Earliest Peoples in America | Learn about the first people to inhabit the Americas!

When did people first start to inhabit North America? Try 27,000 years ago! In Earliest Peoples in America, your kids will learn about some of the history surrounding the people who first stepped foot on this continent. The first thing they'll learn is that the earth was much, much colder then because it was in the middle of an ice age.Show more

Asia and North America used to be connected by the Beringia land bridge. But once the ice melted as the earth warmed up 10,000 years ago, the people could no longer migrate. The earliest humans were hunter-gatherers. This means they hunted for food and ate wild plants they found. The people eventually became much less nomadic and started to settle in specific areas in tribes.

The people passed on their traditions and culture from generation to generation. Sadly, once the Europeans started to colonize America, a lot of that culture was lost. Archaeologists have studied the artifacts left behind from thousands of years ago to learn more and more about these early peoples and what their lives might have been like.

We hope you and your student(s) enjoyed learning about what life might have been like for people 27,000 years ago! If you want even more information, head over to our website and download one of our many free lesson plans, full of activities, worksheets, and more!