We have finished up with our virtual quick geography trip across Canada
and now we are ready to dive into Canadian history!
The book I'm using a spine is The Story of Canada.
This will be a long trip down memory lane, so I will be separating it out into smaller units
and we will be working chronologically...
Our first unit is the First Nations People of Canada prior to European contact.
Here is how we did it.....
1. Read about a specific group and region.
2. Label the region/group on a map of Canada.
3. Pick one group for a more in depth study.
4. Do a mini book for unit lapbook or notebook.
5. Watch relevant video.
6. Add in some great reads!
We used The Kids Book of Aboriginal Peoples of Canada as our main source
as well as The First Peoples of Canada website.
Here is a website for free printable maps.
We used graduated/layer books for our lapbook/notebook elements
but the Enchanted learning website has some great graphic organizer worksheets as well!
I also love adding in some historical fiction, picture books and legends!
Goober (age 8) had these on his list....
A Whale Tale (Canadian Flyer Adventure) by Frieda Wishinsky
This one is a favourite for this age group... and Canadian!
This one is a favourite for this age group... and Canadian!
From the cover:
"Since discovering the Canadian Flyer, a magical time-traveling sled, in
Emily's attic, Matt and Emily have outrun dinosaurs in the Alberta
badlands, seen the Silver Dart fly high in Nova Scotia's skies, and
evaded slave catchers on the Underground Railroad. In A Whale Tale, the
sled lands on Canada’s West Coast in 1778. Emily and Matt meet a Nootka
chief, and his young nephew, Tuta. It’s a busy time in the Nootka
village, where a whale hunt and potlatch ceremony are about to take
place. What’s more, explorer Captain James Cook and his fleet of ships
have arrived just offshore. Tuta wants to join the whale hunt, but the
chief thinks he is too young and sends him to help his mother prepare
for the potlatch. Determined to prove his bravery, Tuta sneaks off in a
canoe with Emily and Matt. Out on the open water, the kids find
themselves face to face with a protective mother whale and her baby. Can
Emily and Matt keep their heads above water and help Tuta realize his
goal?"
From the cover:
"Hello, buffalo! That's what Jack and Annie say when the Magic Tree House
whisks them and Teddy, the enchanted dog, back almost 200 years to
the Great Plains. There they meet a Lakota boy who shows them how to
hunt buffalo. But something goes wrong! Now they need to stop a
thousand buffalo from stampeding!"
Sweet Pea's (age 11) list included.....
Indian Captive: The Story of Mary Jemison by Lois Lenski
Sweet Pea really enjoyed this book... not Canadian or pre-European contact
but based on a true story and well written for the age group!
Sweet Pea really enjoyed this book... not Canadian or pre-European contact
but based on a true story and well written for the age group!
From the cover:
"In this classic frontier adventure, Lois Lenskireconstructs the real
life story of Mary Jemison, who was captured in a raid as young girl and
raised amongst the Seneca Indians. Meticulously researched and
illustrated with many detailed drawings, this novel offers an
exceptionally vivid and personal portrait of Native American life and
customs."
From the cover:
"It is 1654 in New England, native land of Algonquin tribes, among them
the Pocasset, Wampanoag, and Narrangansett people. The pilgrims --
called Coat-men by the Wampanoag -- have settled here in the natives'
territory at Patuxit, a place that the Pilgrims have renamed Plymouth.
Weetamoo's father, Corbitant, is sachem, or chief, of the Pocassets. He
is mistrustful of the colonists and imparts his beliefs about them to
his daughter, who is next in line to become chief. Weetamoo must learn
the fundamental values and disciplines of a true Pocasset chief."
The Mouse Woman Trilogy by Christine Harris
I've mentioned this book before... and probably will again... a fantastic collection of Haida legends! I also read a few aloud for Goober.... Sweet Pea loved them and read them all!
I've mentioned this book before... and probably will again... a fantastic collection of Haida legends! I also read a few aloud for Goober.... Sweet Pea loved them and read them all!
From the cover:
"In the late 1970s, celebrated children's author Christie Harris published three books known as the Mouse Woman Trilogy, fascinating retellings of legends of the Haida people of British Columbia. Raincoast re-issued each book in the trilogy and is now publishing an omnibus edition that contains all of the Mouse Woman stories, together with the striking original artwork by Douglas Tait."
I always choose a good read aloud to share together... we really enjoyed this one, not pre-European but Canadian and well written! There were some great discussions in this house after reading this book about small pox and the lives of the Ojibwa people.
"In the late 1970s, celebrated children's author Christie Harris published three books known as the Mouse Woman Trilogy, fascinating retellings of legends of the Haida people of British Columbia. Raincoast re-issued each book in the trilogy and is now publishing an omnibus edition that contains all of the Mouse Woman stories, together with the striking original artwork by Douglas Tait."
I always choose a good read aloud to share together... we really enjoyed this one, not pre-European but Canadian and well written! There were some great discussions in this house after reading this book about small pox and the lives of the Ojibwa people.
From the cover:
"[In this] story of a young Ojibwa girl, Omakayas, living on an island
in Lake Superior around 1847, Louise Erdrich is reversing the narrative
perspective used in most children's stories about nineteenth-century
Native Americans. Instead of looking out at 'them' as dangers or
curiosities, Erdrich, drawing on her family's history, wants to tell
about 'us', from the inside."
There are also some great picture books out there...
check out this website for a great selection- Strong Nations.com
Here are a few I had lying around for the kidlets to pick up...
Mwakwa talks to the loon
A Promise is a Promise
The Salmon Twins
There are also some great picture books out there...
check out this website for a great selection- Strong Nations.com
Here are a few I had lying around for the kidlets to pick up...
There are a variety of wonderful videos to watch on youtube, everything to virtual tours of historic sites, drum dances and throat singing. I also drew from our experiences in the north and pulled out some home videos and pictures :)
Here are a few pictures of Goober's completed lapbook......
and Sweet Pea's notebook....
A trip to Head-Smashed in Buffalo Jump in southern Alberta with a couple of homeschool families....
Perfect end to a fantastic unit!
What age is The Mouse Woman Trilogy appropriate for as a read aloud? Is the content scary?
ReplyDeleteI've been browsing through all of your Canada posts. Thank you so much for sharing the resources you found!
Ages 5+ would be no problem! It would, of course, depend on your child, but the book is divided into individual stories, so you can pick and choose based on the age/sensitivities of your learner :)
DeleteThank you Lindsay for your feedback! Make sure to follow my blog by email to get the latest posts and feel free to msg me if you are looking for something specific!