Episode 1: A Brief History of the American Southwest for Kids

Footprints

A Brief History of the American Southwest for Kids Episode 1 starts our story some 23,000 years ago at White Sands National Park, with a series of fossilized footprints. We are joined by White Sands Resource Program Manager David Bustos, archeologist Mary Weahkee from The New Mexico Office of Archeological Studies, and Diego Medina, Tribal Preservation Officer for the Piro-Manso-Tiwa tribe, located near White Sands.

The footprints preserved in the sand reveal days in the lives of the people who first came to the high desert Southwest, and include footprints from now extinct megafauna, like the Giant Sloth.

Download the companion Learn-Along Guide as you listen to this episode. Our Learn-Along Guide meets and cites national education standards, and helps students stay focused as they listen, while digging deeper into the vocabulary and ideas presented in this episode.