Key Concepts - Grades 5 to 8

Cluster 1- First Peoples

• ways of life (daily life, leadership, culture, beliefs, interactions between communities)
• mapping (major physical regions, vegetation zones, bodies of water, traditional territories)
• stories (pre- and early contact interactions)

Cluster 2- Early Europeans (1600-1763)

• exploration and settlement
• mapping places of historical significance (L'Anse aux Meadows) and European countries that established colonial empires (Portugal, Spain, France, England, Holland)
• daily life (French, English, First Peoples)
• individuals' contributions in settlement of Nouvelle-France (Champlain, Talon, Frontenac, Bourgeoys)
• the Acadians
• Nouvelle-France
• British conquest
• stories (European explorers and traders, interactions with First Peoples...)

Cluster 3- Fur Trade

• daily life
• mapping (places and regions of historical significance to the fur trade and the Metis)
• interactions between First Peoples and Europeans
• western and northern exploration
• settlement (Selkirk and Metis)
• stories (coureurs de bois, Radisson, Groseilliers, LaVerendrye, Kelsey, Fraser, McGill)
• Metis Nation
• Hudson's Bay Company and North West Company
• historical significance of Canadian place names

Cluster 4- From British Colony to Confederation (1763-1867)

• cultural diversity
• interactions between First Peoples, Metis and Europeans
• daily life
• United Empire Loyalists
• War of 1812
• Selkirk Settlers
• 1837 to 1838 Rebellions
• Confederation
• Immigration
• mapping (four provinces in 1867, traditional Metis lands and communities of western Canada)

Cluster 1- Building a Nation (1867-1914)

• treaties and reserves
• immigration and hardships
• cultural diversity
• daily life
• interactions/relationships between groups (First Nations, Inuit, Metis, Anglophones, Francophones, Cdn. Government)
• individuals and events of this time
• entry of Manitoba into Confederation
• 1885 Resistance
• North West Mounted Police
• gold rushes (Fraser River, Cariboo, Klondike)
• Canadian Pacific Railway
• Prime Ministers (1867 -1914)
• mapping (major landforms, bodies of water, major settlements of Rupert's Land, original provinces in 1867)

Cluster 2- An Emerging Nation (1914-1945)

• Remembrance Day
• World Wars (Canada's involvement-First Nations, Inuit, Metis contributions)
• Winnipeg General Strike
• the Depression
• Women's Suffrage
• urbanization, and technological developments
• Prime Ministers (1914-1945)
  

Cluster 3- Shaping Contemporary Canada (1945 to Present)

• people and places (factors that shaped contemporary Canadian life)
• Prime Ministers (1945-present)
• World conflicts (Canadian involvement)
• global events and forces (Canadian involvement)
• United Nations, the Commonwealth, Organization of American States
• industrial and technological advancements
• inventions (kayaks, snowmobiles, Canadarm, insulin, canola...)
• Aboriginal rights
• evolution as a bilingual and multicultural nation
• mapping (provinces, territories, capital cities)
  
  

Cluster 4- Canada Today: Democracy, Diversity and the Influence of the Past

• democracy (ideals, responsibilities, rights)
• Charter of Rights and Freedoms
• citizenship
• Canadian identity
• individuals (past and present) and achievements
• self-determination (First Nations, Inuit, Metis)
• government (main features, political parties, leaders, electoral processes-municipal, provincial, federal, First Nations)

Cluster 1- World Geography

• maps (latitude, longitude, parallels, meridians; map projections)
• mapping (continents, major landforms, major bodies of water, major climatic zones, major vegetation zones, major population clusters, time zones, more and less developed nations)
• factors that influence population movement
• more and less developed nations
• appreciation of global natural environment

Cluster 2- Global Quality of Life

• citizenship rights (Canada and elsewhere)
• Universal Human Rights
• quality of life (environmental, social, cultural, government factors)
• Remembrance Day
• emigration/immigration
• International organizations (United Nations, Amnesty International)
• individuals who influence World Affairs

Cluster 3- Ways of Life in Asia, Africa, or Australasia (1 contemporary society)

• mapping (major cities, landforms, bodies of water of a society)
• ways of life
• cultural issues
• indigenous peoples
• historical events
• government
• economic activities (work and trade)
• impact of technological change, urbanization, industrialization and westernization within selected society

Cluster 4- Human Impact in Europe or the Americas (1 contemporary society)

• mapping (major cities, landforms, bodies of water of a society)
• urbanization
• climate change
• social, political, and cultural issues
• historical events
• economic activities
• food production and distribution
• sustainable development
• consumerism
• student roles as citizens in an interdependent world

Cluster 1- Understanding Societies Past and Present

• world views
• general descriptions of societies/civilizations
• origin and development of human life
• transition from hunter-gatherer to agrarian ways of life
• influence of natural environment on development of a society
• sources of historical evidence and information
• knowing the past and understanding history

Cluster 2- Early Societies of Mesopotamia, Egypt or the Indus Valley (3500 to 500 BCE)

• general world overview and major achievements (location, contributions, beliefs) of Mesopotamia, Egypt, Indus Valley, China, the Mayas and Incas
• one in-depth study of Mesopotamia, Egypt, or Indus Valley:
  - mapping (major landforms, bodies of water, population)
  - clusters
  - art
  - architecture
  - science
  - influence of natural environment on ways of life
  - significance of people, beliefs and events
  - impact and significance of development of writing
  - governance
  - technologies and achievements (irrigation, tools, construction, weapons, transportation)

Cluster 3- Ancient Societies of Greece and Rome

• general world overview and major achievements of China, Greece, Rome, Persia and the Mayas and Incas from 500 BCE to 500 CE
• world religions that emerged during this time (Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism, Judaism)
• Ancient Greece
  - rise and decline
  - social organization
  - citizenship and democracy
  - life in Sparta and Athens
  - Greek myths
  - technologies and achievements (architecture, transportation, weapons, aqueducts…)
• Ancient Rome
  - rise and decline
  - governance
  - trade
  - empire building
  - war and territorial expansion
  - mapping (expansion of Roman Empire)
  - technologies and achievements (architecture, transportation, weapons, aqueducts…)

Cluster 4- Transition to the Modern World (Circa 500 to 1400)

• general world overview including achievements and contributions in art, architecture, literature and science from China, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and the Americas
• impact of the fall of Rome
• Islamic achievements
• Chinese achievements
• Crusades
• Arab conquests
• Viking invasions
• Medieval Europe
• Mongol Empire expansion
• Ottoman Empire expansion
• mapping (conquests, invasions, expansion of the various groups and Empires)
• impact of technological development

Cluster 5- Shaping the Modern World (Circa 1400 to 1850)

• general world overview including achievements and contributions in art, architecture, ideas, literature, science and technology of Europe, Africa, Asia, Australasia, and the Americas
• expressions of the Renaissance (art, architecture, philosophy, literature, science or technology)
• interactions (between Europeans and Indigenous peoples- slavery, diseases, intermarriage, missionaries)
• global exploration and territorial expansion
• mapping (voyages of European explorers-Columbus, Caboto, da Gama, Magellan, Cook)
• individuals and ideas of the Protestant Reformation
• impact of Industrial Revolution on individuals and societies