Unit 1 - Chapter 1

Early Human Migration to North America

Opening Bell:
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What Your Notebook Should Look Like

9/15/2026 Drop Inn #2

🎯 Students will understand why and how the first humans moved (migrated) to North America by reading a map and analyzing a short, simplified text.

❓ Big Questions

Before the Lesson: If your neighborhood suddenly ran out of food and water, what is the first thing your family would do to survive?

After the Lesson: How did changes in the Earth's weather and environment force early humans to change where they lived?

COPY IN NOTEBOOK:
I.G. - Why and How did the first humans migrate to North America?

Copy in Notebook:

Vocabulary Words

Migration - Moving from one area to live in a new place.

Ice Age - A long time period in history when the Earth was freezing cold and covered in ice.

Land Bridge - A strip of dry land that connects two large continents together.

Nomadic - People who have no permanent home and move from place to place to find food.

Vocabulary Connection:

Describe this image using the vocabulary words:
Migration, Ice Age, Land Bridge, Nomadic

Why is it so cold?

Who are these people?
(What clues gives you this answer?)

What are the people walking across?

What are they doing if they are looking for a new place?

Step #2 The Concept of Migration - Push/Pull Concepts

Scenario: Winter starts and never ends. Stores are empty, snow keeps falling, and it stays freezing cold for months.

Identify Problems:
List 2 major challenges you would face.

Possible Responses:
- Problem A:
  Running out of heat/fuel, food shortages, lack of clean water]
- Problem B:
  Extreme cold, isolation, loss of power]

Part II: - Action Plan: Pick the single most important problem and write one paragraph explaining how you would survive it.

Response Framework

Use this simple template to structure your answer:

Part 2: Survival Strategy (One Paragraph)
- Selected Problem: State which problem you are focusing on.
- Immediate Step: What is the first thing you do?
- Key Outcome: How does this action keep you alive?

Step #3 - Reading Context and Comprehension

#1- Long ago, during a time block called the Ice Age, the weather on Earth became freezing cold. Because so much water froze into giant ice sheets, the ocean levels dropped very low. This uncovered a hidden strip of dry land connecting Asia to North America. Historians call this land the Bering Land Bridge.

#2 - Between 15,000 and 30,000 years ago, small groups of people crossed this land bridge. These people were nomadic hunters and gatherers. They did not move just for fun or to explore; they migrated because they were following large animals like mastodons and woolly mammoths. If they did not follow the animals, they would starve.

#3 - The journey was incredibly dangerous. Hunters had to travel through freezing winds and deep snow, carrying heavy stone spears. Women worked together to butcher the large animals so the community would have meat for food and thick fur for warm clothes."

Paragraph 1:
1. Why did the Bering Land Bridge appear during the Ice Age?

Paragraph 2:
2. Why did the nomadic hunters and gatherers cross the Bering Land Bridge into North America?

Paragraph 3:
3. What challenges did the early people face during their journey, and how did everyone help the group survive?

PAGE 10 in Passport

Discussion Questions (Level 1)

Look at the arrows on the map. What do you think the arrows are showing us?
Put your finger on Asia and follow the arrows to North America. Did people walk over ice, land, or water?
Imagine walking through the big white area (the ice). Would that trip be easy or hard? Why?
Find the red arrows along the water and the blue arrows on the land.
If you were traveling back then, would you take a boat on the water or walk on the land? Why?
Why do you think families long ago kept moving down into new places instead of staying in one spot?

Find the Clues to Find the Answers! - To Infer - Inference

1. Look closely at the people in the picture. What are they wearing and carrying?

2. What animals do you see in the background? Why are the people following them?

3. Imagine you are standing in this picture. How does the weather feel?

COLD & WINDYWARM & SUNNYHOT & DRY

4. Look at the giant white walls in the background (glaciers). What are they made of?

5. Where would your group sleep at night if you were traveling through this land?

Step #4 - Map Modeling

Bering Land Bridge Map
(Workbook page 10)

Trace the arrows from Asia into North America with your finger.

There are three main routes.
Write down at least two dangers in each route.

Coastal Route

Overland Route

Possibly from Europe Route

Hypothermia (freezing body temperatures)

Frostbite (frozen skin and tissue damage)

Blizzards (blinding snowstorms)

Sea ice cracking beneath feet

Boat capsizing in freezing waters

Ocean icebergs striking small vessels

Starvation (lack of game or plants)

Dehydration (inability to melt frozen water)

Wild animal attacks (bears, wolves)

Snow blindness (temporary vision loss from glare)

Falling into deep glacial crevasses

Avalanches on steep mountain passes

Getting lost in whiteout conditions

Sickness or infection without medicine

Severe wind chill stripping away body heat

Broken bones from slipping on ice

Wet clothing accelerating heat loss

Loss of fire-making supplies

Violent ocean currents dragging boats off course

Conflict with other groups over limited shelter

Step #5 - The Critical Choice Dilemma

The Dilemma: Your nomadic family group has reached the edge of the Bering Land Bridge.

The weather is getting colder, the snow is getting deeper, and the woolly mammoths are moving east into an unknown, frozen land.
What is the best choice for your group's survival? - Be prepared to explain!

Choice A (The Hunters): Follow the woolly mammoths across the land bridge immediately (You will have plenty of meat and fur, but it's a dangerous, freezing walk).

Choice B (The Coast-Dwellers): Stop moving inland and stay near the ocean coast (The ocean doesn't freeze solid, so you can safely fish and hunt seals, but you lose the mammoths).

Choice C (The Shelter-Builders): Turn back slightly to find a cave or forest valley to build a winter camp (This saves energy and protects babies and elders from freezing, but food will be scarce).

Choice D (The Gatherers): Wait until spring arrives before attempting to cross (Less risk of getting lost in a blizzard).

Step 6: Assessment / Exit Ticket
Kids History Magazine

Write a short 3-to-5 sentence summary for the kids' history magazine explaining how the first humans entered North America.

Must-Use Words: "Migration"
Sentence Starters (need extra help?):

"During the Ice Age..."
"Early peoples had to..."
"On their journey, they faced..."

Step #7 - Think About It:
Big Question: Did geography control how these early humans lived? Explain

Turn and talk with a partner, then be ready to share.

Remember: On the Regents exam, you will often see questions about how geography (land, climate, and natural resources) affects the way people live.

Early humans had to adapt to their environment in order to survive. Keep asking yourself:

"How did nature and geography shape the choices people made?"

This is an important idea you'll use all year long.

CHAPTER REVIEW

List one route people used to arrive in North America. (Bonus: List two more.)

List four reasons why people migrated.

List 3–5 ways people survived.

What are the four ways to think like a historian?

Unit 1 Lesson 1.pdf

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