Unit of Inquiry #1

“Perspective and Inequalities”

This unit of inquiry is called “Perspectives and Inequalities”. We will be exploring and creating a timeline of minority groups who have come to Canada, and looking at the difficulties they have faced in history. The central core competency that we will be using throughout every inquiry lesson is empathy — adopting the perspective of others. From looking at European voyagers and first contact with Aboriginal peoples in the 1600s to East and South Asian settlers (Chinese Head Tax, Anti-Asian riot, Komagata Maru, Japanese Internment camps) in the late 1900s and to present day current issues, we will build their understanding towards the big idea.

Big Idea:
Canada’s policies and treatment of minority peoples have negative and positive legacies. & Immigration and multiculturalism continue to shape Canadian society and identity.

Provocation: A simulation was done in class where all students were given slips of paper indicating whether or not they could enter “the country” (the classroom). Some students were welcome, some welcome with condition, and some were not permitted to enter. The emotional response and reflection from all students were meaningful and will provide a lens for them to take with them as we now explore other events in Canadian history.

Push and Pull factors: Why do people migrate?

  • We played a game with “Gimmie gimmie gimmie” and “Get that away from me” to understand push and pull factors. What are some examples of each?

Indigenous education/Residential School: 

  • How can we use inference skills in picture books like The Secret Path and The Arrival?
  • Why did Indigenous children have to go to residential school?
  • What happened in the Fur Trade/Beaver Wars of 1640?
  • What could a beaver pelt be traded for?
  • How were Indigenous people treated in the Trail of Tears?

Asian migration:

  • Why did Chinese immigrants come to work for the Canadian Pacific Railway?
  • What were some living condition in Gold Mountain?
  • What is the Chinese Head Tax?
  • What was the Anti-Asian Riot in 1907?