A Canada for All Canadians

Social Studies 9
Zachery Sanderson
 Table of Contents
Unit Plan Rational 3

Resource List 5

Assessment Plan 6

Unit Organizer 8

Weighting Scale 15

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 Unit Plan Rationale

Why is this unit taught? (What is the purpose of this unit within the course?)

Grade nine social studies expands upon foundational concepts introduced in grade 7
related to Canadian identity and citizenship, such as Canada's pluralistic foundations, Canada's
political history, immigration, and the consequences of governance on Canadian citizenry. The
purpose of this unit will be for students to recognize and develop and un understanding of the
influence that government structures play in the lives of Canadian citizens. Teaching about
governance and rights helps students understand the structure and functions of their government,
including how laws are made, how decisions are reached, and how power is distributed. This
knowledge is crucial for informed and active citizenship. Students should come to recognize how
citizens can participate and shape their society through their own democratic decisions, develop
an understanding of Canada’s federal political system, and understand the role of media and
lobby groups in relation to political matters.

How does the unit address the core concepts of citizenship and identity?

Grade nine explores the core concepts of Citizenship and Identity by examining
governance in Canda’s Federal political system, as well as the impact of political decisions on
the lives of every-day Canadians. The program of study states that social studies should provide
students with the "skills and knowledge necessary to become engaged, active, informed, and
responsible citizens". One aspect of this is understanding power, authority, and their connection
to the decision-making process. Grade nine learning outcomes allow students to examine
Canada's legislative system, the role this system plays in providing the needs of Canadians, and
citizens' roles within these structures. Students should be able to demonstrate an understanding
and appreciation of how Canada’s political process impacts how we, as Canadians, view
ourselves and our role within our society.

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How have you attended to the development of skills?
Critical Thinking:
 Students will determine the validity of information based on context, bias, source,
objectivity, evidence or reliability to broaden their understanding of a topic or an issue.
 Students will evaluate critically, ideas, information and positions from multiple
perspectives.
 Students will generate creative ideas and strategies in individual and group activities.
Geographic Thinking:
 Students will define geographic problems and issues and pose geographic questions.
Decision Making:
 Students will evaluate choices and the progress in problem-solving, then redefine the plan
of action as appropriate.
Cooperation, Conflict Resolution and Consensus Building:
 Work cooperatively in groups and use peers to networks and brainstorm, plan, and create
ideas.
Apply the Research Process:
 Find and synthesize information gathered to use for a variety of purposes including
developing a position, drawing conclusions, and forming new opinions.

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 Resource List
For background knowledge

o https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en
o https://www.nfb.ca/ National film board of Canada
o House of Common
https://www.ourcommons.ca/procedure/our-procedure/parliamentaryFramework/
c_g_parliamentaryframework-e.html
o Parliament Library https://lop.parl.ca/sites/Learn/default/en_CA/ParliamentaryPrimer
o Elections Canada https://electionsanddemocracy.ca/parliament/canadas-political-system
o Supreme Court and Judges - https://www.scc-csc.ca/home-accueil/index-eng.aspx

Teaching Resources

Textbooks:
o Issues for Canadians – Nelson
o Our Country, Our Parliament
Videos:
o 900 mile ballot - https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/erP9-gjRoTY
o Rick Mercer – Senator
o Lobbying video https://electionsanddemocracy.ca/parliament/canadas-political-system
o How do Political Parties work? https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/-XlUICruITE
o Minority Majority gov’t https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/9G_ro-EhW4c
Games / Quizzes / Other
o Game for introducing the process of approving a bill
https://learn.parl.ca/en/games/billonthehill/
o Museum exhibition on the history of voting
https://www.historymuseum.ca/cmc/exhibitions/hist/elections/el_000_e.html
o Find your MP https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/search
Newspaper / Articles:
o Conservative versus Liberal belief https://www.studentnewsdaily.com/conservative-vs-
liberal-beliefs/
o

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 Unit Assessment Plan
Subject: Social Studies Topic: Does Canada’s Federal System do
a good job of creating a Canada
for all Canadians?
Grade: 9 Length: 4-5 weeks * Honestly, I’m not sure
how long this should take.
Stage 1 – Desired Results
Established Goals:
Students will be able to…
 Demonstrate an understanding of how Canada’s political processes impact citizenship and
identity in an attempt to meet the needs of all Canadians.
 Develop an understanding of Canada’s federal political process and its effects on Canadian
Society
Constructs: Essential Questions:
 Students will recognize and acknowledge  What Makes Something an Issue?
the various effects of government policies  What is the Structure of Canada's
on citizenship and on Canadian society. Political System?
 Students will understand the structure of  What does the Legislative Branch Do?
Canada’s federal political system  What does the Judicial Branch do?
including the three branches of  What Values Shape Political Parties?
government, the roles of political parties,  How do Laws Become Laws?
and the process of selecting MPs and  How does the Media Connect
Senators. Canadians to Their Government?
 Students will understand the significance  What is the Role of a Lobbyist?
of media in the swaying of political
decisions and the impact lobby groups can
have on society.
 Students will form their own opinion on
the extent to which this political structure
and process meets the needs of Canadians.
Specific Learning Goals (Specific Outcomes):
Students will be able to…
 9.1.2 appreciate the various effects of government policies on citizenship and on
Canadian society
 9.1.4 examine the structure of Canada’s federal political system by exploring and
reflecting upon the following questions and issues
o How are laws passed in the federal political system?
o What is the relationship between the executive, legislative and judicial branches
of Canada’s federal political system?
o What processes are used to determine Members of Parliament (MPs) and
Senators?
o To whom are Members of Parliament and Senators accountable?
o What is the role of political parties within Canada’s federal political system?

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 o What is the role of the media in relation to political issues?
o How do lobby groups impact government decision making?
o To what extent do political and legislative processes meet the needs of all
Canadians?
Prior understandings… Where does this lead? (Future outcomes in
 Students should have already been the same course, following grade-level
introduced to concepts such as Canada’s classes, etc.)
pluralistic society and the history  Further into the grade 9 curriculum,
surrounding the creation of our students will be asked to analyze the role
government. Students will be familiar of Canadians in the justice system and to
with key figures and events in Canadian analyze further aspects of the Canadian
history that will set the stage for the legislative process which will require an
discussion on our current political systems understanding of the Federal political
and the challenges it faces. systems. Students will be asked to
critically engage in topics of concern to
Canadians such as immigration, the
charter of rights and freedoms, and
recognition of collective rights.

Stage 2 – Assessment Evidence

Pre-Assessment(s)
 Discussions with TA about past activities, outcomes, and topics that have been covered.
Formative Assessment
 What is the structure of Canada’s Political system: Stranded Island and Diagram
 How laws are passed: Propose your own Bill / Flipgrid video on how to make a bill.
 Role of Media: What do lobbyists do?
 Debate Personal Reflection
 Class discussion
Summative Assessment
 Documentary: Does the government meet the needs of Canadians?
Other Evidence (observations, work samples, dialogues)
 Observations
 Various breakout discussions

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Unit Plan Template Sanderson/2023

Unit Plan Grid Organizer

Subject: Social Studies Unit Topic: A Canada for All Canadians Grade Level: 9
GOs in full: 9.1
SOs in full: 9.1.2, 9.1.4

Lesson Plan Summaries

(point form descriptions of your activities)
Lesson Title SLOs: Learning Instructional Strategies/ Assessments and
and Day (Abbrev.) Objectives Methods/Activities/Resources Evaluation

*All Classes Feature a powerpoint to

accompany any information needed to
complete activities.*
Intro to the  Discuss the topics that will  Pre assessment questionnaire N/A
class be covered during this unit  Ice breaker challenges/ games:
and a general timeline of
events
 Give a brief overview and
introduction to the
assignments that will be
required for completion.
Lesson Title SLEs: Learning Instructional Strategies/ Assessments and
and Day (Abbrev.) Objectives Methods/Activities Evaluation
What makes 9.1.2  Recognize and identify  Discussion: What makes an issue  Student discussion
something an 9.1.4 criteria used to determine an o Is there a criteria for something to  Observation of class
issue? issue be an issue? discussion
 Identify issues facing o How are issues handled?
Canadians today  Create a group mind map of what makes
 Begin research to form an an issue
opinion on a debate topic  Introduce debate: Should gun ownership
be restricted in Canada?
 Preparing for a debate sheet
Unit Plan Template Sanderson/2023

Lesson Title SLEs: Learning Instructional Strategies/ Assessments and

and Day (Abbrev.) Objectives Methods/Activities Evaluation
What is the 9.1.2  explore the political  Discussion: What would be the political  What is the structure of
structure of 9.1.4 structures of smaller structure of Prince of Peace school? Draw Canada’s Political system:
Canada’s institutions in our area. it out as a class. Stranded Island and
political (School, church, sports  Vocab exploration: List upcoming vocab Diagram
system? teams) words and create a wordle.  Observations of class
 identify and define key  Students will pretend they are stranded on discussions
vocabulary terms an island and must create their own
 create a diagram of the political structure. Create a diagram to
political structure of an represent this.
island of the students’
choosing in order to explore
different ways of structuring
a political system.
Lesson Title SLEs: Learning Instructional Strategies/ Assessments and
and Day (Abbrev.) Objectives Methods/Activities Evaluation
What is the 9.1.2  Explore the content of the  Read through pages 20-26 and create  Formatively assess students
structure of 9.1.4 next section by creating a MUST KNOWS for this section (Potential understanding of New
Canada’s list of must knows that will test questions) French food by observing
political help students determine  Students will create a diagram (similar to their created recipe
system what is and isn’t useful to last class) on what you think the political
continued… remeber structure of Canada looks like after having
 Create a diagram of the read the textbook. Present and determine
Canadian federal system which group was closest.
structure based on the
readings

Lesson Title SLEs: Learning Instructional Strategies/ Assessments and

and Day (Abbrev.) Objectives Methods/Activities Evaluation
Unit Plan Template Sanderson/2023

What is the 9.1.1  Identify the roles and  Horton Hears a Who video analysis  Collect Horton Hears a Who
structure of 9.1.4 responsibilities within the worksheet worksheet
Canada’s executive branch of  Mini debate: Who was the best mayor?  Observations of mini debate
political government through a  Cabinet Portfolio review: pick a portfolio
system powerpoint or class that you feel would impact the quality of
continued… discussion life of a citizen the most. Why did you
 Examine the role of the select it. Think-pair-share
executive branch of
government by viewing,
answering questions, and
debating which candidate
was best for the position of
mayor in the film.
Lesson Title SLEs: Learning Instructional Strategies/ Assessments and
and Day (Abbrev.) Objectives Methods/Activities Evaluation
What does 9.1.1  Create a poster that has  Legislative branch one-pager and  Legislative branch One-
the 9.1.4 students identify and presentation pager reviewed and
legislative explain various aspects of  Video Clips from YouTube videos presented
branch do? the legislative branch of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mD-  Discussions on video clips
government. jb8odRNQ
 Examine the legislative  Explanation of legislative branch
branch of government by o Role of House of Commons
watching a short o Role of Senate
explanation video and then o How MPs are elected
powerpoint
 Identify and explain a
Majority vs a Minority
government.

Lesson Title SLEs: Learning Instructional Strategies/ Assessments and

and Day (Abbrev.) Objectives Methods/Activities Evaluation
What does 9.1.1  Create a poster that has  Judicial Branch One-pager  Legislative branch One-
Unit Plan Template Sanderson/2023

the judicial 9.1.4 students identify and  Think-pair-share 3 ways the executive, pager reviewed and
branch do? explain various aspects of legislative, and judicial branches presented
the judicial branch of  Discussions
government.
 Examine the legislative
branch of government by
viewing and discussing
PowerPoint slide lecture
 Connecting the big ideas: in
preparation for your task for
this section, describe three
ways the judicial,
legislative, and executive
branches meets the needs of
all Canadians
Lesson Title SLEs: Learning Instructional Strategies/ Assessments and
and Day (Abbrev.) Objectives Methods/Activities Evaluation
What values 9.1.1  Share and compare in  Read pages 286-296: What makes a group  Observations
shape 9.1.4 groups what makes an effective? Share and compare.  Class discussions
political effective group?  If you were to start a political party, what
parties?  Explore the various values would be the values you use to guide your
of Canada’s political parties actions?
by participating in an open-  In groups, students will read page 22 of
discussion. the textbook and give an explanation of
 Explore the structure of the constitution of Canada in a written
Canada’s constitution by format.
examining page 22.

Lesson Title SLEs: Learning Instructional Strategies/ Assessments and

Unit Plan Template Sanderson/2023

and Day (Abbrev.) Objectives Methods/Activities Evaluation

What values 9.1.1  Students will identify and
shape 9.1.4 understand the various
political political parties in Canada.
parties  Students will explore the
continued… relationship between the
economic continuum and
government involvement by
examining the economic
continuum
Lesson Title SLEs: Learning
and Day (Abbrev.) Objectives
How do 9.1.1  Students will identify and
Laws 9.1.4 understand the steps
become involved in creating and
Laws? implementing a law in
Canada by reading and
performing a think-pair-
share with peers.
 Students will explore ways
in which FNMI issues are
handled within the context
of Canada’s Federal system.
 Explore the extent to which
and ways in which the
Canadian government can
be more accountable to its
citizens.
 Lecture on political platforms  Observations
 Discussion: What are the political parties  Class discussions
of Canada? What are some of the issues
and platforms these parties discuss?
 After examining a couple examples of
political parties, which would you be most
likely to vote for and why?
 Where do you sit on the
continuum?
 What are some programs you
would implement in the
classroom and how would it
affect our class?
 How do the different policies
of political parties affect our
quality of lives as Canadians?
Instructional Strategies/ Assessments and
Methods/Activities Evaluation
 Think-Pair-Share: individually read pages  Observations of the critical
38-45 and describe the step-by-step thinking group challenge
process involved in creating a bill and  Discussions on FNMI issues
share this with a partner.
o How are FNMI issues
involved?
o Why do you think the process
to pass a law is so long and
arduous?
 Review steps involved in creating and
passing a law
o HoC, Senate, second HoC
review, Royal Accent.
 Critical thinking group challenge: How
might making Canada’s government more
accountable contribute to good
Unit Plan Template Sanderson/2023

government for all Canadians? What other

measures might contribute to good
government?
Lesson Title SLEs: Learning Instructional Strategies/ Assessments and
and Day (Abbrev.) Objectives Methods/Activities Evaluation
How do 9.1.1  Students will explore the  In your groups you are asked to propose Formative assessment:
Laws 9.1.4 steps involved in creating an idea (a bill) for a law that might be FlipGrid law video
become and passing a law in the passed in the classroom. This is going to
Laws? Canadian Federal political reflect the process that a bill goes through
Continued system. Students will do this in the House of Commons and Senate.
by creating a FlipGrid video Create a quick 3-4 min video on flipgrid
that details the steps explaining the process.
involved.
Lesson Title SLEs: Learning Instructional Strategies/ Assessments and
and Day (Abbrev.) Objectives Methods/Activities Evaluation
How does 9.1.1  Students will explore ways  Discussion: If the government came to  Observations from students
media 9.1.4 in which the media connects you and asked you how they should MUST KNOWS
connect government and citizens by inform young Canadians about how  Class discussions
Canadians discussing how the they are meeting their needs? What is
with their government should reach the best way to communicate with all
government? out to young Canadians. Canadians? (Trump Tweets)
 Read and identify  Exploring content: read pages 46-53
o Types of media and write down the MUST KNOWS
o Interpretation of o How reporters see their
Facts. own role
o What is bias?
o What do lobbyists do?
o How do lobbyists see their
role?

Lesson Title SLEs: Learning Instructional Strategies/ Assessments and

and Day (Abbrev.) Objectives Methods/Activities Evaluation
Unit Plan Template
Detecting 9.1.1  Students will identify what
bias 9.1.4 bias is and how it can
impact the retelling of facts.
 Recognize the role and
purpose of lobbyists in
Canada’s political system.
 Determining the “Spin” of
an article by deconstructing
the bias in various sources.
Lesson Title SLEs: Learning
and Day (Abbrev.) Objectives
Role of 9.1.1  Students will research and
Media mini- 9.1.4 form an opinion on the
project following issues: what is the
role of reporter when
covering government
policies? What are do
lobbyists do? What are the
pros and cons of lobbying?
 Students will critically
examine the role of
lobbyists in Canadian
government by addressing
the question: “should
lobbyists be allowed in
Canadians politics?”
Lesson Title SLEs: Learning
and Day (Abbrev.) Objectives
Summative  Students will demonstrate
work time their understanding of the
Federal Political system by
creating a documentary that
answers the question “Does
the Government Meet the
Needs of its Citizens?”
Sanderson/2023
 Lecture: what is bias? Who are lobbyists?  Observations
 Source comparison: Students will look at  Class discussions
various sources and determine if they have
bias or not.
https://youtu.be/H2QxFM9y0tY
https://youtu.be/OWXoRSIxyIU
Instructional Strategies/ Assessments and
Methods/Activities Evaluation
 Students will research the following Formative assessment:
aspects: Lobbyists in Canada
o How reporters see their role in
reporting government actions?
o What do lobbyists do?
o How do lobbyists see their
role?
 Next, students will address the question
“should lobbyists be allowed in Canadians
politics?” being sure to support their
answers with evidence and reasoning.
Students will share these with the class in
an attempt to make a master must know.
Instructional Strategies/ Assessments and
Methods/Activities Evaluation
Students will create a documentary to answer Summative Assessment of
the question if the Canadian Federal system Documentary
does well at meeting the needs of its citizens.
Students will have to address two main areas,
is the structure of the government effective
and what would you change about it, and does
the current system adequately meet the needs
Unit Plan Template Sanderson/2023

of citizens and what could be changed to

improve?

Weighting Chart * waiting to get some suggestions for TM

Unit Plan Template Sanderson/2023