Mrs. Henson ~ 8th Grade

Unit 1: Roots of American History
This is a review of the main topics from Unit 1: Roots of American History. You should use it to help you study all of the material we have covered throughout these first 4 chapters of your textbook. The information in this review has been transferred from a PowerPoint presentation and will likely have some “glitches”. Please keep this in mind as you try to follow along.
Geography, History, & the Social Sciences
Five themes of Geography ~
1. location (exact & relative)
2. place
3. interaction (b/t people & environment)
4. movement
5. regions
Population Trends (pg. 7)
For example: By 2000, more than half of the largest cities were located in the Southwest.
Rivers and lakes (pg. 14-15)
For example: They contribute to the economy of the Central Plains by providing a means of transport for barge freight.
10 major climates of the United States (pgs. 16-17)
1. Marine 6. Humid Continental
2. Mediterranean 7. Humid Subtropical
3. Highland 8. Tropical
4. Desert 9. Tundra
5. Steppe 10. Subarctic
9 physical regions of the United States (pgs. 12-14)
1. Pacific Coast 6. Coastal Plains
2. Intermountain 7. Ozark Highlands
3. Rocky Mountains 8. Canadian Shield
4. Interior Plains 9. Hawaii
5. Appalachian
Mountains
Using Historical Evidence
~ Primary & Secondary Sources
~ Evaluating Evidence
➢ Authenticity and Bias
~ Interpreting Evidence
➢ New sources and ideas may change the interpretation of events.
 Three Economic Questions
1. What goods and services should we produce?
2. How should we produce them?
3. For whom should we produce them?
 Free Enterprise System
1. government has limited involvement
2. consumers make economic choices
Before the First Global Age
Most historians believe that people first reached the Americas by crossing a land bridge from Asia.
Early American Civilizations
Olmec ~ developed calendar and could predict the change of seasons
Mayas ~ developed a system of numbers which included the concept of zero
Aztecs ~ worshiped the “sun god”
Incas ~ built a complex system of roads and rope bridges that united its empire
Native American Cultures
~ Deep Respect for Nature: The Native American People felt a close bond to plants, animals, and the forces of nature.
~ Some differences between various Native American cultures, but were most similar in basic religious beliefs.
Jewish and Christian Traditions
~ Roots of Christianity are in the Jewish traditions.
~ Ten Commandments were derived from the Jewish traditions.
Exploration and Colonization
Study the exploration voyages on page 67
“European Voyages of Exploration”
Dias
Da Gama
Columbus
Magellan
Christopher Columbus
~ voyages led to trade between Eastern & Western Hemispheres (Columbian Exchange)
~ although he did not go around the world his voyages marked a turning point in world history
Ferdinand Magellan
~ voyages established a route to Asia that Columbus attempted to find
~ his voyage around the tip of South America provided a lot of new information for more accurate maps
New Spain
Spanish borderlands:
~ located from present-day Florida to present-day California
Spanish conquistadors:
~ conquered the Aztecs more easily because many Aztecs died from European diseases
~ conquered the Incas more easily because the Incas were weak from fighting among themselves
New Spain Order of Society:
Peninsulares
Creoles
Mestizos
Indians
Jamestown
~ settlers arrived in the spring of 1607 and by the summer of 1608 the colony was near failure
~ reasons for near failure:
➢ starvation (planned mostly for searching for gold)
➢ Disease (spread by mosquitoes)
➢ conflicts with Native Americans
Population in Jamestown changed drastically in 1619 as a result of women and Africans arriving in greater numbers.
The Virginia House of Burgesses had historical significance because it began a tradition of representative government in the English colonies.
Pilgrims
~ came to Americas for freedom from religious persecution
~ signers of the Mayflower Compact agreed to make and obey laws for the good of the colony
~ were able to survive early hardships largely because of the help they received from the Native Americans.
The Thirteen English Colonies
The New England Colonies
~ Why were Massachusetts, Connecticut, & Rhode Island settled and by whom?
~ The purpose of New England town meetings was to discuss important community issues.
~ Conflict with Native Americans led to fighting with Wampanoags, led by Metacom.
The Middle Colonies
~ The Duke of York decided that New York was too large to govern, so he gave some of the land to his friends which became New Jersey.
~ William Penn was a Quaker who founded Pennsylvania as a model of religious freedom and peace.
The Southern Colonies
~ Catholics (Calvert family/Lord Baltimore) settled the colony of Maryland to escape persecution in England.
~ North Carolina was largely made up of poor tobacco farmers.
~ South Carolina was set up by 8 English nobles.
The Southern Colonies
(cont.)
As a direct result of the Southern Colonies’ reliance on slave labor in the 1700s,
the number of enslaved Africans
dramatically increased.
The Great Awakening
A religious movement that helped spread democratic feelings in the colonies
The Enlightenment
A movement that emphasized the use of reason. Many colonists began to read about and discuss new ideas as a result of this movement.