We are excited to be sharing with you are very first LIVE BLOG! This amazing learning is happening as I type!

We have a GIANT map of Canada from Canadian Geographic that has arrived at OJCS. Why look at a map of Canada in a textbook when you can walk all over one and learn about our country in a hands-on way. Schools across Canada can request the map and it will travel to their school for 1 week.

The students are now trying to place our provinces and territories solely based on the characteristics of the physical environment. Many students are used to seeing the maps of Canada only showing the political boundaries, so while some students are confidently raising their hand to identify a province or territory, others are a little hesitant and unsure. We are encouraging students to take a risk though 🙂 Mrs.Gordon joins us now and takes a turn labelling too!  We are now moving on to labelling the important bodies of water in Canada. Those that did not participate in the land labelling, are now on deck for this part!  Emma and Aviv slowly approach the map while using reference points on the map- finding Ontario and the Great Lakes are key.

Mr.Cinanni is sharing the strategy of using the cardinal points as a reference point. It is important to always know where North is located to help orient yourself. While some students are comfortable with the geography of Canada, students are being very open and honest that they do not know all of the items they were asked to label, especially when they are used to seeing the country shown with political boundaries. Several students agree that if they had learned the geography of Canada in this hands-on and interactive way, the information would have been easier to retain. This is important information for us as teachers to remember, and helps us design all future programming and lessons 🙂

Now we are finally moving on to identifying the physical regions of Canada. Students are being encouraged to now label a region with a partner. Tallula, Oliver, and Adam are discussing the region called ‘Cordillera’ and using great reasoning and process of elimination to determine where it is- “Well, if I have not heard the name before then it probably is not in Ontario.” Right beside them another group is questioning the label of ‘Lake Ontario’ and move it to another area knowing that Toronto is next to it.

Mr.Cinanni asks the wrap up question: What tool did you use today to help you learn? Noah shares that the visual is useful and Haylie shares that the tactile learning is key. This can be transferred to the classroom, because the students can self-advocate and ask for the tools that they require to suit their learning style and needs.

What an amazing lesson to review our Canadian geography as we launch into more discussions and learning about the physical environment and how it influences population settlement patterns.