• Native Canadians• Came to North

America around 30,000 years ago

• The Inuit: Came from Asia 12,000 years ago

• Came to Canada across the Bering Strait (land bridge) or by boat• Came from Siberia, Russia, Asia

• Have own form of government

• Live in the north part of Canada

• Territories of• Yukon• Northwest• Nunavut

• Near the Arctic Circle• Skilled hunters and

diet consists of mostly meat

• 1999—Canada’s government gave the Inuit Nunavut Territory in northeast Canada

• First explorers to settle Canada were Vikings invaders from the Scandinavian Peninsula

• In 1000 AD, they built a town on the northeast coast of Canada & established a trading relationship with the Inuit• The Vikings deserted the

settlement for unknown reasons

• It took another 500 years for Europeans to return…

• England was looking for a way to China and India (Northwest Passage)

• Hudson- Explored Hudson Bay Region (Canadian Shield)

• Claimed Canada for England• Italian explorer John Cabot, sailed to

Canada’s east coast in 1497• Cabot claimed an area of land for

England & named it Newfoundland

• British colonized region south of New France•Wanted to control fur trade

• Led to the French and Indian War in 1754…

• After the war, France had to give British control of all lands east of the Mississippi River, except for 2 islands off of Newfoundland

• They were looking for a way to China and India (Northwest Passage)

• 2 explorers• Cartier- explored St.

Lawrence Region in 1534• Claimed for France.

• Champlain- explored Quebec

• Traded with the Indians

• European fur traders were joined by French farmers, merchants, and missionaries from the Catholic Church

• Brought with them French laws, traditions, & religion• France only allowed Catholics to New France

• Most English speaking citizens lived in Upper Canada (Ontario)• Most French speaking citizens lived in Lower Canada (Quebec)

• French Canadians & British Canadians realized that they hated being under British rule

• They thought that Great Britain was too far away to understand their economic & political needs• Sounds familiar?

• 1837—Canadians began to rebel against British control• 1841—Upper & Lower Canada were united, establishing the Province of Canada

• Created a federation union of Canada• Joined four colonies (Quebec, Ontario, New Brunswick, & Nova Scotia) with a unifying constitution

• After WWII, tensions between French and British grew.

• French Canadians felt they were treated unfairly and their culture was under attack.

• In Quebec, some people rebelled against the English influence.

• Quebec remained a Canadian provinces.

• French culture is a formal part of Canadian society

• Continue to challenge Canadian society.

• Canada has a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary democracy •Where the power of the king or queen is limited by a constitution.• And the citizens can vote on their elected officials in parliament

• Canada also uses a federal system to balance power between the federal government and the provinces and territories governments.

• Canada has a mixed economy

• NAFTA ( North America Free Trade Agreement): An agreement made in 1994 between Canada, the United States and Mexico. • Eliminated all trade barriers between the countries in an effort to increase profit and trade.• Resulted in one BILLION dollars of goods trade between the Canadian-Us border EVERY day!

• Directions:• Choose your event and write what it is in the

CIRCLE on the top of the historical marker.• Next, write a short description of the event.• Then, write a brief opinion statement on why

you think that this event is important to Canada’s history.

• At the bottom, write the place where your marker will be located (province, territory, city, physical feature, etc).

• Draw an illustration that symbolizes your event.

• Color your historical marker. Please do not leave any white space!