Pueblos Indígenas de Norteamérica (Native Peoples of North America)

When the Spanish began colonizing California in the late 1700s, there were more than 300,000 native peoples living there. By 1860, their population had been cut down to 30,000 by the European diseases they were unprepared to fight, poverty, and other hardships. In this book, readers learn about the traditional culture of the native peoples of California, including the time period before European and American settlement as well as its influence on these groups. Full-color photographs and historical images illustrate their lifestyles as the main content and fact boxes introduce specific groups and their unique customs.

The native peoples of the northwest coast are often known by the totem poles they create. Made from cedar trees, totem poles were painted bright colors and featured both animal and human forms. Why these amazing pieces of art are created is just one of the interesting details readers will learn about the many native peoples who lived in modern-day Alaska, Oregon, Washington, northern California, and British Columbia. The main content features many social studies curriculum topics, including customs, clothing, and spirituality of native peoples. Full-color photographs and historical images enhance each chapter as specific native groups are highlighted throughout the book.

The American Southeast stretches from the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico, including the states of Georgia, Florida, Louisiana, and Alabama as well as parts of Virginia and Maryland. But before that region was divided into states, native groups lived there. From how they found food to what their spiritual beliefs were, the book's main content presents the traditional lifestyles of the Seminole, Choctaw, and Creek peoples, and the other groups that lived in the southeast. Readers learn even more from fun fact boxes and the historical images and full-color photographs that show what native peoples' lives were like, both before and after European colonization.

The Apache, Navajo, and Pueblo peoples are often part of the social studies curriculum. However, they aren't the only native groups that come from the American southwest! Readers are introduced to some of the largest groups of native peoples in the southwest while learning about the main ways native peoples lived, ate, and dressed in this region. Complemented by full-color photographs, historical images, and fun fact boxes, the main content includes the traditional culture of the groups who lived in parts of the states of Colorado, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, and California, in addition to northern Mexico.

In the Arctic, survival is paramount. Yet, for thousands of years, people have made their home in present-day Canada and Alaska among the snow and ice. They value sharing and working together to make the coldest, toughest times of the year bearable. Through migration, hunting, and fishing, the peoples of the North American Arctic have made the best of their environment. Readers discover how and why people settled so far north as well as how they lived. Historical images and photographs showcase the tools, homes, and clothing of the Arctic peoples, while fact boxes offer more insight into their culture.

Much of Canada and Alaska can be called the subarctic. This area features the taiga and often cold temperatures. The native peoples of this region had to adapt to this climate in many ways, including making clothes from fur, wearing snowshoes, and carefully insulating their homes. Readers are introduced to which groups can be classified as subarctic and the traditional ways of life they practice. Full-color photographs and historical images highlight the weather's role in their lives as fun fact boxes add more detail about how the fur trade impacted these groups, how they found food, and more.

A lot of what many people know about the native groups in the northeastern part of North America comes from colonial history. The Wampanoag met the Puritans as they made their home at Plymouth. The Powhatan group of the Algonquin people had a large role in the history of the Jamestown Settlement in Virginia. However, the history of the native groups living in modern New York, Massachusetts, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maine, and northern Virginia began long before European settlement! Readers meet several individual groups of native peoples and explore the distinguishing features of northeastern life, society, and customs. Historical images and full-color photographs help illustrate the lifestyles of these groups.

For the native peoples of the Great Plains, history is broken into two periods: before horses arrived and after. The Spanish introduced horses to these native groups around 1540, and their lives were heavily impacted. No longer did they have to hunt buffalo on foot. They could ride the speed of the herd through parts of modern-day Wisconsin, Minnesota, Missouri, Iowa, Texas, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and more! Readers learn much more about the lifestyles of the native peoples of the Great Plains, including their societal structure, relationship with early European settlers, and more. Historical images and full-color photographs illustrate the main content while fun fact boxes add even more social studies information.