Be a Historian: An Inquiry into Perspectives, 1713 to 1800

1. Formulate questions; 2. Gather and organize; 3. Interpret and analyse; 4. Evaluate and draw conclusions; 5. Communicate.

To check it against other sources to see if they agree.

So the conclusion is fair and complete, not based on only one group's view.

Primary; it shows the perspective of 19 free Black men in Upper Canada, including Richard Pierpoint.

Examples: First Nations land rights (Royal Proclamation → land claims today); French-language rights; anti-Black racism; refugees.

Any two: The Canadian Encyclopedia, the Dictionary of Canadian Biography, Library and Archives Canada, Parks Canada, the Ontario Heritage Trust, a Nation's own website.

Information from sources that supports a conclusion.

A one-sided point of view that affects how a source tells a story.

Primary (written by someone who lived it).

A chart or diagram for sorting information.

Continuity and change.

Example: How did the Constitutional Act of 1791 affect Loyalists and Canadiens differently? (Any open question needing evidence.)

You cannot tell who made it, why, or whether its facts are supported; you cannot judge its bias or reliability.

It shows the view of a wealthy British woman; it says little about the experiences of First Nations, poor settlers or enslaved people.

It ignores evidence: British merchants and the Thirteen Colonies were unhappy, and habitants had mixed feelings. A conclusion must fit all the evidence.

It applied 1760 and 1761 treaties to rights today, showing that agreements from this period still have legal force.

Example: For First Nations, this period brought both. Early on, they were powerful allies who benefited from trade and alliances, and the Royal Proclamation and the Treaty of Niagara recognized their land rights. But after 1760 and especially after 1783, they lost the balance of power, Britain gave their lands to the US without consulting them, and Loyalist settlement took more land. Overall, loss grew over time, although Nations like the Six Nations and the Mi'kmaq kept fighting for their rights, which continue today.

Example: the Royal Proclamation (1763): affected many Nations and colonists; had lasting effects (treaty-making, still in the Charter); reveals how the Crown and First Nations understood land differently; connects to today through land claims. (Any well-supported choice works.)

They may weigh the evidence differently, focus on different perspectives or groups, ask slightly different questions, or interpret unclear sources differently. Good historians explain their reasoning and admit uncertainty.