Ancient Central America

What is the Central American land bridge?

• a manmade bridge between North and South America

• the ancient name for the country of Mexico

• the ancient name for the country of Mexico

• the flooded strip of land between Central and South America

What does the author describe in the passage?

• the Central American land bridge and the people who traveled it

• the gradual rise in ocean level on the Central American land bridge

• the species of animals that crossed the Central American land bridge

• the cultures of North American peoples before 11,000 BCE

Why do scientists think that people traveled the land bridge around 11,000 BCE?

• because scientists found fossilized human footprints in the land bridge

• because scientists found similar arrow heads and tools in the land bridge and in areas further north and south

• because scientists found remains of tent-like residences in the land bridge

• because scientists found evidence of cattle herding in the land bridge

People in Panama started farming between 9,000 and 7,000 BCE but did not rely on it as their only food source. What evidence from the text supports this conclusion?

• "Places we once thought were wild were perhaps maintained by ancient people."

• "One clue is when people began farming. On the land bridge, this was around 9,000 and 7,000 BCE."

• "Scientists have found evidence that people were growing bottle gourds, squash, and a few other things around that time. These would be in small gardens, not big farms."

• "It is hard to tell when people stopped traveling along the land bridge and began living there."

What is this passage mostly about?

• the rise of agriculture in South America from 9,000 BCE to today

• how global warming has affected wildlife on the Central American land bridge

• the development of civilization on the Central American land bridge

• flint knapping and its importance in ancient Central American culture

Read the following sentences:

"Places we once thought were wild were perhaps maintained by ancient people. This would be like an apple orchard. It looks like a forest, but has actually been planted and taken care of by humans-you wouldn't know it was a farm for apples unless you looked more closely."

As used in the passage, what does "maintained" mean?

• kept in order

• planned

• destroyed

• seeded

Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below.

The first people to travel the Central American land had no permanent dwellings; _______ they lived in tents that were easy to take down and put up as they moved around.

• moreover

• specifically

• therefore

• instead