OVERVIEW
In Grade 8 history, students will build on their understanding of earlier Canadian history,
examining how social, political, economic, and legal changes in Canada between 1850 and
1914 affected different individuals, groups, and communities, including First Nations,
Métis, and Inuit individuals and communities, in an increasingly diverse and regionally
distinct nation. They will explore experiences of and challenges facing people who lived
in Canada around the beginning of the twentieth century and will compare them to
those people who live in present-day Canada. Students will consider the impact of
the Indian Act, the residential school system, the Numbered Treaties, and systemic
racism on Indigenous individuals and communities in Canada. They will examine the
internal and external forces that led to Confederation and territorial expansion and will
analyse the impact of these developments on people in Canada, including First Nations,
Métis, and Inuit, as well as new immigrants. Through an examination of inequalities in the
new nation, students will learn that many of the rights and freedoms we have in Canada
today are the result of actions taken by people in this era to change their lives. Students
will develop their ability to apply the concepts of historical thinking as well as the historical
inquiry process, using both primary and secondary sources to explore the perspectives
of groups on issues of concern to people in Canada from the mid-nineteenth century to the
eve of World War I.
The Grade 8 history expectations provide opportunities for students to explore a number
of concepts connected to the citizenship education framework (see page 10), including
democracy, equity, inclusiveness, law and justice, power and authority, relationships, respect,
and rights and responsibilities.
The following chart presents an overview of Grade 8 history and is meant to provide
a starting point for planning instruction. For each overall expectation (listed in the first
column), it identifies a related concept (or concepts) of historical thinking and a big idea
(see pages 14 and 13 for an explanation of big ideas and the concepts of disciplinary
thinking and page 60 for definitions of the concepts of historical thinking). General
framing questions are provided for each strand to stimulate students’ curiosity and
critical thinking and to heighten the relevance of what they are studying. These broad
and often open-ended questions can be used to frame a set of expectations, a strand,
or a cross-disciplinary unit. The final column suggests ways in which spatial skills can
be introduced and/or developed at this grade level and indicates specific expectations
with which they can be used (see page 25 for a description of spatial skills).
- Teacher: Bouyela Education Corporation