ICSE Class 5 (Social Studies) – Evolution of human beings / The Earliest Humans / The Stone Ages

• Paleolithic age (Old stone age): Hunter-gatherers who killed animals with their stone-tools. Lived on trees or rock caves. Made paintings on walls of caves.
• Mesolithic age (Middle Stone age): Beginning of agriculture, tools made of flint (rock) continued.
• Neolithic age (New Stone age): Beginning of settled life, practice of agriculture and domestication of animals. Villages started coming about.
• Chalcolithic age (stone-Copper age): Tools made of metal (copper). People were good coppersmiths and stone workers. Soon people learnt to make bronze (mix of copper and tin)

Name the first metal used by the early human beings.
Ans. The first metal used by early humans was copper.

Question. Describe the nomadic life of early human beings.

Ans. a. The hunter–gatherers led a nomadic life moving from one place to another in search of food and water. b. They hunted animals and ate berries, nuts, fruits and roots. c. They wore clothes made of leaves and animal skins.

Question. How did fire affect the lives of early human beings?

Ans. Fire affected the life of early humans in the following ways:

• Fire could keep them warm.
• Fire protected them from wild animals.
• Food cooked on fire was softer and tastier.
• Fire lit up their dark caves at night.

Why did early humans use caves and trees as shelters?

Ans: Trees provided protection from wild animals but caves offered better protection from wild animals as well as from sun and rain.

Where in India have rock paintings been found?

Ans: India has the largest collection of rock paintings found mainly in the caves of Vindhya and Satpura hills in Central India (eastern Gujarat running east through the border of Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh and ends in Chhattisgarh).

Greatest achievement of early humans during the Old Stone Age?

Ans: Discovery of fire was the greatest achievement of early humans during the Old Stone Age.

Why is Neolithic Age considered extremely important period of history?

Ans. Due to beginning of settled life, practice of agriculture and domestication of animals, invention of wheel.

How did life change for humans during the New Stone Age?

Ans. Life of humans underwent significant changes in the New Stone Age due to the following reasons:

• Discovery of Agriculture: Humans learnt how to grow food and they were no longer hunter-gatherers’ but became ‘food producers’
• Domestication of animals: Humans learnt to domesticate animals to get milk, wool and meat. The animals also helped them to pull plough.
• Invention of wheel: Invention of wheel offered many advantages such as making carts for transportation, for pottery and other crafts.

Question. What were some of the major changes in the Neolithic Age?

Ans. Some of the major changes in the Neolithic age were:

• The early humans started leading a settled life, practising agriculture and domesticating animals.
• They built huts using twigs, grass, sticks, clay and the skin of animals. Gradually, more people started living together in one area and formed a village.
• Another important development of the Neolithic Age was the invention of the wheel.
• This helped early humans to transport goods on wheeled carts, make pottery on the potter’s wheel and also use the wheel for spinning and weaving clothes. With the advancement of agriculture people started spending more time on activities such as weaving, spinning, making ornaments and pottery.

Question. State some advantages of the domestication of animals.

Ans. Domestication of animals helped the early humans in the following ways:

• It provided them with a regular supply of meat.
• They could cover themselves with the skin of animals.
• Animal skin was also used for making huts.
• Later, cattle were used for ploughing the land.
• Animals were used to protect themselves from the attack of other tribes.

Write the difference between The Old Stone Age and the New Stone Age.

The Old Stone Age (Paleolithic)

• The time period in history when early humans used stone to make their tools is known as the old Stone Age.
• 2. Life- They led a nomadic life, wandering from one place to another, in search of food and shelter.
• 3. Shelter- lived in rock caves and trees to protect from the weather and animals.
• 4. Discovery- Later they discovered about fire and fire could provide light, warmth and protection from wild animals and cook meat.
• 5. Tools- knives, spears, arrowheads, harpoons with flint

The New Stone Age (Neolithic)

• The time period in history with the beginning of settled life, agriculture and taming animals is known as the New Stone Age.
• 2. Life- They started living together and formed villages and did farming and other activities like taming animals, pottery, etc.
• 3. Shelter- made houses of twigs, grass, sticks, clay and mud and animal skin.
• 4. Discovery- The invention of wheel and its uses lead to pottery, transporting goods and weaving clothes.
• Tools- canoes, bows, polished stone tools, ploughs.

Question and Answers

Evolution of human beings (The Earliest Humans) chapter for ICSE class 5 students. Find notes, questions and answers.

What are our sources of information about life during prehistoric times?

Describe the nomadic life of early human beings

How did fire affect the lives of early human beings?

State some advantages of the domestication of animals.

What were some of the major changes in the Neolithic Age?

Name the first metal used by the early human beings.

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