Name:______

Date:______Period:______

Chapter 2 – Section 1 Notes

The First Civilizations of the Americas

8th Grade Social Studies

I. Theories About How People Reached the Americas

Theories / Important Information
Land-Bridge Theory / Thousands of years ago, ______, or thick sheets of ice, stretched across Canada. The ______locked up water from the oceans, causing sea levels to fall and uncovering the land beneath the sea.
This situation exposed a land bridge joining ______and ______.
Bands of ______might have crossed this land bridge from Asia to the Americas.
Coastal-Route Theory / People might have reached North America by crossing icy arctic waters by ______.
Other theories /

People might have reached the Americas from ______, ______, or ______islands

II. Adapting to New Conditions

  1. 12,000 years ago – Ice Age ______and large animals ______. People survived by:
  1. Hunting ______
  1. Gathering ______
  1. ______

B. 5,000 years ago – People learned to______. Thislead to:

  1. Creative of ______
  1. More ______being available
  1. Population growth –
  2. ______are formed and some farming communities in Central America grew ______(extra food)—enough to support large populations.
  1. With enough food available to feed large populations, the first ______emerged.
  1. These cities marked the rise of the first ______in the Americas. (______= A society that has cities, a well-organized government, different social classes, a complex religion, and a method of record keeping.)

II. Early Civilizations in Central and South America

Culture / Location of culture / Characteristics about culture
Olmec / ______Civilization in the Americas
Achievements of Olmecs:

Timeline of Early Cultures in the Americas

Directions: Fill in the dates when the culture existed. Start with the earliest civilization and end with the latest civilization. Use the timeline on pages 34-35 and the readings.

Culture / Dates of Existence / Two Interesting Facts about the Civilization
Comparing and Contrasting the Early American Civilizations
Directions: Create a Venn Diagram below to pick two of the cultures discussed and compare and contrast with at least two points for each area.