For the next couple of weeks I will be giving a crash course on World and US History.

And for this lesson we will start with:



The study of the earliest humans is considered prehistory because there is no written account of their lifestyles. From archeologists' discoveries of primitive dwellings, cave drawings, skeletal remains, and artifacts, we know where the earliest human communities existed. Anthropologists have examined these artifacts--items such as tools, weapons, and pottery--and have intensely researched bone fragments and fossil remains to uncover evidence about different periods of human development.

The earliest stage of cultural development has been classified as the Stone Age because of the evidence that early humans used stone tools. Stones were shaped to use as knives and spear points for hunting and defense and as tools, such as hammers, axes, and scrapers. Later, people made stone and bone tools like needles, harpoons, fishhooks, and arrowheads. These early people were nomadic--they had no permanent shelters and followed the herds of animals that they hunted for survival.


What might have been the uses of the artifacts pictured here?

Over time many groups of early humans ceased their nomadic lifestyle to become hunters and gatherers in areas of abundant game, fresh water, and fertile soil. Scientific study of these sites has shown that these early farmers were able to determine which crops would grow best for their soil and climate With such developing knowledge of agriculture, these people learned to work the land and to domesticate animals. Many of these early groups built more permanent shelters. Gradually communities developed, and societal organization became necessary for survival.

Within these newly formed communities, some individuals practiced special skills or trades. Commerce developed through bartering goods (eg: food, cloth, or pottery) or services (eg: medicinal, labor). As the basic communities grew, a need for rules and organization also grew; so the early forms of government were created. A unifying factor in these early settlements was fear and lack of knowledge about the surrounding world. The ways of early humans expained these natural phenomena led to the early forms of religion and to the development of traditions and beliefs.

Exercise 1

1. Which of the following would be considered a fossil?

(1) a clay pot used for cooking
(2) a club used for defense
(3) the ancient remains of a bird
(4) the spear of a hunter
(5) a basket made for gathering food

2. Indentify the skill or trade that did not have its beginnings with early humans.

(1) banker
(2) tailor
(3) farmer
(4) doctor
(5) carpenter