Year 8 - History
The Americas before the arrival of Europeans
European conquest of the Americas: why was its impact so devastating?
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This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.
Unit Summary
In this unit, pupils learn about the Americas before the arrival of Europeans before examining the impact of their early settlement and colonisation, with a particular focus on England's first successful American colonies.
Lesson Summary
You will learn to describe what North America was like before the arrival of Europeans.
Key Notes
- Indigenous peoples of North America were divided into different groups from small families to large empires.
- Some North American tribes would be both farmers and hunter-gatherers like the Iroquois tribe.
- Some well-known empires of North America included the Inuits in the North and Mayans and Aztecs in the South.
- European travellers to North America started from the 900s with the Viking and Greenland explorers.
Vocabulary To Learn
- Native Americans: Native Americans are members of any of the societies who originally inhabited North and South America and the Caribbean Islands
- indigenous: indigenous people are the original inhabitants of a specific area
- nation: a nation is a community of people linked together by shared language, territory, ethnicity, or culture
- empire: an empire is a group of countries or provinces ruled from the centre by a person or group of people
- hunter-gatherers: hunter-gatherers are people who live off hunting, fishing, and harvesting wild food
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- All Native American were the same and part of a single society.
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Summarise this historical learning in two key ideas.
Indigenous peoples of North America were divided into different groups from small families to large empires. Some North American tribes would be both farmers and hunter-gatherers like the Iroquois tribe.
2. Define this history term and explain why it matters in this topic. 'Native Americans'
Native Americans are members of any of the societies who originally inhabited North and South America and the Caribbean Islands.
3. Correct this common history misconception using evidence language.
Mistake: All Native American were the same and part of a single society. Correction: There was a wide range of indigenous nations in the Americas, with many differences between their sizes, social structure and cultures.
More Lessons In This Unit
Browse all guides in the Year 8 History guide library.