Book Summary
This book describes the cultures of the ancient Maya, Inca, and Anasazi, and discusses the question of whether or not the Europeans were the first people to discover the Americas. The author concludes that when discussing the contribution of the Europeans, the word "explored" rather than "discovered" might be more appropriate. 

Vocabulary
Content Words
archaeologist
civilization
discover
drought
explore
hieroglyphic
kiva
native
Native Americans
perspective
petroglyph
quinoa
ruin 

Reproducibles
Worksheets
Worksheet 1-Point of View
Worksheet 2-Suffixes  

Lesson Objectives

Comprehension
You will likely address a number of comprehension skills as students work to understand the text, for example, students could compare and contrast aspects of the cultures discussed in the book. The targeted comprehension strategy for this lesson is: author purpose and point of view 

Word Work

Compound Words
Recognize compound words 

Suffixes
Understand how adding a suffix can change the meaning of a word 

Visual Literacy
Understand the importance of photos and captions for providing relevant information about the topic
Understand the purpose of sidebars