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Prehistory

Total questions: 30

Worksheet time: 10mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

What is the Paleolithic Era?

a)

The era known as the Old Stone Age.

b)

The era known as the New Stone Age.

c)

The era that is known as modern times

d)

The era that is also known as the Middle Ages.

2.

What is the Neolithic Era?

a)

The era known as the Old Stone Age.

b)

The era known as the New Stone Age.

c)

The era that is known as modern times

d)

The era that is also known as the Middle Ages.

3.

What is a hunter-gatherer?

a)

Early humans who used farming as their main source of food.

b)

Someone who studies prehistoric time by analyzing artifacts.

c)

Early humans who hunted animals and gathered plants to eat.

d)

Someone who uses carbon dating to find the age of artifacts.

4.

What is a nomadic lifestyle?

a)

One that humans use farming as their main source of food.

b)

One that humans move to provide for basic needs of survival.

c)

One that humans spend time studying the climate of Earth.

d)

One where people analyze artifacts from the past.

5.

What is an archaeologist?

a)

A scientist who analyzes artifacts.

b)

A scientist who studies the phases of matter.

c)

A scientist who studies the Earth's natural environment.

d)

A scientist who draws and produces maps.

6.

Scientists believe that the earliest humans evolved in and migrated from which continent?

a)

Europe

b)

North America

c)

Asia

d)

Africa

7.

What is the Ice Age?

a)

A time when humans were exploring space.

b)

A time on the Earth when humans mastered agriculture.

c)

A time of great warmth on the Earth when sea levels rose.

d)

A time when glaciers covered the Earth's surface.

8.

A reason for people to leave an area and migrate away from there is called:

a)

a push factor

b)

a pull factor

9.

A reason for people to be drawn to an area and migrate there is called:

a)

a push factor

b)

a pull factor

10.

People began doing what for the first time in the New Stone Age?

a)

speaking using oral language

b)

farming the land.

c)

hunting and gathering.

d)

using fire to cook food

11.

Agricultural societies emerged when?

a)

religious leaders forced people to become farmers

b)

during the Old Stone Age

c)

after an ice age ended that resulted in new plants and animals

d)

animals became scarce

12.

What is a surplus?

a)

a way of living

b)

not enough food to live

c)

a way people farmed

d)

more than is needed

13.

In the Neolithic Era, what did human communities experience as a result of having large food surpluses?

a)

population growth.

b)

an ice age.

c)

hunting and gathering.

d)

large scale migration.

14.

When many people changed from hunter-gatherers to farmers, the world population

a)

increased because artisans were needed in new cities

b)

increased because people had more food to feed more people

c)

decreased because farming requires fewer people than hunting

d)

decreased because early crops were small and not nutritious

15.

Which of the following was one way that the lives of people in agricultural societies changed?

a)

everyone was busy hunting

b)

people were more peaceful than nomadic societies had been

c)

more people spent time doing jobs other than food production

d)

people followed migrating animals

16.

In the Neolithic Era, what did people begin to do for the first time?

a)

cook using fire.

b)

hunt and gather.

c)

settle in villages and cities.

d)

communicate using language.

17.

Plants grown by early human farmers look different from those grown today because over time

a)

people stopped eating grains

b)

people developed artificial plants

c)

people developed better farm tools

d)

people chose the best seeds for the biggest and best plants

18.

During the Old Stone Age, how did people get their food?

a)

hoping and wishing.

b)

hunting and gathering.

c)

farming the land.

d)

buying it in grocery stores.

19.

To learn about life in prehistoric times, scientists use

a)

oral traditions of ancient civilizations

b)

early writing found on clothing and tools

c)

objects such as bones and stone tools

d)

powerful computers to translate ancient writings

20.

Collective learning is the notion that people have the ability to learn from each other. What gives humans this ability?

a)

hunting and gathering

b)

farming

c)

language

d)

stone tools

21.

What is carbon dating?

a)

An ancient way of building long term relationships.

b)

A scientific way to measure the age of artifacts and fossils.

c)

Paintings found on cave walls.

d)

A way that elements from the periodic table can meet.

22.

What are cave paintings?

a)

Paintings that were done by Leonardo da Vinci. Perhaps the most famous is the Mona Lisa.

b)

A form of communication used during a time of no written language. Used to tell stories, pass along information, or track animals.

c)

Paintings that are done on canvas.

d)

Paintings that use spray paint.

23.

Story problem: Your clan hunts squirrels and small game. Scouts from your clan report that 15 miles away there is an area suitable for a new encampment where herds of deer are plentiful. You decide to move there. This cause for migration would be:

a)

a push factor

b)

a pull factor

24.

Story problem: A volcanic eruption has killed off much of the wildlife in your area and destroyed some of the fertile grasslands and forests your people forage and hunt. You move dozens of miles away. This cause for migration would be:

a)

a push factor

b)

a pull factor

25.

If scientists find only large spear points in a prehistoric camp they can infer that ...

a)

people hunted small birds

b)

people hunted large animals

c)

people enjoyed farming

d)

people ate mainly fish

26.

The Neolithic Revolution refers to the time when early humans-

a)

mastered fire.

b)

developed agriculture.

c)

migrated from Africa.

d)

organized governments

27.
Which of the following is NOT true about hunters and gatherers?
a)
They moved in order to hunt their prey.
b)
They were nomadic.
c)
They had pigs, sheep, and goats on their farms.
d)
They had temporary shelters.
28.
What is the time period before a written language was created?
a)
History
b)
Climate
c)
Prehistory
d)
Environment
29.
What word means taming plants and animals to make them useful for humans?
a)
Irrigate
b)
Landform
c)
Domestication
d)
Geography
30.
Modern humans originated in
a)
Africa
b)
Asia
c)
North America
d)
Europe