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Ms Hos-McGrane's Grade 6
Social Studies Class
Welcome to our Project Pages
on Early Humans
A Day in the Life at Terra
Amata
by Michael, Saki and Christian
Cro Magnon Caves
by the Grade 6 Class of '95-'96
Creation Stories & Myths
by the Grade 6 Class of '95-'96
Archeology and
Human Prehistory: A Virtual ExhibitionThis web has been produced by the students of Mankato State University in Minnesota as a part of their Anthropology E-Museum. While many of the sections are still "under construction", the site includes information on dating methods, bio-anthropology, cultural anthropology Big Game Hunters, North American cave art, New World settlement patterns, South American prehistory and more.
Cultural Literacy in Art & Social StudiesHere is a sample from another class project on cave art from Madrid-Waddington Central School, Madrid, NY.
Human Prehistory Resources on the Web
Please note: some of the links below may have moved or disappeared since
we created this resource. For an updated list of Internet resources on Ancient
China we recommend the CORE VALUES > Prehistory Resources Internet Library.
Click on this image to open library. 
General ResourcesA companion to their broadcast series, this website by the BBC Education group offers visitors an insight into the fascinating world of archeology both in the UK and elsewhere. There are articles on the Rosetta Stone, the discovery of King Tut's tomb, Bronze Age man in Britain, the 1998 discovery in Sterkfontein Valley in South Africa by archaeologist Ron Clarke, of the world's oldest complete skeleton and much more.
Stone Age Habitats W. J. Kowalski, Graduate Student Research Project, University of PennsylvaniaMan's earliest ancestors sought protection from the elements and predators in natural shelters such as caves and rock overhangs. Ultimately they began creating entirely new habitats in locations that had no natural shelter--the construction of which may have been influenced by the climate of the ice age.
Science Odyssey: You Try It: Human EvolutionThis site from PBS online contains information in both text and shockwave formats. The focus is on "major hominid (human or human-like) species discovered to date, when they lived, and how they might be related to each other". Topics include Lucy, Piltdown man, fossilized footprints, Taung child and a brief biography of the Leakey's and their discoveries in Africa etc. (Requires Shockwave plug-in for some information.).
The Life & Times of Early ManThis site was created by Lin Donn as part of a collection of learning modules intended for middle school students studying ancient history. Information includes an introduction to human prehistory and a "who's who of early man" with links to other relevant sites including Mr Donn's Ancient History Page , an award-winning guide to ancient history resources for Middle School teachers and students.
Fossil HominidsA nice synopsis of fossil evidence, located on Talk.origins Archive, a Usenet newsgroup devoted to the discussion and debate of biological and physical origins of humans. The author of this site seeks to provide mainstream scientific responses to the many frequently asked questions (FAQs) which appear in the human origins newsgroup.
Neandertals: A Cyber Perspective.A student project from Indiana State University, the site gives an overview of Neanderthal man and his way of life including: hunting, toolmaking, linguistic capability, burial rituals, art etc. The pages are graphic intensive and may take a while to download, but there is a lot of information if you are interested in this subject.
Lecture Notes
This learning module from Washington State University provides some excellent background information about human culture prior to the development of civilized communities. It is essentially an illustrated narrative with three large sections: overview of human evolution, timeline showing the species life of the main Hominids and an illustration of the physical characteristics of human beings intended to establish a more precise sense of our nature as a species.
Human Origins and Development of CultureProduced by an anthropology professor and his students from Mesa Community College, Arizona. this site is an excellent online resource for the study of human origins. Here you will find a number of learning modules related to the study of human evolution . The site is so large that it's easy to lose one's way while navigating the wealth of material. (One note of caution: due to the popularity of this site, the server can be slow to respond and is sometimes unavailable.)
Exploratorium of Our KindHere are a number of illustrated narratives to accompany Dr Effland's course on human origins
Human Origins and PrehistoryHere is an excellent set of online course notes and images from Prof Sept's 1997 course.
Museum Exhibitions
A virtual exhibition from the Museum of Antiquities at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne describing human life during the Late Upper Paleolithic in England and northwest Europe. Visitors can explore the life and culture of the people who lived in this period through the eyes of a shaman or an archaeologist. Topics include: climate change, home building, food collection, tool making, burial and ritual, cave art,and a basic geologic timeline.
Archaeological Analysis: Pieces of the PastAn introduction to the study of archeology from the educational unit of the Royal Ontario Museum. There is information and an online activity designed to help middle school students better understand the job of an archaeologist. (There is a similar activity about fossils from the same museum and a link to another Middle School Archaeology Web Unit What is Archeology? from the US.)
Ice AgesThis Virtual Exhibit from the Illinois State Museum gives basic information on ice ages - what they are, why they occur and when they happen. This is linked to an online exhibit from the same museum Midwestern U.S. 16,000 Years Ago which provides more information on glaciation in the Midwestern United States.
Cave Art & Stone Tools
Information and links to the cave paintings of Cosquer Grotto and Vallon-Pont d'Arc in France. There is also a link to a Neanderthal Burial Site, N. American Ice Age Mammals and Origins of Western Culturefrom the Smithsonian Institute.
The Paleolithic Painted Cave of LascauxThis site was created by an enthusiast in France and offers a number of color slides of Lascaux cave art as well as other information about Lascaux. There are also links to other pages of paleolithic painted caves on the Web.
A Decorated Paleolithic Cave in Ardèche FranceThis site was written and designed by Jean Clottes, Chief Curator of Heritage for the French government. It describes the extraordinary discovery of cave paintings in the Chauvet Cave in 1994 in France. In addition to photographs and descriptions of the cave paintings there is information regarding the contents of the caves, how the remains were dated and studied and links to other research sites of prehistoric wall paintings in France.
McDougal Littell NetActivities: Cave ArtThis net activity was developed by an educational publishing corporation. The site ncludes information and images on Life in the Ice Age. Human and Symbol Paintings, Paintings of Animals and Sculptures and Animals. There are some additional links to external sites as well.
Prehistoric Rock Paintings in IndiaArticle and illustrations about the discovery of prehistoric rock art at Bhimabetaka (40 kilometers south of Bhopal) in C. India (from a collection of travel tales of central India).
The Painted Rocks of Africa"The brilliantly captured images of sub-Saharan rock art are not simply pictures of animals encountered on the Savanna and in the mountains. They are symbolic of beliefs and values." Here is an overview of rock art from Africa--past and present.
Technology Throughout HistoryProduced by the Bergen County Technical School District, NJ, this site provides a basic overview of how tool technology evolved from the stone age to modern times. Topics include Stone Age Tools and Weapons, Bronze Age and the Iron Age.
Stone Age Reference CollectionA reference program containing information about wide variety of technologies and raw materials used in the Stone Age. This is a very large site containing many examples of stone age technologies. There is a lot of technical vocabulary but the graphics and extensive typologies of tools makes it worth visiting. There is also a hypertext book by Roger Grace on Interpreting the Functions of Stone Tools.
Stone Age Hand-axes W. J. Kowalski, Graduate Student Research Project, University of PennsylvaniaInformation and lots of images about the development of stone tool technologies during the Paleolithic period.
News Articles
Produced by Texas A and M University, Department of Anthropology, this service provides links to news stories published on the web by ABC, CNN, USA Today, Washington Post, Nando, Archaeology, university press releases and other sources. Here readers can find information about latest discoveries and newest theories as they relate to human evolution.
Research supported by The Leakey Foundation suggests human-like speech may have evolved in our ancestors as early as 400,000 years ago! Here is a report from the San Francisco Chronicle.
In Search of Our PastA brief report on the discovery of a new species of human ancestor, Australopithecus anamensis, who lived between 3.9 to 4.2 million years ago, almost 600,000 years before Australopithecus afarensis.
Ice
Age Lamps
Report from the Institute of Ice Age Studies (1995)
Ancestral
Quandary
Scientific American (1998)
Interdisciplinary
Study Of Nonhuman Primates Gains Grounds
The Scientist (1998)
The Origin of
the Human Capacity
American Museum of Natural History Lecture Series (1998)
Neanderthal
Notes: Did ancient humans play modern scales?
Scientific American (1997)
Rambling
Road to Humanity
Scientific American (1997)
Paleolithic Nutrition: Your Future Is In Your Dietary Past
Nutrition Science News (1997)
The
African Emergence and Early Asian Dispersals of the Genus Homo
American Scientist (1996)
Neanderthal
winter collection
Nature Magazine News Service (1996)
Mary
Leakey: Unearthing History
Scientific American (1994)
Images & MultimediaFrom the radio archives of National Public Radio listen to scientists and other specialists discuss current findings and theories of human development. (Requires Realaudio plug in.) Topics include:
"Thirteen thousand years ago, small nomadic groups stopped in New Hampshire
while travelling between Vermont and Maine. What they left behind is a record
of the earliest occupation of this part of the world. Here is a radio
report from New Hampshire on the Paleo Indian and what they left behind".
(Requires Realaudio plug in.)
Examine our ancestors' skulls from every angle in this 3-D exhibit.
(Requires shockwave plug-in.)
In Spring 1998, the BBC created this stunning multimedia web site in conjunction
with a series of televised broadcasts based on the theme of evolution and
natural selection. It is a vast resource and includes an
illustrated guide to The Origin of Species and information on
Darwin
- the man and his legacy which includes taped interviews with Randal
Keynes, Darwin's great-great-grandson and George
Dyson, author of the celebrated book Darwin Among the Machines,
There are also taped broadcasts from the British Museum's Fossil
Road Show, Biotopia,
an artificial life experiment, The
Extinction Files (including The
Last Ice Age), and a
series of short films from the BBC Natural History Unit in which personalities
including David Attenborough, Douglas Adams, Jane Goodall and the astronaut
Helen Sharman discuss an aspect of evolution which has most profoundly inspired
them.
(Requires Realaudio/video plug in.)
This project originated from a request by the National Geographic Magazine to create "photo-realistic" images of neaderthals for a special issue of the magazine. It is the latest attempt to put a "face on the Neanderthal" using human faces morphed onto Neaderthal fossil skulls. See the results in this stunning multimedia exhibit produced in conjunction with Discovery Canada and National Geographic Magazine. (Requires Quicktime plug-in.)
Skeletal Explorer Workshop's Photo GalleryAn image library which contains many high-resolution, color, still images of modern and fossil human and primate skeletons recorded in JPEG format.
Evolution Title PageA light-hearted look at human evolution. Click on the image to witness the evolution of a single cell into a human being.
