Monday, October 11, 2010

300 Years of Canada

 300 Years of Canada

Grade 5 Social Studies

In this activity students will examine three separate time periods in Canadian history and report back to the class what they found the most interesting about that time in Canada. Students will have to choose one of the years outlined on the Canadian Geographic website from each century (1700s, 1800s & 1900s). Students will be expected to read through each year’s brief summary paragraph before choosing which appeals to them. Students then choose a person from one of the chosen years who is also found at the Government of Canada website to learn more about this person. The focus of student presentations will be on the individual rationale for the choices made during the activity (why did they choose that year and/or person) and why they think certain events during the time were important. During the presentation students will highlight the major accomplishment of their chosen individual. Students hand in a worksheet (consisting of three maps) detailing the changes in boundaries during the three years studied.

General learner outcomes (GLOs):
Students will demonstrate an understanding of the events and factors that have changed the ways of life in Canada over time and appreciate the impact of these changes on citizenship and identity.

Specific learner outcomes (SLOs):
5.3.1 appreciate how changes impact citizenship and identity:
·         recognize the effects of Confederation on citizenship and identity from multiple perspectives
·         recognize the historical significance of French and English as Canada’s official languages

5.3.2 assess, critically, the changes that occurred in Canada immediately following Confederation by exploring and reflecting upon the following questions and issues:
·         How did John A. Macdonald and George-Étienne Cartier contribute as partners of Confederation?
·         How did the circumstances surrounding Confederation eventually lead to French and English becoming Canada’s two official languages?
·         How did the building of Canada’s national railway affect the development of Canada?
·         Why were Aboriginal peoples excluded from the negotiations surrounding Confederation?

List of the most relevant ICT outcomes:
5.S.4 demonstrate skills of decision making and problem solving:
·         use data gathered from a variety of electronic sources to address identified problems
5.S.7 apply the research process:
·         access and retrieve appropriate information from the Internet by using a specific search path or from given uniform resource locators (URLs)

Students use the Canadian Geographic website provided as the primary source of information in this activity. The map on this website provides detailed maps and brief descriptions of each time period. There is also a level of pseudo-interactivity given that students are able to click through the years to make their choices about what they find most interesting. The Government of Canada website acts as a supplementary resource in this activity but provides the opportunity for students to corroborate their initial findings. While not overwhelmingly reliant on technology, this activity benefits from the ease of use in having links within the text to many names, places and concepts, allowing students to freely explore what interests them. The use of technology in this activity also helps students visualize and directly compare boundary changes throughout the years. The simple layout of the website also aids in highlighting significant dates in Canadian history.

References:
Canadian Geographic Enterprises. (2006). Canadian geographic: historical maps 1700. Retrieved from http://www.canadiangeographic.ca/mapping/historical_maps/1700.asp


Government of Canada, . (2001, May 10). People - confederation for kids. Retrieved from http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/confederation/kids/023002-3000-e.html


1 comment:

  1. Good work Adam! I don't know if I have anything bad to say about your assignment, I think it's great! haha I really like that you offer the students flexibility of choice according to who they find the most interesting. I think that students interact stronger to content when they have even the mildest amount of interest in what they are learning. I guess the only thing I could really say for improvement is maybe to find some way to incorporate more technology? Such as... make it mandatory to use powerpoint or create some sort of technologically interactive way to present their individual information. The only thing with that is that to ensure equal opportunity of computer/internet use for all students, you would have to bank a certain amount of class time to give them a chance to work on it.
    Other than that I think you have a fantastic lesson plan activity!

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