The Impact of Native American Ideas and Discoveries

1
The Impact of Native American Ideas and
Discoveries
2

• When the Europeans first came to America in the
  early 1600s they discovered that our continent
  was already occupied by Indians (Native
  Americans). The Native Americans felt that they
  were the rightful caretakers of the lands they
  lived on. They had hunted, planted, and fished
  there long before the first settler ship appeared
  on the horizon. The arrival of these new settlers
  led to great changes in the lives of Native
  Americans, yet their innovated discoveries and
  ideas have made a noticeable and lasting impact
  on how we live today.
• Sited in The New Americans Colonial Times by
  Betsy Maestro pg. 6 and 7.

3
The Native Americans invented
4
The Canoe

• These canoes were light and hollow. Today even
  the largest ships at sea have many hollow spaces
  inside to keep them a float

5
The Native Americans invented
6
a game called lacrosse.

• Like field hockey the game is played with a
  lacrosse stick, a long-handled racquet and
  requires ten players on each team. Today lacrosse
  and many other sports are played around the
  world.

7
The Native American discovered how too

• Suffern Succotash"

8
combine foods in healthy ways.

• Beans, corn and squash give more protein when
  they are eaten together. This dish of mixed
  vegetables is still called by its original name
  Succotash.

9
The Native Americans discovered
10
that wood could bend.

• They bent pieces of wood to make bows. This
  invention led to more advanced weaponry.

11
The Native Americans discovered
12
how to make an arrow fly straight through the air.

• They put feathers at the end of the arrow to keep
  it flying in a straight line. Today we build
  tail fins on airplanes to help the them fly in
  a straight line.

13
The Native Americans discovered
14
how to make their plants and vegetables grow
better.

• The Native Americans would put dead fish into the
  earths soil. Today farmers use fertilizer or
  animal waste to help their crops grow.

15
The Native Americans discovered
16
how to make chocolate from a cocoa plant.

• They also found out that corn kernels pop when
  heated. Today we still enjoy the taste of
  chocolate and popcorn.

17
The Native Americans discovered
18
that plants and herbs could heal sickness.

• Today we have all kinds of antibiotics to keep us
  well.

19
The Native Americans discovered
20
how to use the moon as a calendar.

• They knew that the full moon appears about every
  29 days. Today the number of days in the month on
  our calendar is almost the same as the number of
  days in the moon month.

21
The Native Americans discovered
22
to use campfires to create smoke signals.

• Tribes would create smoke puffs by covering then
  uncovering the fire quickly with a blanket or
  animal skin to communicate a message great
  distances. Today we use many machines to
  communicate.

23
The Native Americans discovered
24
and grew new plants never before known in any
other parts of the world.

• The Native Americans grew tobacco, peppers, and
  tomatoes. These plants and vegetables were new to
  the world. In fact they grew tomatoes long before
  they were brought to Italy to become an
  ingredient of spaghetti sauce.

25
The Native Americans invented
26
the hammock.

• You can still find people today relaxing in a
  hammock on a warm sunny day.

27
The Native Americans invented
28
ways to wove baskets so tight that could hold
liquids.

• The Native Americans also had pottery makers
  create bots and bowls for food. Today we drink
  out of many different styles of cups and eat out
  of different serving dishes.

29
The Native Americans invented
30
the first insect repellent.

• Tribes in Texas that lived near the Gulf of
  Mexico (in areas of Galveston and Corpus Christi)
  made insect repellent by smearing alligator
  grease all over their bodies. Today we have more
  sophisticated ways of protecting ourselves from
  bug bites.

31
The Native American writing and language styles

• Like the variety of different tribes throughout
  the content in the 1500s, there were also many
  different languages and writing methods used by
  the Native American tribes.
• Many tribes drew pictures to represent words.
  This is also called a rebus.

32
Create Your Own Rebus!

• Does everyone remember how Wesley created his own
  eighty-letter alphabet to record the history of
  his civilization project.
• Spell your first name with pictures that
  represent letters or parts of your personality.
  How would your letters or words look in picture
  form if you could create your own civilization?

33
(No Transcript)
34
Native American Tribes in Texas