John A. Macdonald: A Controversial Canadian

John A. Macdonald Statue Article

This week, we are continuing to use our critical thinking skills as we examine primary sources, photographs, quotes, news articles, and opinion pieces to decide whether we think John A. Macdonald (Canada’s first Prime Minister) was a positive or negative historical figure.

With any person or event in history, it is important to learn as much as we can from different perspectives. This way, we can make up our own opinion based on the evidence!

Please feel free to read and review the article attached above to learn more about the controversy surrounding John A. Macdonald’s statue being destroyed in Montreal.

Parent/Guardian Resource: Talking about Racism

Hello to our parents, guardians, and families of Div. 5 students!

In Socials this month, we will be discussing topics that involve stereotypes, prejudice, and racism; we will also be learning about people who stood up against oppression and made positive changes in their communities! For example, we learned about Viola Desmond and her fight to end racial segregation in Canada. I know that we will have some challenging, meaningful, and interesting discussions around the topic of past and present injustices over the weeks to come!

It is important to recognize that many students have likely heard/learned about different examples of injustice through current events, social media, their own life experiences, etc. I am so proud of how honest, empathetic, and critically-minded our class has been in our lessons so far! Here is a resource that may be helpful if you want to continue these conversations at home.

Thank you!

Viola Desmond & the Canadian Civil Rights Movement

Today, we learned about Viola Desmond and her fight against racial segregation in Canada. We watched the Heritage Minute dedicated to her and read a biography about her life, Viola Desmond Will Not Be Budged.

We will be continuing to explore historical (and contemporary) examples of people who stood up against injustice, racism, and prejudice. Who are some ‘changemakers’ that you think we should learn about?