Why I stopped posting

This blog experiment has run its course, as I have moved on to other interests. I realized that blogging just to hear myself talk has little interest for me, although it does motivate me to organize my own material and thoughts. So unless it can generate either good collaboration or small revenue, then it isn't really worthwhile in this format. But I did learn how to use blogger, the amazon affiliate program, and revived my interest in some topics. Maybe it will come back in a different format at some point. I have also experimented with a different blog on wordpress, and so may try to launch a better site for teaching Socials 10 in the future. If you stumble across this site and have any suggestions for a better format, leave a comment.

Quebec Tercentenary

The stamps from my album pictured here (catalogue values of $7) is part of a series of eight stamps (catalogue numbers 96-103) that I plan to post separately. These are the first really interesting set of commemorative stamps that Canada issued, and are very valuable, at least in mint condition. 


These stamps are referred to as the "Quebec Tecentenary" issue (the 300th anniversary of Quebec). In French, that translates as "IIIe centenaire de Quebec": I say, translates, because the whole idea for the celebration was an English one. The Governor General at the time, an Englishman named Earl Grey, decided that a celebration of Quebec would help bring the nation together. Prime Minister Laurier was always interested in encouraging compromise between English and French and was convinced to give his support to the idea.


The first stamp in the series is of the Prince and Princess of Wales (future King George V and his wife). Why are they on the first stamp to celebrate the 300th birthday of Quebec? Well, because they were making a Royal visit to Canada at the time and the celebration was programmed around their schedule. 


Of course, everyone in Quebec loved this... the British monarchy being the main attraction at a supposed celebration of Quebec. Probably wouldn't have happened if Quebec planned it... Do you think this succeeded in promoting national unity?

Myth Perceptions

In Socials 10, we spend some time talking about stereotype and caricature as it applies to First Nations people in Canadian history.

I came across this website today that has some simple resources on the topic. Created by the MCC (mennonite central committee), the website is about deconstructing myths about First Nations people. There are some usable clips that one could use to generate discussion.

Empire at War

ANSWERING THE CALL

"The whelps of the lion are joining their sire"

The Socials 10 course ends before World War I, but it is important for students to know what was coming up next. It makes some of the learning outcomes more relevant.. for example, why do the concepts of "colonialism" "Empire" "growing independence" matter? Because in 1914, Canadians would go to war for Britain. 

Interesting symbol choice in this political cartoon, which clearly supports Canada's responsibility to the Empire. The lion is used a symbol in many contexts, from King of the Jungle, to Lion of Judah, to the Royal Family, etc. But in this case, it is used as a symbol of the power (and goodness) of the British Empire. 

Many of the cartoons that I use in class were taken from this book by Charles Hou (former Socials 10 teacher in BC):

Great Canadian political cartoons, 1820 to 1914

Free the Children

 

I use this book and video in class when talking about current events, and highly recommend the book to students.


The story of Craig Kielburger is inspiring. He was just 12 years old when he started looking into the issues of Child Labour and decided to do something about it. He asked his Socials Studies class to help and got 11 people to join him, starting an organization called Free the Children. He now has another organization called "Me to We" that organizes We Day and encouraged youth to support social issues affecting other youth around the world. This is a must-read book to realize that youth can make a difference in our world.


Here is the amazon link:    Free the Children

Immigration

Immigration can be a fairly dull topic in Socials 10 if you stick to the textbook platitudes. Students are supposed to learn about why people were immigrating to the area in the 1800's and how our immigration policy was initially shaped when Canada became a country.

There are two ways to make this more interesting and relevant.
1) Personal immigration stories. When each person in the class shares about how their family immigrated to Canada, it makes for a greater appreciation for the event. I will do another post later about the project I do in class.
2) Curent events and debate. Immigration is always a current issue. In previous years, there have been stories of "boat people" or "disguised old men" to spark discussion of immigration. Currently, the Globe and Mail is running a series on the issue with some ideas for discussion. I haven't read through it all, but looks like there are some good discussion ideas.

I fund that students are generally unaware that Canada allows some immigrants and not others or why.. It generally sparks good classroom discussion.

Canada in 1815

The first unit in my Socials 10 course (after review) is called "Canada in 1815". 

The key questions for the unit are:

1)   What was Canada like in 1815? Who was here and what were they thinking and doing?

2)   What were the problems with government?

My lessons go like this: 

1) Economy in 1815

2) Government in 1815

3) Immigration in 1815

4) Big Ideas in 1815

5) First Nations Relations: 1815-1840

6) Rebellions of 1837-1838

7) Government in 1840

Of course, "Canada in 1815" wasn't quite the same Canada as today. We are just talking about Upper and Lower Canada, or the very southern portions of Ontario and Quebec. 

King Edward VII

The stamps from my album pictured here (catalogue values of $73, $0.35, $6, $5, $12) are part of a series of seven stamps (catalogue numbers 89-95). I am missing the 20 cent stamp that was issued in 1904 and the 50 cent stamp that was issued in 1908. 


Again, you will notice that the first stamp in this series is mounted in a black casing, meaning it is a mint stamp that has never been used. Of course this makes the stamp much more valuable, depending on the condition of the gum on the back. This stamp is MH, which means "mint hinged" since some dingbat put a hinge on the back to mount it in their album like it was a used stamp and wrecked the original gum on the stamp.


King Edward VII was crowned after Queen Victoria died in 1901 and was King until 1910. Queen Victoria has long been called the Emperor of India, but a phrase was added to Edward's official title: he was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India.  


King Edward VII had a largely uneventful reign, other than overseeing the end of the Boer War. He was King just after the time of the more well-known Prime Ministers Benjamin Disraeli and William Gladstone, and there appears to have been very little political tension during his reign. 


I wonder if he (or others) saw that this would be the height of the British Empire. Between the bad press of the Boer War and the building political tension that would lead to World War I, were there signs that not everything was well? 

Emigrant Sifter

HAND PICKED ONLY

JACK CANUCK: I want settlers, but will accept no culls

Clearly some people at the time (this cartoon was published in 1907) realized that there was something afoot with Canada's immigration policy. In this cartoon, you will notice Jack Canuck (a caricature of the stereotypical Canadian) sifting out emigrants (likely based on race).

Many of the cartoons that I use in class were taken from this book by Charles Hou (former Socials 10 teacher in BC):

Great Canadian political cartoons, 1820 to 1914

HMS Victory

In the summer of 2010, I was on a trip through Portsmouth, England, and went aboard the HMS Victory ship that is preserved as a museum. The Victory was flagship in the battle of Trafalgar, commanded by Lord Nelson.

 

Of course, the battle of Trafalgar (1805) was a pivotal point in the war between England and the combined powers of both Spain and France (Napoleon). 27 British ships defeated 33 French/Spanish ships in the battle due to the superior tactics of Lord Nelson. Nelson himself was wounded and died on the ship. 

This established Britain's supremacy on the sea once and for all, and enabled the expansion of the British Empire at the expense of both the French and Spanish. Shortly thereafter, the British defeated Napoleon in the Battle of Waterloo. 

How does this relate to Socials 10? Britain's control of the ocean of course affected Canada, because it is always better to be on the winning team. For example, the US quickly decided that invading Canada in 1812 was a poor decision because it meant challenging Britain's naval power in the Atlantic.

Review Maps

Here are the maps that I use at the beginning of Socials 10 for review. Maps are the stereotypical socials activity that I try to avoid "all we did all year was colour maps", but find myself using more all the time. Maps provide a good visual, and a break from 'facts'. I found myself referring to places and events in Europe quite often in Socials 10 (plus in Socials 11, students will have to add to their understanding of European countries). 

I use this map (Map of Europe), and just have students label and colour the following places: Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, England, London, Ireland, Scotland, France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Rome.

I then use this map (Map of Eastern Canada) as part of my review of early contact. The students label 

Landmarks: North America, South America, Hudson’s Bay, Atlantic Ocean, St. Laurence River, Newfoundland

First Nations: Cree, Obijwa, Huron,  Iroquois, Algonquin, Malecite, Mi'kmaq, Innu, Beothuk

Explorers: Jacques Cartier, Henry Hudson, Sir Walter Raleigh

Early Settlements: York, Jamestown, Montreal, Quebec City

If you have better map images, please let me know

British Empire

These stamps from my album pictured here (catalogue values of $11, $13) are the second commemoratives issued by Canada.The same stamp was issued with two different background colours (and several variations) for Christmas 1898. Since they were issed for Christmas, they are relatively common despite only being used for a short time.


These are also the first stamps after confederation (in 31 years) issued without a picture of Queen Victoria. The image highlights all of the countries in the British Empire and is titled: "We hold a vaster empire than has been". 


In Socials 10, we talk about the concept of "imperialism" (definition: Empire building) and the difference between the terms imperialism, colonialism, and mercantilism. Canada was a large part of this empire that peaked around this time.

Cabot

I have never really paid much attention to the story of John Cabot, since his "discovery" of Newfoundland was not followed up with attempt at trade or settlement until much later. I generally don't include him in my list of significant events:
1) Christopher Columbus "discovered" South America and promoted settlement and trade on behalf of Spain
2) Jacques Cartier "discovered" Canada and Samuel de Champlain led settlement in "New France" on behalf of France
3) Sir Walter Raleigh "discovered" America and promoted settlement in Jamestown on behalf of the English (oh, and Henry Hudson "discovered" Hudson's Bay and claimed it)

So this article that just appeared in the Vancouver Sun is interesting, because it claims that John Cabot may have seen Newfoundland before Christopher Columbus spotted South America. Again however, I am not sure how significant this is. What matters more is what those men and the countries they represented DID with their discoveries. The reality was that in the time of John Cabot, King Henry 7th was not so interested in colonization, and so the discovery was not significant for England until later.

Prince of Wales Library

Nobody likes links that result in a list of links, but here you are. Every once in awhile, this is preferable to just googling something. This is the most useful list of social studies links I have encountered, nicely organized. Skim through the list for new ideas to add to your bookmarks.

Reciprocity

Reciprocity is the lifeguard who is ready to save the "common people" drowning in a sea of "high tariffs". Unfortunately, he is held back by "greed", "moneyed interests", and "special interests". Then there is globalization saying "shake 'em off they're only barnacles".

Of course, conservative governments in Canada always acted in the interests of business and maintained high tariffs. However, due to globalization business interests have now changed.. Conservatives now are all about free trade, and only labour groups oppose it.

Many of the cartoons that I use in class were taken from this book by Charles Hou (former Socials 10 teacher in BC):

Great Canadian political cartoons, 1820 to 1914

One of the 28th

One of the 28th: A Tale of Waterloo

by GA Henty

I just finished reading this book by GA Hentry that I found in the "rare" section of a local used book store. I have previously explained why I enjoy reading stories by Henty.

This particular tale is of a young British lad that is captured by French privateers and carried off to the Indies, escapes and finds his way home, falls into a large inheritance, gets an army commission, and fights in the battle of Waterloo.

Not directly related to Socials 10 content, but is great context for the French/English relationship. It also gives background on the defeat of Napoleon (and the reason that Canada is British instead of French). Of course the language is outdated, and Henty does get a little lost in the minutiae of the battle in the last few chapters, but this was a very enjoyable read.

Here is the amazon link:

A Tale of Waterloo, One of the 28th

Pocahontas

I have previously made a post about the movie Pocahontas, but since I have now figured out how to post documents on blogger I decided to attach these files:

Pocahontas - What really happened
Pocahontas - Assignment

In the cartoon, we are presented with this narrative:

•Big Bad Europeans vs. Noble Savages

•The American Hero saves the day!

•Natives beliefs lead to compromise

•Peace wins out over conflict

In reality, I propose that the history of Eastern North America went more like this:

•Good/Bad Europeans vs. Good/Bad Natives

•The “American” immigrants were often worse than their leaders in Britain

•Mutually beneficial relationship?

•Brief peace, but conflict won out

More Queen Victoria

The stamps from my album pictured here (catalogue values of $3, $0.45, $0.45, $0.45, $1.75, $3.45, $37, $164) are part of a series of eleven stamps (catalogue numbers 74-84) that were all issued at the end of 1898 to 1900.  I am missing the 6,7,&8 cent stamps from the series. These stamps are very similar to the series issued in 1897, but notice the numbers in the bottom left and right corners (instead of maple leafs) that distinguish this set from the more valuable previous one.

Events before 1815

Socials 10 starts in 1815, and there is some prior context that students should know in order to understand what was going in Canada by 1815. 


My review unit starts with
-European history
-Early contact in North America
-Significant Events before 1815


I then review the following events, because again they give context for the rest of the course. I don't ask the students to memorize dates (other than 1763), but they should be able to match the event to a description. 


1534 - Jacques Cartier - the explorer that named this region "Canada"and claimed it for France and the Catholic Church.
1670 - Rupert's Land - Britain gave the Hudson’s Bay Company “ownership” over all of the land draining into Hudson’s Bay.
1713-1763 - Acadian Expulsion - Britain gained control of Acadia (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and P.E.I.) and deported the French to other areas.
1759 - Plains of Abraham - Britain gained control of Quebec City and France was not able to re-enforce troops in North America.
1763 - Treaty of Paris - France surrendered Canada to Britain in exchange for Guadeloupe, St. Pierre and Miquelon.
1763 - Royal Proclamation - Britain banned all further settlement, or private negotiations of First Nations land, until formal treaties were signed.
1774 - Quebec Act - Britain guaranteed the rights of the French to practice their own religion and enforce their own laws in Quebec.
1783 - American Revolution Ends - Many French and First Nations people fought for Britain, but lost. After the war, many loyalists, slaves, and Natives moved North.
1791 - Constitution Act - This divided Upper Canada (mostly English) from Lower Canada (mostly French).
1803 - Louisiana Purchase - The United States purchased most of the midwest from France (Napoleon had just recently conquered it from Spain).
1812-1815 War of 1812 - Americans tried to invade Canada, but they were unsuccessful. 


Here is a copy of my powerpoint lesson. Feel free to modify and use:
Significant Events in North America before 1815

Women's Suffrage

THE DOOR STEADILY OPENS

The broom reads "women's suffrage" and each of the men at the table are labeled with things such as "special privilege" and "vice". I like the devil in the background serving drinks. Of course the idea is that by allowing the woman into the room, she will be able to sweep out corruption from society. Corruption fueled primarily by alcohol, as in 1900 prohibition was seen as a woman's response to a man's problem. Interesting...

Many of the cartoons that I use in class were taken from this book by Charles Hou (former Socials 10 teacher in BC):

Great Canadian political cartoons, 1820 to 1914

The Fur Trade in Canada

The Fur Trade In Canada: An Illustrated History

This book details the history of the fur trade in Canada, and is very informative but reads like a textbook with few exciting bits. What I like about this book is that is does not stop in 1867 but carries on with the history of the fur trade to the present day and talks about more recent history as well. Of course, it does have pictures too which always helps.


In Socials 10, I usually do a review of the fur trade before chapter 4 on Manitoba History. It seems to flow into the story of the Metis. But bits and pieces come up throughout the course, since the fur trade was so pervasive in Canadian history. 


Here is the amazon link:

The Fur Trade in Canada: An illustrated history

Prime Ministers of Canada

This website entitled "First Among Equals" is a government of Canada website with information about the office of Prime Minister. It starts with a headline saying "this document is no longer in effect. It has been archived online and is kept purely for historical purposes."

However, it is a great source of information if you want to clarify for students what the Prime Minister really is and does. Many students do not understand the difference between a Prime Minister and a President and what power the office really holds. It is not simply a chronology of Prime Ministers who have held the office, but does include information and quotes about specific leaders.

I usually include these types of facts (how our government works) right after the section on confederation. 

More Queen Victoria Stamps

The stamps from my album pictured here (catalogue values of $21, $2, $3, $2, $13, $20) are part of a series of eight stamps (catalogue numbers 66-73) that were all issued at the end of 1897.  I am missing the 6 cent and 10 cent stamps from the series. These stamps are very similar to the next series of stamps issued, but notice the maple leafs in the bottom left and right corners that distinguish this set from others.


You will notice that the first stamp in this series is mounted in a black casing, meaning it is a mint stamp that has never been used (the earliest in my collection). Of course this makes the stamp much more valuable, depending on the condition of the gum on the back. This stamp is MH, which means "mint hinged" since some dingbat put a hinge on the back to mount it in their album like it was a used stamp and wrecked the original gum on the stamp.


Again, more Queen Victoria pictures aren't terribly exciting. I know that 60 years on the throne was a big deal, but what about 30 years of Canadian Confederation? Still no stamps picturing anything but the monarch.

Early Contact Review

Socials 10 starts in 1815, and there is some prior context that students should know in order to understand what was going in Canada by 1815. After reviewing some European history, I then review early contact in North America. My outline looks like this:


Early Contact in North America
(discussion of stereotypes)


A. The French
     -meeting Algonquian and Iroquois
     -traders and missionaries
     -pre-existing conflict (ex. the Huron)
     -New France


B. The English
     -Hudson's Bay
     -Jamestown


C. Alliances and Conflict



Here is a copy of my powerpoint lesson. Feel free to modify and use:
Early Contact Review

Reciprocity

THE FISCAL TUG-OF-WAR

Farmers' association vs. manufacturers' association

This debate is still ongoing. It is great for consumers to buy cheap things made in China at the dollar store. Not so good for Canadian businesses that employ people here at home. 

A hundred years ago, Conservatives would've been opposed to free trade (ex. National Policy) because that was a pro-business position. Liberals would've been supportive of free trade because because that was free-market economics. 

I guess once the Canadian businesses are owned by foreigners and move their factories overseas, then nobody cares much about protecting Canadian jobs anymore. So both the Conservatives (pro-business) and the Liberal (pro-free market) now support free trade. Consumers like it because they can buy cheaper things. So everyone is happy... O, except the unemployed I guess.. and maybe the NDP?

Anyhow, this issue that was debated in Laurier's time connects well to current issues that even grade 10 students can explore.

For example:

Ever shopped at amazon.COM instead of amazon.CA? Why?

Many of the cartoons that I use in class were taken from this book by Charles Hou (former Socials 10 teacher in BC):

Great Canadian political cartoons, 1820 to 1914

Religion

Recently I posted a copy of my review session on European history. Upon reflection, I think that next time I teach it i will add a section on religion. I keep finding myself having to explain this anyways, and I think it would make it clearer if I broke it down into key points.

Religion is very much a key part of European history and culture (and by extension Canadian history and culture). This is a picture that I took in Rome in 2008, looking down the street towards the entrance to Vatican City and St. Peter's Basilica. 

My simple outline would go something like this:

Religion: what you need to know...
1) Judaism, Christianity (year 0), and Islam (year 610) are related
2) Christianity became known as Catholicism (Pope in Rome)
People who disagreed in 1500's called Reformers
King Henry of England started the "Church of England" (Anglican)
Many people thought he didn't go far enough (Puritans)

This was a difficult time because religion was supposed to be part of your nationality (ie. a Spanish person was Catholic and an English person was Anglican). This led to conflict and persecution of minority groups.

3) Today, there are many different Christian churches in two categories:
Traditional Mainline Churches (like Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, etc.)
Reformed Evangelical Churches (like Mennonite, Baptist, Methodist, etc.)

Also, all churches that are not Catholic are sometimes referred to as "Protestant".