Chapter 2 Learning About Early People
Section 1 All People Have A Culture
Vocabulary p. 37
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Culture – The way of life of a group of people at a particular time, including their customs, beliefs, and
arts.
Custom – A social habit or way of living in a group.
Society – A group of people bound together by the same culture.
Values – The beliefs or ideals that guide the way people live.
Government – The established form of ruling a place.
Religion – The way people worship the God or gods they believe in.
Legacy – The gifts a culture has received and the gifts it leaves to future cultures.
Questions and Answers (1 - 4) p. 40
1) What are basic needs?
Food, clothing, and shelter are essential needs.
2) How does the chart on page 38 help you understand how cultures around the world differ?
People develop different ways to meet their basic needs, determined to some degree
by environments.
3) Why are values important? How do they affect society?
Values guide how people behave toward one another.
4) Look at the picture to the left. What does it tell you about Japanese culture?
Answers will vary; One possible answer would be that Japanese women value
tradition and customs. Many Japanese women wear colorful robes and elaborate
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Chapter 2 Learning About Early People
Section 2 How Early People Lived
Vocabulary p. 41
Ice Age – A long period in the past that lasted for millions of years.
Glacier – A great sheet of slowly moving ice.
Old Stone Age – The earliest period of human culture, beginning about two million years ago and
lasting until about 8,000 B.C.
Nomad – A person without a permanent home who travels in search of food.
Questions and Answers (1 - 4) p. 44
1) How did people live during the Old Stone Age?
They lived as nomads, surviving by hunting and gathering food.
2) What tools did early people have? What were they made of?
They had knives, spears, scrappers, axes, digging sticks; they made flints, which they could
sharpen to cutting edges.
3) What continents were most affected by the Ice Age?
Explain your answer. Antarctica, North America, Europe, Asia; Answers will vary but should
reference the map on page 42.
4) What could have been the consequences if the Ice Age had never ended? What would the Earth be
like?
Answers will vary; but could include ideas like modern civilization may not have developed,
the earth would have been colder, fewer plants and animals would live in northern regions.
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Chapter 2 Learning About Early People
Section 3 The Beginnings of Village Life
Vocabulary p. 46
New Stone Age – A period in social development that started about 8,000 B.C., in which people first
domesticated animals, farmed the land, and lived in settled communities.
Domesticate – To tame animals in order to make them useful to people.
Cultivate – To prepare and use land for raising crops; This marked the start of the New Stone Age.
Specialize – To be trained to do a particular kind of work.
Artisan – A person skilled in crafts such as carving or tool making; A crafts worker.
Technology – The use of skills and tools to serve human needs.
Catal Huyuk – A New Stone Age village.
Questions and Answers (1 - 4) p. 51
1) What twin developments helped increase the food supply?
Cultivation of land and domestication of animals.
2) Why did specialization develop?
People no longer had to spend all their time finding food. They had time to develop skills and crafts.
3) Describe technology. How did it change?
Technology is the use of skills and tools to serve human needs. People continually
invented new technologies to serve their needs better.
4) Compare and contrast the culture of the Old Stone Age with the New Stone Age culture. How were they
different or similar?
Hunting and gathering began to give way to farming and herding. People lived in villages instead of as
nomads. Specialization developed and so did technology.
Chapter 2 Learning About Early People
Section 4 How Do We Know bout The Past?
Vocabulary p. 52
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Histroy – The record of what has happened in the past.
Prehistory – The period before events were recorded in writing; the Old and New Stone Age.
Artifacts – Objects that were made by people long ago, such as tools.
Archaeology – The study of the remains of past cultures.
Primary Sources – A first–hand account of an event, such as an official document, a diary, or a letter.
Secondary Sources – A written record of the past such as a book by a historian, that is based on
information from a primary source or sources.
Questions and Answers (1 - 3) p. 54
1) What is prehistory? How is it different from history?
Prehistory is the period before writing was developed. History began when people could
make and leave written records.
2) How are artifacts useful?
Artifacts give evidence of what people made, which gives clues to how they lived.
3) What are primary sources? Name four examples.
Primary Sources are first-hand accounts of an event, such as business and government
records, letters, and diaries.
4) Find out about the history of your family. What primary or secondary sources can you use?
Answers will vary.
Chapter 2 Learning About Early People
Building Skills Time Skills
Vocabulary p. 55
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Time Line – A line on which selected dates and events are written; Used to show the order
in which events occurred and how much time has passed between events.
Questions and Answers (1 - 4) p. 55
1) How do time lines help you to find out when events took place?
Time lines list dates in order and show the time between them.
2) Which event on the time line is earliest?
Old Stone Age ends.
3) Did the Old Stone Age end before or after the New Stone Age ended? How can you tell?
Before; Old Stone Age is farther left on the time line.
4) Do you think time lines are a good way to show past events/ Why or Why not?
Yes; It is easier to list dates in order.
Chapter 2 Learning About Early People
Summary and Review
Ideas to Remember
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Although the customs and values of a culture vary, all people have the same basic needs for
food, clothing, and shelter.
During the Old Stone Age people were hunters and gatherers and lived in small groups.
The New Stone Age marked the beginning of village life and the rapid growth of
technology. An abundant food supply made it possible for people to specialize.
Historians and archaeologists are interested in finding out about the past. Their knowledge
helps us understand the world we live in.
Chapter 2 Learning About Early People
Summary and Review
Reviewing Facts p. 57
1) What are the three basic needs of people everywhere?
Food, Clothing, and Shelter
2) Why are values important?
They guide the way people live and are governed.
3) Name two ways in which the deer herds filled the basic needs of people during the old Stone Age.
The flesh was eaten and the hides were worn as clothes.
4) Why did the people of the Old Stone Age live as nomads?
They traveled to find food.
5) How did the end of the Ice Age affect the growth of society?
Warmer climates favored the growth of farming; people stayed in one place longer.
6) What two major benefits did the domestication of animals bring to New Stone Age people?
Animals were a steady supply of food and hides, and helped in hunting and carrying loads.
7) How did the village of Catal Huyuk become a center of trade?
Villagers produced goods that other wanted to buy.
8) Describe specialization.
Individuals developed skills to do unique kinds of work.
9) How do archaeologists learn about people who lived long ago?
By digging for and studying artifacts.
10) Describe the work of the historian.
They gather facts and use them to draw conclusions.