Prehistory

Term 1: Prehistory and key features of ancient societies

Prehistory means literally "before history", 

Prehistory is the period that begins with the appearance of the human being, about five million years ago, and finishes with the invention of writing, about 6,000 years ago.

It is a long period divided into three stages: the Palaeolithic Age, the NeolithicAge and the Metal Age.

The Palaeolithic Age began with our first ancestors and finished about 10,000 years ago. During that period, human beings used tools made of stone and lived on hunting and gathering.

In the Neolithic Age, which began about 10,000 years ago, human beings lived in villages. Human communities cultivated the land and raised cattle. Agriculture and cattle raising gave rise to aproductive economy.

We call the the Metal Age to the period beginning about 7000 years ago, when human beings started to make objects out of metals.

Learning Outcomes:

The theory that people moved out of Africa around 60 000 BC (BCE) and migrated to other parts of the world.

The evidence for the emergence and establishment of ancient societies (including art, iconography, writing tools and pottery).

Key features of ancient societies (farming, trade, social classes, religion, rule of law).

Prehistory Cinema:

Full Documentary:

Social Studies

The Stone Age was a time in prehistory when humans made and used stone tools. (Prehistory is the time before people invented writing.) Early humans began using stones as simple tools about 2 million years ago. Humans used mainly stone tools until about 10,000 years ago. However, the Stone Age began and ended at different times in various parts of the world.
Scientists divide the Stone Age into two main periods: the Paleolithic Period and the Neolithic Period.

Project Based Learning is a teaching method in which students gain knowledge and skills by working for an extended period of time to investigate and respond to an engaging and complex question, problem, or challenge.

Use:
- The library
- Software / Websites
- Materials

Read the instructions and activities clearly

Paleolithic
Hunting & Gathering

3 Million years ago - 10.000 B.C.
Paleolithic means “old stone age.” At the beginning of the Paleolithic Period, early humans made chopping tools out of stones. These tools did not change much for thousands of years. Then humans learned to chip flakes off stone. With this method they made better tools, such as scrapers and chisels. By about 40,000 years ago humans were attaching stone blades to handles made of bone or antler.
Some Paleolithic people lived in caves. Others lived under rock overhangs or out in the open. They gathered wild plants to eat. Their tools helped them to hunt animals. Groups moved with the seasons to find food. In the later Paleolithic Period some groups made small sculptures out of clay, stone, or bone. Some groups painted or carved designs on rocks or cave walls.

Neolithic
Agri - Culture

10.000 B.C. - 3000 B.C.
Neolithic means “new stone age.” The Neolithic Period began about 10,000 years ago. During this period people ground and polished stone to make more useful tools. They also learned to grow crops and to tame animals. They began to settle in villages. They learned to make pottery and to weave cloth and baskets.
The Neolithic way of life first appeared in southwestern Asia. Over several thousand years it spread northward to Europe and eastward to India and East Asia. Around the same time people in the Americas developed Neolithic skills on their own.

Activity 1: Early Humans Vocabulary Quiz

Vocabulary Quiz: A matching quiz on
the included vocabulary words