Education
‘Defining Moments’ are those moments of shared national importance to Canadians – teachers develop these in their classes everyday. Such ‘moments’ afford the Canadian classroom teacher a remarkably rich opportunity to inspire students to become “active citizens” completing digital tasks that commemorate a defining moment in our shared Canadian heritage.
On this page, you’ll find a complete list of all of the lesson plans and educator resources. To explore resources and supports by topic, you can visit our project landing pages.
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To demonstrate the six essential “Global Competencies” of a 21st century learner identified by CMEC (The Council of Ministers of Education Canada), Defining Moments Canada has designed multiple entry points for teachers to engage their students in learning tasks that encourage proficiency in:
- Primary research
- Digital storytelling
- Critical thinking (utilizing the Historical Thinking Concepts)
- Differentiated inquiry
- Interdisciplinary perspectives
All of our Defining Moments are prepared by scholars and leading educators with an ‘Inquiry Toolkit’ rich with teacher resources for students Grades 6-11. These Lessons are easily achievable within a Unit of Inquiry and reflect expectations common to all provincial curricula. However, the Lessons are also designed to be stand-alone for teachers who may wish to explore each special ‘moment’ in Canadian History, within the scope of 1-2 classroom periods.
Working with our education partners, Defining Moments Canada is proud to present these lessons which place students in the ‘driver’s seat’ of their own learning, emphasizing collaboration, communication and creativity.
