A. Heritage and Identity · Communities in Canada, Past and Present

Be a Historian: Investigating Perspectives of Two Communities

A2.1 A2.2 A2.3 A2.4 A2.5 A2.6About 50 minutes

Learning goals

I can write questions to investigate different perspectives of two or more communities in Canada.
I can gather and organise information from primary and secondary sources.
I can use maps, timelines and data to analyse what I find.
I can evaluate evidence, draw a conclusion and share it using the right vocabulary.

Words to know

inquiry
An investigation that starts with a question and uses evidence to find an answer.

perspective
A point of view: how a person or group sees something, shaped by their experiences.

evidence
Facts and information from sources that support an answer.

bias
A one-sided view that leaves out or unfairly treats other views.

graphic organiser
A chart or diagram that helps you sort information.

conclusion
The answer you reach at the end of an inquiry, based on evidence.

diaspora
People who live outside the homeland of their community, such as Ukrainian Canadians or the Jewish diaspora.

Remember from Grade 5

In Grade 5 you used the inquiry process to investigate interactions between Indigenous peoples and Europeans. This year your inquiry looks at different perspectives on the experiences of two or more communities in Canada, past or present.

Let's start with a question

Two people can look at the same event and tell completely different stories. A new railway might be "progress" to one person and "the loss of our land" to another.

A historian's job is not to pick a side quickly. It is to ask good questions, find evidence from both sides and then draw a careful conclusion.

An old black steam locomotive on display at an outdoor railway museum. — To one community a railway meant progress and jobs; to another it meant losing land. Historians look at evidence from both sides. AI-generated image

The six steps of a social studies inquiry

Ask questions (A2.1). Write a big question about two or more communities, plus smaller questions to guide you.
Gather and organise (A2.2). Find primary and secondary sources from each community's perspective. Sort notes in a graphic organiser.
Use maps (A2.3). Find or make a map that shows where the communities are, or what changed.
Interpret and analyse (A2.4). Look for patterns using timelines, tables and data.
Evaluate evidence and conclude (A2.5). Which sources are reliable? Is anyone's view missing? What is your answer?
Communicate (A2.6). Share your findings using the right vocabulary, in a format that suits your audience.

The six steps of an inquiry, in order. Follow the arrows from asking questions to sharing what you found.

Weak question	Strong question	Why the strong one is better
What is Red River?	How did the Métis at Red River and the Canadian government see the events of 1869 to 1870 differently?	compares two perspectives; needs evidence
Did people build a railway?	How did the Canadian Pacific Railway affect Chinese workers, Prairie First Nations and settler towns differently?	three communities; asks about effects
What is Iqaluit like?	How do families in Iqaluit and in Toronto experience the cost of food today, and why?	contemporary; compares two communities; asks why

Strong inquiry questions are open, compare perspectives and cannot be answered with one word.

Worked example

Let's walk through an inquiry together

Inquiry question: How did the Métis at Red River and the Canadian government see the events of 1869 to 1870 differently?

1. Questions. Smaller questions: Who lived at Red River? What did Canada plan? What did the Métis want? What was the result?
2. Gather. A primary source from the Métis side: the Declaration of the People of Rupert's Land and the North-West (December 1869), issued by the Métis-led provisional government. From the Canadian side: the Manitoba Act (1870). Secondary sources: an encyclopedia article, a Métis Nation website, a museum page.
3. Map. Locate Red River (today's Winnipeg) and the new province of Manitoba (much smaller in 1870 than today).
4. Analyse. On a timeline: Canada arranges to take over the lands in 1869 without asking the people there → Métis form a provisional government → negotiations → Manitoba Act, 1870.
5. Evaluate. The Métis saw a takeover of their homeland without consent and acted to protect their land, language and faith. Canada saw a planned expansion westward. Both sides' documents are primary sources, each written to support its own side, so we compare them, and we check what happened next (many Métis later lost land).
6. Communicate. For a class presentation: use the words perspective, resistance, negotiation, rights, consent.

Conclusion: the Métis saw the events as defending their homeland and rights; Canada saw expansion. The Métis' resistance led to Manitoba joining Canada with some protections, though many promises about land were not kept.

Just for fun

Why are primary sources always invited to history parties?

Because they were actually there! 🎉

Organising your evidence

A simple graphic organiser keeps your notes fair to both sides. Use five columns: Source, Primary or secondary?, Whose perspective?, What it says, and How reliable? Fill one row for each source. Try to have at least two sources for each community, including at least one written or spoken by members of that community.

Source	Primary or secondary?	Whose perspective?	What it says (summary)	How reliable?
Declaration of the People of Rupert's Land and the North-West (1869)	primary	Métis-led provisional government	the people of Red River were not consulted and have the right to govern themselves	shows Métis views clearly; written to persuade
Manitoba Act (1870)	primary	Government of Canada	creates Manitoba; promises land for Métis families	official law; shows the deal, not how it was carried out
Encyclopedia article (recent)	secondary	historians	explains both sides and what happened after	usually reliable; check the author and date

A sample graphic organiser for the Red River inquiry.

Worked example

Let's check a source for bias

A 1870 newspaper from Ontario calls the Métis "rebels" and does not quote any Métis person. Is it a useful source?

It is useful: it is a primary source showing how some people in Ontario saw the events at the time.
But it is biased: it uses a loaded word ("rebels") and leaves out the Métis perspective.
So we use it as evidence of that perspective, not as the whole truth, and we balance it with Métis sources.

Yes, it is useful as evidence of one biased perspective, as long as we compare it with other sources.

Four questions for every source

Always ask of every source: Who made it? When? Why? Whose voice is missing? A source can be useful even if it is biased; you just need to know its bias.

Ask these four questions about every source. A source can still be useful when it is biased, as long as you know its bias.

Hands-on activity

Your own perspectives inquiry

You need: paper or a computer, and help from a grown-up to find safe, reliable sources (library books, museum and government websites).

Choose two or more communities from this unit, or include your own community. Write one big question comparing their perspectives on an event or issue, past or present. (Ideas: the Komagata Maru from the passengers' view and the government's view; Treaty 9 from Cree and Anishinaabe and government views; how newcomers and long-time residents see changes in your town.)
Write three smaller questions.
Find at least four sources, at least two per community. Fill in a graphic organiser like the one in this lesson.
Add a map and a short timeline.
Write a conclusion of 3 to 5 sentences that answers your big question using evidence.
Communicate it: a poster, a slideshow, a short talk to your family, or a letter. Use at least five unit vocabulary words.

You can spread this over a few days.

Your turn

What are the six steps of the inquiry process?

Make this question stronger: "What is the head tax?"

Why should you find sources from each community's own members?

What four questions should you ask of every source?

Is a biased source useless? Explain.

Name three ways to communicate inquiry results.

More practice: warm-up

What is a perspective?

What is evidence?

What is a conclusion?

Is the Manitoba Act (1870) a primary or a secondary source?

What is a graphic organiser?

More practice: on your own

Why is "Did Canada build a railway?" a weak inquiry question?

How could a map help an inquiry about the Komagata Maru?

An 1870 newspaper calls the Métis "rebels". What word could a fairer source use, and why?

Why should a conclusion mention evidence?

What is a diaspora? Give an example.

Challenge

Write a strong inquiry question about two contemporary communities in Canada.

Two primary sources disagree about an event. How do you decide what probably happened?

Why is it important to include the perspective of the community being studied, in its own words?

Check your understanding

Quiz

Which is the strongest inquiry question?

Which step comes after gathering and organising information?

A source written by one side to persuade people is...

Which is a primary source about Red River in 1869 to 1870?

What should a good conclusion include?

Why include at least two sources for each community?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Your child practises the full social studies inquiry process to investigate different perspectives on the experiences of two or more communities (A2.1 to A2.6).

How to help at home:

Help your child choose a manageable topic and find reliable sources: public library databases, museum sites (for example, the Canadian Museum of History, the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21), Library and Archives Canada, and websites run by the communities themselves (for example, the Métis Nation of Ontario).
Model the four source questions when reading the news together: Who made it? When? Why? Whose voice is missing?
Let them present to the family; ask one question about their evidence.

Common difficulties:

Questions that are too narrow: push for "how" and "why" questions that compare.
Using only one side's sources: insist on two per community.
Copying: encourage note-taking in their own words in the organiser, with the source written down.