Study Guide for Quiz on Native Americans and Early Explorers
People to know: (know what each of these explorers/people are most famous for doing):
Bartolomeu Dias, Vasco de Gama, Ferdinand Magellan,Vasco Nunez de Balboa, Leif
Eriksson, Henry the Navigator
Paleo- Indians and Early Civilizations:
How did the Paleo-Indians get to the Americas (what was the route they took called and
what two areas did the route connect?)?
What were the major Civilizations in Mesoamerica and South America?
Which of the early Mesoamerican/South American civilizations was the earliest?
What were the Megafauna?
What happened to the Megafauna (the theories surrounding their extinction)?
Native Americans:
How are Native groups defined? What did Native groups have in common with one
another?
How did Natives in the Arctic and Sub-Arctic survive?
How did Natives in the Southwest adapt to the dry climate?
Which native group hunted buffalo and lived on the plains?
What was the alliance system that the Iroquois developed known as? Describe it.
What is a matrilineal society?
What were the 4 reasons that allowed Native societies to function without police,
governments, or laws? Explain each and how they allowed Native societies to function.
What are two ways Natives and Europeans (or Americans) differ in their world views?
Explorers and Exploration:
What new technologies allowed explorers to make their voyages of exploration?
What were some reasons that led Europeans to explore?
What three words can summarize the motivations of early Explorers to explore? Explain
each.
What were the first two countries that established their presences’ in the Americas?
Why was there conflict between these two countries? What was the Treaty of
Tordesillas?
Who benefited from the Treaty of Tordesillas (how?)?
Did Columbus discover America? What did he die believing he had reached?
Sources:
What is a primary source?
What is a secondary source?
Give some examples of each type of source.
What are some problems with primary sources?