Grade by Grade
A. Heritage and Identity · Interactions of Indigenous Peoples and Europeans prior to 1713

Then and Now: Connections to Today and Your Inquiry

A1.3 A2.1 A2.2 A2.3 A2.4 A2.5 A2.6About 50 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can explain how relationships from before 1713 connect to issues in Canada today.
  • I can ask good inquiry questions about interactions among Indigenous peoples and Europeans.
  • I can gather, organize and analyse evidence from primary and secondary sources, including maps.
  • I can draw a conclusion and share it using the right vocabulary.

Words to know

land claim
A request by an Indigenous nation for recognition of its rights to land that was never given up by treaty, or for a fix when a treaty was not honoured.
treaty rights
Rights promised in a treaty, which Canada must respect today.
Two Row Wampum
A Haudenosaunee wampum belt with two parallel rows, standing for two peoples travelling side by side in peace and respect, without interfering with each other.
Elder
A person respected in an Indigenous community for their wisdom, knowledge and experience.
knowledge keeper
A person who holds and shares a community's traditional knowledge, such as stories, songs or teachings.
inquiry
An investigation that starts with a question and uses evidence to find an answer.
reliable
Able to be trusted, because it comes from a good source and agrees with other evidence.

Let's start with a question

What does something that happened 400 years ago have to do with you?

More than you might think! The agreements, the land, the languages and the relationships from before 1713 are still part of Canada's story today.

Small rocky islands covered in pine trees in a wide, calm river at sunrise.
The St. Lawrence River carried canoes and ships before 1713, and it still flows past First Nations communities, towns and cities today. The land and water connect the past to the present. AI-generated image

Agreements that still matter

The Two Row Wampum is a Haudenosaunee wampum belt. Haudenosaunee oral history connects it to an agreement with Dutch traders in 1613. Two rows of dark beads on a white background stand for two vessels, a canoe and a ship, travelling side by side down the river of life. Each keeps its own laws and ways. Neither tries to steer the other. Three white rows, around and between them, stand for peace, friendship and respect.

The Haudenosaunee still use the Two Row Wampum today to explain how they believe nations should live together.

two rows, side by side, never crossingcanoe: Haudenosauneeship: European
A simple drawing of the Two Row Wampum. The two dark rows stand for the two vessels; the three light rows stand for peace, friendship and respect.

Connections to issues today

  • Treaties and treaty-making. The Great Peace of 1701 is still remembered and celebrated in Montréal. From 1725 onward, the British made Peace and Friendship Treaties with the Mi'kmaq, Wolastoqiyik and other nations. Canada must honour treaty rights today. Notice: the Treaty of Utrecht was made without Indigenous nations. Today, Canada's courts say governments must consult Indigenous peoples about decisions that affect their rights.
  • Land claims. Much land along the St. Lawrence and Ottawa rivers was settled without treaties. For example, the Algonquins of Ontario have been negotiating a land claim covering a large area of eastern Ontario, including Ottawa.
  • Relationships with the land. The fur trade led to heavy trapping, and beavers disappeared from some areas. Today, many Indigenous nations lead stewardship programs to care for land, water and animals, and Canadians are learning from teachings like the Dish With One Spoon.
  • Language and culture. French was first spoken in what is now Ontario in the early 1600s, during the fur trade. Franco-Ontarians are part of that story. Many Indigenous nations are working to revitalize their languages, which were harmed by disease, missions and later policies.
  • Métis rights. The Powley decision (2003) recognized Métis rights rooted in communities that began in the fur trade.

Your inquiry: the steps

Historians, and you, follow an inquiry process:

  1. Ask questions (A2.1). Example: How did the fur trade affect the Wendat and the French in different ways?
  2. Gather and organize information (A2.2) from primary sources (Champlain's writings and maps, the Jesuit Relations, wampum belts, the 1701 treaty with its clan signatures, objects found by archaeologists) and secondary sources (books, museum websites). Look for different perspectives, including Indigenous voices, such as oral histories shared by Elders and knowledge keepers.
  3. Use maps (A2.3): read and draw maps of homelands, trade routes and settlements.
  4. Interpret and analyse (A2.4): use a T-chart, a Venn diagram, a timeline or a graph to find patterns.
  5. Evaluate evidence and draw a conclusion (A2.5): Who made this source? When? Why? Whose perspective is it? Does it agree with other sources?
  6. Communicate (A2.6): share your answer in a poster, a speech, a map, a comic or a slideshow, using words like alliance, treaty, wampum belt, oral history, Elder, perspective and consequence.
1. askquestions2. gathersources3. usemaps4. analysepatterns5. evaluateand conclude6.communicate
The six steps of the inquiry process. Follow them in order for your own inquiry project.
Question to ask about a sourceWhy it matters
Who made it?A missionary, a trader and an Elder may see things differently.
When was it made?At the time (primary) or later (secondary)?
Why was it made?To report to a boss? To teach? To record an agreement?
Whose perspective does it show, and whose is missing?Most written sources before 1713 were made by Europeans.
Does it agree with other sources?Several sources agreeing make a conclusion more reliable.
Use these questions to evaluate any source.
Worked example

A mini-inquiry, step by step

Question: How did the fur trade affect the Wendat and the French in different ways?

  1. Gather: lessons in this unit, the population graph, the Jesuit Relations (French perspective), and Huron-Wendat Nation information about their history (Wendat perspective).
  2. Organize in a T-chart. Wendat: metal tools, power as middlemen, alliances; but epidemics, divisions, war and dispersal. French: profits, allies, survival knowledge; but dependence on partners, and losing them in 1649.
  3. Analyse: both gained at first, but the Wendat suffered much greater losses: more than half their people by 1642, and their homeland by 1649.
  4. Evaluate: the population numbers are estimates; several sources agree that losses were huge.
  5. Conclude and communicate: "The fur trade brought both groups new goods and allies, but its consequences were far more harmful for the Wendat, who lost most of their people and their homeland, though their nation survives today at Wendake."

A good conclusion answers the question, uses evidence from more than one perspective, and is shared with the right vocabulary.

Just for fun

A photo you take today is a primary source... for historians 400 years from now! Imagine them studying your birthday party pictures to learn about life in the 2020s.

Hands-on activity

Your own inquiry project

You need: paper, coloured pencils, and, with a grown-up, library books or trusted websites (such as The Canadian Encyclopedia, a museum, or a nation's own website).

  1. Choose a question. Ideas: How did the Great Peace of 1701 change life for the nations who signed it? or How did French traders depend on First Nations knowledge? or Why did Métis communities grow at Mattawa and Sault Ste. Marie?
  2. Gather at least three sources. Include at least one primary source and, if you can, one Indigenous perspective.
  3. Draw a map that helps answer your question (for example, trade routes or homelands). Give it a title and a legend.
  4. Organize your notes in a T-chart or timeline.
  5. Write your conclusion in 3 to 5 sentences with evidence.
  6. Share it with your family in a two-minute talk. Use at least four vocabulary words from this unit.

Your turn

1

What does the Two Row Wampum stand for?

2

Give one way the years before 1713 connect to an issue today.

3

What is the first step of an inquiry?

4

Name two primary sources about this period.

5

Name two questions to ask when evaluating a source.

6

Name three ways to communicate your inquiry results.

More practice: warm-up

1

What is a land claim?

2

What is an Elder?

3

Which nation is negotiating a land claim in eastern Ontario, including Ottawa?

4

What two vessels are shown by the Two Row Wampum?

5

Is a museum website written in 2024 a primary or secondary source?

More practice: on your own

1

How is the Treaty of Utrecht connected to the idea of consultation today?

2

Why should an inquiry about this period include oral histories?

3

What kind of map would help answer: Why did Métis communities grow at Mattawa?

4

Why are Indigenous languages being revitalized today? Connect to the past.

5

Rewrite this weak conclusion to make it stronger: "The fur trade was good."

Challenge

1

Compare the Two Row Wampum with the Treaty of Utrecht. What does each show about how nations should relate?

2

Write a good inquiry question about this unit that cannot be answered with just "yes" or "no".

3

Two sources disagree: a French journal says a trade meeting was "a great success", and a nation's oral history says the French did not keep their promises afterward. What would you do?

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

What does the Two Row Wampum stand for?

2.

Which is a connection between the years before 1713 and today?

3.

What is the first step of an inquiry?

4.

Which is a primary source from this period?

5.

Why include Indigenous oral histories in an inquiry about this time?

6.

A strong conclusion should...

7.

Which nation is negotiating a land claim in eastern Ontario that includes Ottawa?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Relationships, agreements and losses from before 1713 are connected to issues today, such as land claims, treaty rights, consultation, stewardship and language (A1.3). The inquiry steps bring together all of the A2 skills (A2.1 to A2.6).

How to help at home:

  • Help your child pick a manageable inquiry question and find three sources, including one Indigenous perspective (a nation's own website, a museum, or an Indigenous author).
  • Talk about current news respectfully: land claims, treaties, and language revitalization.
  • Listen to your child's two-minute talk and ask, "What is your evidence?"

Common difficulties:

  • Yes/no questions: help turn "Was the fur trade good?" into "How did the fur trade affect different groups?"
  • Copying instead of concluding: ask your child to say the answer in their own words.
  • Using only one perspective: ask "Whose voice is missing?"
  • Current issues like land claims can be complex; it is fine to keep to the basics: some land was never given up by treaty, and nations and governments are working on agreements.