First Americans
 How did they
get to America?
 Where did they
live?
 How did they
use their
environment to
meet their
basic needs?
They were here first
The Land Bridge Theory
Over 14,000
years ago,
during the Ice
Age, people
began to arrive
in North
America. They
followed their
food source.
Where did they live?
These people spread over
the continents of North
America and South
America.
They lived in all Geographic
regions of North America.
 We will
study 5
different
groups of
First
Americans.
 Each
group lived
in a very
different
environment
3 Questions to
answer
1. What region did each group
inhabit?
2. What was the climate and
geography like for each group?
3. How did the geography and
climate affect the way each group
met their basic needs?
Remember
the 8
Geographic
Regions ?
Crazy Apes
In Green
Raincoats
Baking
Cookies
Carefully.
What are Geography &
Climate?
 What the land looks like…flat,
mountainous, hilly…
 What the weather is like over a
long period of time
List
3 Basic Needs
1.FOOD
2.CLOTHING
3.SHELTER
Starting in the East
•This group inhabited
northeast North America in
an area known as the
Eastern Woodlands.
•Their environment was
heavily forested.
•They lived in the
Appalachian Mountain and
Interior Lowland Regions.
Meet the Iroquois
Where Are We?
The Land
Thick forests
Fertile soil
Many rivers
Seasons
Conclude: How they met
their Basic Needs:
Hunt
FOOD:
Did they
Fish
Cultivate
Gather
Yes, the Iroquois used all of these
methods
What kinds of food did the
Iroquois eat?
CBS
Corn Beans Squash
Small game deer
Fish berries
Clothing & Shelter
What natural resources were available to
meet these needs?
Clothing?
Animal Skins
Shelter?
Wood
Their shelters are called Longhouses.
The Iroquois
Iroquois Longhouse
A typical Iroquois village
Interior of a Longhouse
Unique Characteristics
 The Iroquois used slash and burn
to prepare their land for farming.
Moving West…
What
Geographic
Region are we
now in?
Describe the
Geography &
Climate
Region- Great Plains
Geography- flat land gradually
increasing in elevation westward.
Grasslands few trees located
between the Mississippi River and
the Rocky Mountains
Climate- Seasons
Where Are We?
The Sioux
The Land
The Great Plains
Basic Needs
Conclude, using what you know
about their environment:
Food
Hunt
Fish
Cultivate
Clothing
Animal skins or Plants?
Shelter
What natural resource did they use?
Answer: Walking Wal-mart
•The Sioux hunted.The
women harvested corn.
•Example: Bison
•Their clothing was made
of animal skin.
•Their shelter was made of
animal skin: a tepee
Unique Characteristic
The Sioux were
nomadic.
The Sioux moved
to follow their food
source. (No permanent address)
Moving West…
•Located in the
southwest
•Present day
Arizona & New
Mexico
Meet the
Pueblo people
Region- Basin & Range
Geography- Areas of varying
elevation, containing isolated
mountain ranges, and Death
Valley There were not many
trees. The soil was sandy.
Climate- Hot and dry, not much
rain
Where Are We?
The Pueblo
The Land
Describe the Climate and
Geography
1.What was the
climate like?
2.Describe the land.
3.Were there forests?
4.What river runs
through this region?
1. The climate was hot and dry
2. The land was varied, with
mountains, cliffs, and basins.
3. There were few trees.
4. The Colorado river runs
through this region. It helped
carve the Grand Canyon in
present-day Arizona.
Basic Needs
Conclude, how the Pueblo people
managed to survive in this harsh
environment.
Food
Hunt
Fish
Cultivate
Clothing
Animal skins or Plants?
Shelter
What natural resource did they use?
Food
They cultivated their food. (farmed)
CORN
BEANS
SQUASH
(GREW SURPLUS AND STORED THE EXTRA FOOD)
Clothing
 PLANTS
 They cultivated cotton.
 They wove the cotton.
SHELTER
They used stones and mud to make
adobe bricks.
There homes were called Pueblos by
the Spanish.
Unique Characteristic
1.The Pueblo
people dug
irrigation ditches
to bring water to
their crops.
2.They made
pottery.
3.They wove cloth.
Moving West &
North…(it’ too hot!)
•Located along the
Pacific coast in
present-day
Washington state and
Canada
•Contains the Cascade
Mountains
•Columbia River
located here
Region- Coastal Range
 Geography- Rugged mountains
and fertile valleys, located along
the Pacific Ocean, forests
 Climate- Rainy and mild
Where Are We?
The Kwakiutl
The Land
Let’s Talk Climate:
 Rainy (This area gets a great deal of rain.)
 Ocean Currents (Influence the
climate, making the temperatures mild)
Basic Needs
Conclude, how the Kwakiutl people
managed to survive in this
environment.
Food
Hunt
Fish
Cultivate
Clothing
Animal skins or Plants?
Shelter
What natural resource did they use?
Food
 Mostly they FISHED. (Salmon)
 They ate other foods of course.
Clothing
 They used plants. (Cedar bark)
 They also used Animal skins.
Native dancer
A cedar bark cape.
SHELTER
•They used plants to build their shelter. (Trees)
•Their houses were called Plank houses.
Unique Characteristics
 They held lavish parties called
“Potlatches”.
 They carved Totem Poles.
 They traded
 They stored their food.
Tools Of The Trade
Above: Trading boat Below: Tools
Above: Fishing net Below: Drying rack
Moving North…
•Hundreds of lakes carved
by glaciers
•Wrapped around the
Hudson Bay in a horseshoe
shape
•Oldest rock formations in N.
America
•Hills worn by erosion
Name this region.
Region: Canadian Shield
 What is the climate like?
It’s COLD!
 Frozen tundra, with temperatures
below freezing much of the year
Where Are We?
The Inuit
The Land
Basic Needs
Conclude, how the Inuit people managed
to survive in this cold environment.
Food
Hunt
Fish
Cultivate
Clothing
Animal skins or Plants?
Shelter
What natural resource did they use?
Food
•The Inuit fished and hunted.
•Their main food was fish.
They also ate: Whales, seals, walrus, and caribou.
Clothing
 They used animal skins and furs.
SHELTER
 They used ice blocks to make their shelters.
 Their shelters were called Igloos
 They also used animal skins to make skin
tent shelters.
Inuit harpoon