and fished
not have to
migrate
because of the
abundance of
food
Comanche
Great Plains
Nomadic
buffalo
Teepees
Hunted buffalo
and used all parts
of the buffalo to
survive
Became skilled
horsemen
Warriors
ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES USED BY VARIOUS EARLY AMERICAN
INDIAN GROUPS IN TEXAS AND NORTH AMERICA TO MEET THEIR
NEEDS AND WANTS
Including, but not limited to:
• Farming
◦
Caddos (Gulf Coast) and Jumanos (Mountains and Basins) grew
crops (specifically corn) to provide for their tribe. Excess was
traded with neighboring tribes.
• Trading
◦
Bartering – Native Americans traded goods that they had for goods
that other tribes made. Each group of Native Americans made
goods conducive to their environment.
◦
When nomadic Texas Indians had excess hides or products made
from animals, they would barter or trade with neighboring tribes.
◦
Sedentary tribes like Caddos made jewelry, pottery, and tools to
trade with neighboring tribes.
• Hunting
◦
All Indians hunted and gathered their food to meet the needs of
their tribes. If there was excess, they would barter or trade with
neighboring tribes.
◦
Nomadic Indians such as the Indians of the Great Plains and North
Central Plains hunted buffalo, deer, and other animals to meet
their basic needs of home, clothing, and tools.
Karankawa, Caddo, and Jumano Indians, who were more sedentary,
hunted small animals and fished. Their environment lent itself to this type of
hunting and gathering