Courage & Conquest 7th Edition

All new full colour, double the pages, assignments for upper elementary…You are going to love the new Courage & Conquest: Discovering Canadian History 7th Edition.

Courage and Conquest includes exciting living text geared for upper elementary, & doubling in pages from the past edition. Additional resources are still highly recommended to deepen the quality of learning but no longer essential to this independent guide.

Assignments with each lesson introduce the Six Historical Thinking Concepts for critical thinking. Colour time line pictures compliment each lesson. Historical fiction listed for each topic, both in print and out of print for library users.

While this is most suitable for upper elementary, all ages can benefit.

Reading Lists

Reading Lists – If I could do it over again!

We read SO many great books over the years but didn’t keep a thorough title list. I definitely encourage you and your kids to do this!

Remembering favourite books is like chatting with old friends; those characters we love and identify with.

Here’s Lisa’s free printable Reading Logs.
Here’s Tamra’s free printable Reading Logs.
Now I also love keeping my list in Goodreads.

Add to each child’s reading list each year. Give rewards for numbers of books read.

One creative Mom is putting together a memory box for each child as a gift when they leave home. Special books will be part of the collection. What a GREAT idea!!!!

Current Political Events

The Guide to Government Learning Modules give a clear description of the essence at stake in the latest hot political story in Canada – independence of the judiciary.

In Module 2 students are taught that “the judicial branch of government interprets and applies the laws…independence of the judiciary means that the courts are separate from the government”.

The SNC Lavalin Affair is one of the most explosive political news events in current Canadian history. If you need a synopsis of what it is all about, here is a quick explanation by CTV News in 1.5 minutes.
https://www.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=1627965

These modules give basic knowledge which help students understand political processes and current events in Canada. With 2019 being an election year, you’ll want these modules for your homeschool.

 

Yukon ~ The Magic

The Yukon, Canada’s northwest territory, is wild, mountainous and still a vast underpopulated wilderness. Canada’s highest peak, Mount Logan, glaciers, wild ice aqua rivers and trails are part of the mystique of this storied land.

Discover the Yukon with my Yukon – The Magic resource page curated for printables and great videos.

Canada, A People’s History

Canada, A People’s History DVDs – marvelous content because all the spoken monologues by actors are primary source material – are out of print. CBC has decided to offer live streaming instead of DVD production.

You can borrow physical copies from public libraries or your library may subscribe to Curio.ca, where CBC educational content can be streamed. Many schools and colleges subscribe, and a number of public libraries. Does your library have a subscription?

Curio Subscribers by Province

If not, you can ask your library to get a Curio subscription. Even stronger, get all your friends to petition the library so the library knows there is significant interest. See this link to a form you can copy or download and use at your homeschool group, or with family and friends.

http://bit.ly/LibraryResourceRequest

CBC is committed to getting libraries on board in 2018-2019. You can help. Let’s get Canada, A People’s History back for easy access to everyone with a library card.

 

Homeschool Conferences

Homeschool conferences are a great place to touch and see amazing books your kids will love, and get good advice for your particular situation. Here are some highlights from the events we attended in MB, AB, BC and ON. Did we see you there?

Continuity & Change – Inuit

Traditional Inuit were hunters and gatherers, moving seasonally to follow the food source. Even today, modern Inuit still harvest the land by hunting and fishing. Imported foods such as vegetables and milk are very expensive because of transportation costs. Inuit communities today have modern houses and lifestyles, yet there is an effort to maintain language and traditions of the past.

Children can watch videos about a Inuit boy and his father and keep a list of things that are different between traditional and modern cultures, and things that are the same. This is the practice of the historical thinking concept, continuity and change. See more…

Cremation of Sam McGee

Robert Service’s ballad about Sam McGee, the miner who could never get warm, was published with great popularity in 1907, and has been a classic every since. Explain to your kids that the story is an embellished and humorous look at the hardship of the Yukon gold rush.

The real Sam McGee was a successful miner from Ontario, who struck it rich and, in 1909, retired to fruit farming in Summerland, BC. He never met Robert Service, who used his name after McGee made a deposit at the bank in Whitehorse where Robert Service was a teller. On his 2nd return to the Yukon, Sam McGee found his fellow passengers on the steam-ship were buying “genuine ashes of Sam McGee”! It’s not everyday one can buy one’s own cremated ashes! McGee’s cabin is now part of the exhibit at the MacBride Musum in Whitehorse, YK.

Hear a marvelous rendition of the ballad at this link.

Order Ahead – Conferences

There’s nothing like a homeschool conference to get close-up and personal with books that will make or break your next school year. You know your children better than anyone and what materials will engage them most.

You can get the most out of a conference by shopping online ahead of time, knowing exactly what you want to view, and even ordering ahead to just pick up and go without the shipping costs.  On our site, to order online, choose the Pay by Cheque option and add a note in the comments field as you are finalizing your order, about where you want to pick it up. (If you miss the comments field, just send an instructional email to info@donnaward.net.) We’ll subtract the shipping added and have your order ready for pick-up.

Just make sure you really intend to pick up though. Look forward to seeing you.

Conference Schedule 2018

Provincial Court System in Canada

Alex guides students as they discover the role and function of various provincial courts. While these lessons are about BC courts, all provinces and territories have roughly the same court system.
Students will learn about issues common to every court such as judicial independence and access to the courts. Students can watch videos where Alex talks to a various judges from the various courts.
Includes videos, a student handout, and a teacher’s guide for high school level.
Read more..