Elementary Resources (JK-Grade 8)
Elementary teachers of all levels and subjects will find something of
interest
on this site. If you teach grades 4-8, be sure to check out the
Webquest.
Teachers of all grades should check out the Curriculum-Linked
Activities and Introduction to the
Catalogues.
Webquest
A Webquest is an inquiry-based student activity in which small groups
of
students take on roles and perform a given task by doing research on the
Web.
The Let's Go Shopping 1948! Elementary Webquest is a unique
simulation
activity that challenges students to place a catalogue order for one of
five
1948 families; the families and their characters are based on real-life
Canadians
from five regions of Canada.
Curriculum-Linked
Activities
Select your subject or grade level to find curriculum-linked activities
that
make use of the on-line catalogue pages.
Activity Suggestions by Subject
English Language Arts, French Language Arts
- Assign different catalogues to the students. How does the language
change
over time?
- What words and phrases are used to sell the products in various years?
Ask
students to write catalogue text for an item that they own.
- Find vocabulary that is no longer used or is unfamiliar. Ask students
to
define the words and use them in writing of their own.
English as a Second Language
- Print out pages from a catalogue according to a specific theme (for
example,
clothing, appliances or tools), using the How
to
Print Guidelines in Introduction to the
Catalogues.
- Show the images and text to students.
- Cut up the pages, separating the text from the images, and ask
students to
match the correct text with the image.
Core French
The P.T.
Legaré catalogue contains text in English and French for each
object.
- Print out catalogue pages, and use this catalogue as a resource to
help students
learn French vocabulary.
- Use other French catalogues and current French catalogues that your
students
bring in for various activities that use both the images and text.
Technology Studies
Use this site to develop your students' skills in using the
internet
to perform research.
Art, Applied Arts
- Ask students to compare the design of covers and catalogue pages from
various
years.
- Discuss the similarities and differences.
- Have students design a cover or page from a year of their choice.
Drama
- Select several objects from a catalogue.
- Challenge your students to perform a skit that makes use of these
objects.
Social Studies, History, and Geography
- Compare the items offered in catalogues from different regions. P. T.
Legaré
and Dupuis Frères served the Quebec market. The Eaton's Fall
and
Winter 1918-19 and the Army and Navy catalogues were among those
that served
the Western Canadian market, while the Eaton's Spring and Summer
1926 catalogue
served Atlantic Canada.
- Use the catalogues to compare items available in different years.
Areas to
look at include clothing, technology, and furniture.
- Look at catalogues produced during the First and Second World Wars and
the
Depression. How are these events reflected in the catalogues? Look at the
items
offered and the images and wording that were used.
Math
- Practice addition by making orders from the catalogues.
- Practice fractions, percentages, multiplication, and division by
making orders
for items that must be measured, such as flooring, carpeting, fabric, and
roofing.
- Convert imperial measures to metric.
French Immersion
The French catalogue pages on this site can be used for many
activities
that require text and images, for example:
- Print off pages from the 1975 Eaton Noël catalogue.
- Challenge your students to place an order from a page as if they were
doing
it over the telephone.
- Ask them to fill out an order form (forms are included in most of the
catalogues).
Classroom-ready Activities
-
Kindergarten to Grade 3
Click on a title to link to the activity.
Toys in the Catalogues
Compare toys available in past and current catalogues.
Christmas in the
Catalogues
Compare past and current Christmas catalogues.
What Could You Buy with a
Dollar?
Students identify what they could buy for a dollar in 1918.
Shopping
through
Time
Students consult historic catalogues and decide
what
to order.
Show and Tell
Students read the description of a catalogue item and make a
presentation
to the class. The class tries to determine the correct historical order of
the
items.
Alphabet Book (K to
Grade
1, Activity Sheet)
Print out images for each letter of the alphabet and make your own
alphabet
book.
Help the Farmer and the
Logger
(K to Grade 1, Activity Sheet)
Help the farmer or logger choose the items they need.
Make a Paper Doll (K
to Grade
4, Activity Sheet)
Print out your choice of doll, clothing, and accessories.
Mail-order Mix-up
(Grades
2-8, On-screen Game)
Match the items with the people who ordered them.
Fashion Craze (Grades
3-8,
On-screen Game)
Find the correct colours and patterns for clothing from 1918 to
1967.
Classroom-ready Activities - Grades
4-8
Click on a title to link to the activity.
Shopping through Time
Students consult historic catalogues and decide what to order.
Catalogues Today and Yesterday:
Changing Catalogue
Design
Students compare the design of historic and modern catalogues.
Catalogues Today and Yesterday:
Changing Goods,
Changing Lives
Students compare items available in historic and current catalogues and
discuss
impacts on people's lifestyles, health, and environment.
Prices Today and
Yesterday
Students convert an order from an old catalogue into a present-day order.
Using
a price conversion table, they convert the prices into today's
dollars
and compare the prices.
Catalogue Lingo Past and
Present
Students write catalogue text in the style of a historic catalogue.
Make a Quiz
Students challenge their classmates to match catalogue descriptions to
their
images.
Create a Math Problem
Students create math problems based on flooring, fabric, shingles, and
other
items in the historic catalogues.
What Is It?
Students examine a photograph of an item from a historic catalogue. Using
the
on-line catalogues and indexes, they must find out about the item.
Sports Equipment
Students research the evolution of sports equipment in the historic
catalogues.
Families Past and
Present
Students research their own families in the past and compare their
experiences
to other families and to their lives today.
Shop 'Til You
Drop
Students are provided with a budget, a year, and a room of a house and
they must
prepare an appropriate order.
Show and Tell
Students research a catalogue item and make a presentation to the
class.
Shopping List
Students pretend they furnish a settler's house in 1900. What do
they buy?
Make a Paper Doll (K
to Grade
4, Activity Sheet)
Print out your choice of doll, clothing, and accessories.
Mail-order Mix-Up
(Grade
2-8, On-screen Game)
Match the items with the people who ordered them.
Fashion Craze (Grade
3-8,
On-screen Game)
Find the correct colours and patterns for clothing from 1918 to
1967.
What Is It? (Grade
4-8,
Activity Sheet)
Match unusual objects to their descriptions.
Don't Be Fooled by the
Prices
(Grade 4-8, Activity Sheet)
Using a price conversion table, calculate the prices of items in
today's
dollars.
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