Lenape Web Quest Part I

Copy and paste the web address below in a new tab to find information to answer the following questions:

http://www.bigorrin.org/lenape_kids.htm


1. What does the word “Lenape” mean?


2. Which states did the Lenape Indians live in?


3. The native Lenape language is also known as ______?


4. What language do most Lenapes speak today?


5. How did the Lenape Indian children live in the past?


6. What were men's roles in the Lenape tribe?

Thought Question

The first people in our country (Native Americans) originally came from Asia (Siberia) by way of the Bering Strait about 40,000 years ago. As we learned, they kept moving south in search of food and a good place to settle. Some traveled to the desert region of what is now the southwestern United States. Others chose the swampy region of the southeastern part of the country. Still others chose the plains of the midwest and as we learned in our last class, some settled in the northeast which includes New York State.

Here is your question:

If you were a Native American living 11,500 years ago, which region of the country would you have chosen to settle in and why?

Give at least three reasons.

The First Inhabitants Of Our Region Part II

Students:

In our last session, you began answering a series of questions about the first inhabitants of our region. Today you will continue by answering another five questions. Review the article and answer the questions in the comment section of the blog.

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The first inhabitants of our region were Native Americans. It is thought that the first people in New York originally came from Asia (Siberia) by way of the Bering Strait about 11,500 years ago. They have been in North America for 40,000 years, but it took them a while to get as far as New York! The hunters and gatherers constantly walked south (away from the glaciers) in search of food.





One of the animals hunted were mammoths, a giant elephant-like animal



They probably followed them over the land bridge shown on the map above and eventually got to what is now New York State. They stopped in New York, perhaps because of the good geographic location. Lake Ontario and New York's rivers provided food, water, and a means of transportation for these early New Yorkers. The Spring and Summer season proved long enough to grow crops, allowing these early hunters and gatherers to become farmers. This permitted them to stay in one place, to form villages.
How do we know how long the Native Americans have been here? Archaeologists have done some digging and have come up with some very old artifacts that date the presence of Native Americans in present day New York State back 11,500 years! The people did not write anything down then, so the only clues we have are what the scientists find buried in the ground. They have found such things as stone axes, projectile points (arrowheads), pottery or stone bowls, and fire rings. With knowledge, an archaeologist can date these materials and tell when people lived where.
From the artifacts we now know for certain that the first inhabitants in New York State were Native Americans, and they have lived here for over 10,000 years.

DEFINITIONS:

Inhabitants- person who lives in an area

Bering Strait - a narrow body of water separating Asia and North America at Alaska

Native American - an American Indian

Archaeologists- a scientist who studies artifacts to learn about the past.

artifact - an object made by people who lived in the past.

Please answer the following questions:


1. How long have these people been in North America?

2. What is a mammoth?

3. Why did they stop in New York?

4. What permitted them to stay in one place, to form villages?

5. How do we know how long the Native Americans have been here?


Answer the questions in the comment section of the blog.

When you have finished answering the questions, choose the identity Anonymous and publish your comment.