Long, long before there was a United States, people already lived all across this land. They were the first peoples of America. Today we call them Native Americans, or American Indians.
Key idea
Native Americans lived here for thousands of years before people from Europe came. There were hundreds of nations, each with its own language, leaders and way of life.
Why it works
North America is very big. It has forests, deserts, mountains, grassy plains and long seacoasts. Each nation learned to live well in its own place. People by the ocean fished and built canoes. People on the plains followed the bison. Farmers grew corn and squash. So the nations were different from one another, the way the places were different.
Common mistake
Some children think all Native Americans lived the same way, or that they lived only long ago. There were (and are) many different nations, such as the Wampanoag, the Haudenosaunee, the Cherokee, the Lakota and the Navajo. Native nations are still here today.
For the grown-up: When you can, use a nation's own name (Wampanoag, Cherokee, Navajo) rather than "Indians" in general. Cahokia, near today's St. Louis, was the largest Native city north of Mexico; it was at its height about 1100.