Middle Stone Age

High school (ages 12+)
History & Culture

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Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/middle-stone-age

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the geographic origin?Africa, with key archaeological evidence from East, Southern, and potentially North Africa
2. How were Middle Stone Age tools different from earlier tools?Middle Stone Age tools were smaller, sharper, and made using special techniques like the Levallois method. This shows that people were planning and shaping their tools more carefully.
3. Where can we find evidence of the Middle Stone Age?Archaeologists have found Middle Stone Age sites in Ethiopia's Gademotta Formation, Kenya's Kapthurin Formation, and South Africa's Kathu Pan.

Middle Stone Age (MSA): A period in African prehistory (c. 280,000–50,000 BP) characterized by advanced lithic technology and the emergence of modern human behaviors.
Prepared-Core Technique: A method of stone tool manufacture where a core is systematically shaped before detaching flakes, allowing for predictable tool shapes.
Symbolic Behavior: Actions or creations that represent abstract ideas or concepts, such as personal adornment or ritualistic use of materials.
Cognitive Archaeology: The study of past human thought processes and mental abilities through material remains.