Grade Level

Grades 6, 7 and 8

Time Required

90 minutes (recommended: three 30-minute lessons)

Curriculum Connection

Atlantic Provinces Education Foundation (APEF) Social Studies Curriculum, Prince Edward Island History, Grade 6

• Explore their concept of culture and demonstrate an understanding of culture in their lives (identify the factors that have shaped a culture).
• Identify and explain factors that are creating a more global culture around the world (describe how the movement of people impacts on cultures).
• Demonstrate an understanding of how cultures from around the world have participated in the development of Canadian culture.

Link to Canadian National Geography Standards

Essential Element #4 – Human Systems

• human migration patterns
• territorial dispute and conflict

Geographic Skill #2 – Acquiring Geographic Information

• use maps to collect and compile geographic information

Geographic Skill #4 – Analyzing Geographic Information

• interpret and synthesize information obtained from a variety of sources

Geographic Skill #3 – Organizing Geographic Information

• prepare various forms of maps as a means of organizing geographic information

Atlas of Canada Resources

Go to the Atlas of Canada Web site found at: atlas.gc.ca
The following parts of the Web site will be accessed by students during the lesson:

• Explore Our Maps

History » Pre-confederation Canada 1740 & 1823 » New France circa 1740 Map

Reference Maps » Provincial and Territorial Outline » Maritime Provinces Map

Reference Maps » Provincial and Territorial » Prince Edward Island Map

Reference Maps » Provincial and Territorial » Nova Scotia Map

Reference Maps » Provincial and Territorial » New Brunswick Map

Additional Resources

• assessment rubric
• directions sheet
• classroom wall map of the Maritime provinces
• access to the Internet for each pair of students

Main Objective

To recognize the presence of Acadian culture in the Maritime provinces and learn about the deportation.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

• access Atlas of Canada Web site
• use a historical map to locate Acadian villages
• accurately label communities on a blank map
• compare maps from the present to the past
• research for information
• demonstrate an understanding of the deportation and Acadian experiences

Introduction

Teacher Activity

• Use a wall map of the Maritime provinces and have the students imagine they were an Acadian family moving to present day Maritimes. Orally they can identify a region they would move to and justify their choice.
• Explain that they are going to visit the Atlas of Canada Web site, a resource that will help them identify where Acadians actually did settle in the 1700s and further understand Acadian Life and the Deportation.
• Each student is given a copy of the student sheet and a blank map of the Maritimes printed from the Atlas of Canada.
• Divide the class into teams of two.

Student Activity

• Students review the worksheets provided, ask questions and prepare to work in pairs.

Lesson Development

Teacher Activity

• Remind students that their maps are to be accurately labeled and will be evaluated on content and visual appeal (refer to rubric).
• Instruct students that the primary focus in the research task is to read about the deportation of the Acadians and try to gain insight and an understanding of their experiences. Draw attention to the fact that further information can be obtained by clicking on any of the links provided on the page. Remind students to record key points such as reasons for the deportations, how it was carried out, and how the people were feeling. This factual information will be used in the final activity.

Student Activity

• Following the directions on the worksheet provided, students log on to the Atlas of Canada at atlas.gc.ca and find the historical map of New France circa 1740.
• Students label the suggested Acadian communities on their map.
• Students are to then visit the Reference Map section and find a present day map of each Maritime province to compare with the one they had labeled to see if any of the Acadian communities remain today. Any that do are to be circled on their map.
• Students follow the instruction on the work sheet provided to complete research on the Deportation.

Conclusion

Teacher Activity

• Review instructions for journal entry with students and explain marking rubric (refer below) to them. Collect student maps and journal entries for assessment (refer to rubric below).

Student Activity

• Individually the students are to create a journal entry from the point of view of an Acadian living in the mid 1700s. They are to use their imagination on creating a character, but must choose to be living in an actual Acadian village and insert at least five pieces of factual information in the body of their entry.

The student worksheet is printed separately for distribution to students.

• Student Worksheet – Deportation of the Acadians

The lesson could be given a broader geographical focus by adding more communities from all of Acadia to the list in the student mapping exercise. (Caution: there is a danger of creating a less than useable map if too many communities are added.) The lesson could also be refocused on another Maritime Province by revising the list of communities to concentrate the settlements in that province.

• Deportation of the Acadians – Evaluation Rubric

The assessment rubric can be used to evaluate the student map and journal entry.

• PDF version (Adobe Acrobat Reader required)