Early Humans .

2. OVERVIEW
Paleolithic people adapted to their environment
and invented many tools to help them.
Neolithic people started farming, building
communities, producing goods, and trading.
Information for this PowerPoint was taken from
World Journey Across Time The Early Ages
written by Jackson J. Spielvogel in conjunction
with National Geographic. The book was
published by McGraw Hill.

3. TOOLS OF DISCOVERY…OR…
HOW DO WE KNOW WHAT WE KNOW?!
Some important definitions
Historians-people who study and write about the
human past
Archaeologists-people that hunt for evidence buried
in the ground where settlements might once have
been
Artifacts-weapons, tools, and other things made by
humans that are dug up by archaeologists
Fossils-traces of plants or animals that have been
preserved in rock

4. DEFINITIONS (CONTINUED)
Anthropologists-people who focus on
human society and study how humans
developed and how they related to one
another.
Stone Age-Early period of human history.
The name comes from the fact that
people during this time used stone to
make tools and weapons.

5. PALEOLITHIC
Paleolithic means “old stone” in the
Greek language
Paleolithic times began roughly 2.5
million years ago and lasted until
around 8000 B.C.

6. PALEOLITHIC PEOPLE
Early humans spent most of their time searching
for food.
They hunted animals, caught fish, ate insects, and
gathered nuts, berries, fruits, grains, and plants.
Because Paleolithic people hunted and gathered
they were called nomads because they were
always on the move.
Nomads moved from place to place and traveled
in bands of 30 or so members because it was
safer and made it easier to search for food.

7. TASKS OF NOMADIC PEOPLE
Woman
 Stayed close to the campsite which was normally near a stream or other water
source
 Looked after the children
 Searched nearby woods and meadows for berries, nuts, and grains
Men
 Hunted animals
 They learned the habits of the animals
 Made tools for the kill
 The used clubs or drove the animals off cliffs
 Over time they invented spears, traps and bows & arrows.

8. PALEOLITHIC PEOPLE & CLIMATE
Warm Climate-needed little clothing or shelter
Cold Climates-sought protection from the weather in caves.
Eventually, Paleolithic people made shelters from animal
hides held up by wooden poles.
It was life-changing when they learned to tame fire.
Fire
 Gave warmth
 Scared away wild animals
 Cooked food

9. ICE AGE
The Ice Ages were periods of extreme cold.
The last Ice Age began about 100,000 B.C. From then until
about 8,000 B.C., thick sheets of ice covered parts of
Europe, Asia, and North America.
Ice Ages were a threat to human life.
People had to adapt by
 Changing their diet
 Building sturdier shelters
 Using animal furs to make warm clothing
 Mastery of fire helped them to survive

10. PALEOLITHIC LANGUAGE, ART, AND RELIGION
Development of spoken language
Art
Crushed yellow, black, and red rocks to make
powders for paint
Dabbed this on cave walls creating scenes of lions,
oxen, panthers, and other animals
Not sure why cave paintings existed but it could
have been that early people thought that painting an
animal would bring good luck in the hunt

11. PALEOLITHIC TECHNOLOGY
Paleolithic people were the first to use tools to help
humans perform tasks
They used a hard stone called flint to make tools.
They would hit it to make sharp edges to make axes
or hunting spears.
They eventually made fishhooks and needles made
from animal bones.
The Paleolithic people used the needles to make nets
and baskets and they used them to sew hides
together for clothing.

12. NEOLITHIC TIMES
In the Neolithic Age, people started farming, building communities,
producing goods, and trading.
After the last Ice Age ended, people changed their way of life.
 They began to domesticate, or tame, animals and plants for human
use.
 Animals provided
 Meat
 Milk
 Wood
 Carried goods
 Pulled carts
 Plants
 People learned to grow food
 Growing plants allowed people to stay in one place.

13. THE NEOLITHIC FARMING REVOLUTION
The farming revolution changed human history
Farming did not begin in one region. People in
different parts of the world discovered how to
grow crops about the same time.
People no longer had to live nomadic life styles to
find food.

14. NEOLITHIC VILLAGES
Villages started in Europe, India, Egypt, China, and Mexico.
Earliest known communities have been found in the Middle
East.
 Jericho-it is in the West Bank between what are now Israel and
Jordan. This city dates back to about 8,000 B.C.
 Catal Hüyük-it is in present-day Turkey
 It was home to around 6,000 people
 They lived in simple mud-brick houses that were packed
tightly together and decorated inside with wall paintings
 Raised sheep, goats, and ate fish and bird eggs

15. BENEFITS OF A SETTLED LIFE
Brought greater security
 Steady food supplies brought about a healthier population
 A healthier population created more workers to product a bigger crop.
 Used the bigger crop to trade
Specialization-development of one kind of job.
 Pottery
 Wove mats and cloth
 Toolmakers
 Metal workers
 Mixed copper and tin to form bronze
 This period of time became known as the Bronze Age.

16. COMPARING THE NEOLITHIC & PALEOLITHIC AGES
Paleolithic Age Neolithic Age
Description of Art
and Crafts
Painted cave walls and usually
painted animals
Made pottery and carved objects
out of wood and build shelters
and tombs
How Humans
Obtained Food
Hunted animals and gathered nuts,
berries, and grains
Farmed in permanent villages
and raised animals
How Humans
Adapted
Learned to make fire, created a
language, and made simple tools
and shelters
Built mud-brick houses and
places of worship; specialized in
certain jobs and used copper
and bronze to create useful tools
Work of Men and
Women
Women gathered food and cared for
children; men hunted
Women cared for children and
performed household tasks; men
herded, farmed, and protected
the village

17. YOU DID IT!!!!
Now we are ready to take on the mysteries of
Drum Roll Please………….

18. ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA!!