Origins of the Mesoamerican Population

Objective: HHG Tributes of 2018 will be able to compare why families immigrate today to why ancient nomadic people migrated. They will be able use cause and effect to explain the affects of geography and environment on how people live.

A link to today's handout can be found here!

Do now. Test yourself! What is true and what isn't? Complete your do now silently.

Why do people immigrate?

So How did the first people get to the Americas? We will read this short article to learn why people migrated. Here is a link to another short video that shows a fun simulation done by kids. (Use your headphones if you choose to watch this.)

But how do we know?? We know about history by studying artifacts and geology (studying the Earth's physical structure). Not everything we think we know is correct! Check out this article from National Geographic. It talks about new discoveries -- remains of human bodies! -- that suggest that the first people in the Americas may not be who we thought they were. Instead, the article suggests, people may have com from South Asia and the South Pacific. We still don't know for sure!

Scientists used Luzia's skull (the skull of a Paleo-Indian woman found in a cave in Brazil) as a base, then digitally processed it to create a simulation of what the person may have looked like.  Scientists were surprised because she did not look like most native Americans.  Instead, she resembles most Australian aboriginal peoples, suggesting there may have been another migration to the Americas.

Homework:
1. Complete the review questions, read, track and summarize the readings.
2. Study the countries of Central and South America and have a parent send a note documenting how long you spent studying these countries (minimum of 20 min-- more is always awesome too!). We will have a geography quiz next Monday!