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¤ Pre-Reading Activity

Question	Your Response
1. Which province produces the most maple syrup?	Quebec
2. What does the CBC stand for?	Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
3. What province is directly west of British Columbia?	None
4. What was the underground railroad?	A secret system of individuals who assisted American slaves in escaping from the south.
5. What is the provincial flower of Ontario?	Trillium
6. What year was Canadian Confederation?	1867
7. Is Hudson’s Bay fresh water or salt water?	Salt water
8. What is Canada’s largest lake?	Lake Superior
9. What do we call the Queen’s representative in Canada?	The Governor General
10. What is Canada’s smallest province?	Prince Edward Island
11. What fruit is most commonly grown in Canada?	apples
12. What are the prairie provinces?	Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta
13. What river flows through Montreal?	St. Lawrence
14. What do you find on the back of a Canadian dime?	A schooner (ship) “The Bluenose”
15. What number did Wayne Gretzky wear on his hockey jersey?	99

& Vocabulary Development Activity: top

Vocabulary Word	Word Form	Definition	Your Sentence
notion	noun	idea, concept	Your notion that all Canadians agree on what it means to be Canadian is faulty.
proposed	verb/adjective	suggested	Answers will vary
lacked	adjective	require, be deficient in	Answers will vary
indifference	noun	lack of concern	Answers will vary
omission	noun	oversight, exclusion	Answers will vary
allegiance	noun	loyalty, faithfulness	Answers will vary
shred	verb/noun	cut up, destroy, tear	Answers will vary
imperialism	noun	The policy of extending a nation's authority by territorial acquisition or by the establishment of economic and political control over other nations.	Answers will vary

$ Reading Exercise top

[1] You may not be aware of this but one of Canada’s most heated parliamentary debates was held around something which is near and dear to many of us – The Canadian Flag. For almost a century following Confederation, Canada lacked a unifying symbol which represented our distinct “Canadian-ness”. Until as late as 1945, it was the Union Jack (Great Britain’s flag) which was known as Canada’s official flag. As a “temporary” solution, The Red Ensign was flown for Canada, at sea and at posts around the world, and in 1945 (with the addition of Royal Arms) it was established as the "temporary" Canadian flag, until a replacement was found. What many did not realize is that it would be another 20 years before that would happen.

[2] The omission of such an important symbol was not due to Canadians’ indifference but rather something which still plagues us as a nation today, an impassioned inability to agree upon a common Canadian identity. In retrospect, had Canada established its flag immediately following Confederation, it would no doubt have emblazoned the image of the beaver on its flag. For many years prior to and immediately after 1867, the beaver trade came to symbolize not only economic but also cultural importance in Canada.

[3] The great flag debate has its roots in the struggle between nationalism and imperialism. Canadians were faced with deciding whether their allegiance lay with Great Britain (imperialists) or with the new nation, Canada (nationalists). On one side of this great divide were the many descendants from Great Britain who felt they owed their loyalty to the “Mother Country”; while on the other side of this debate, were the French Canadians, immigrants from nations other than Great Britain, and many Anglophone Canadians whose primary loyalty was to this new nation. The imperialists were lead by John Diefenbaker who boldly declared: “I want to make Canada all Canadian and all British. The men who wish to change our flag should be denounced by every good Canadian.” The nationalists found their leader in Lester B. Pearson who valued Canada’s ties with Great Britain and to the Union Jack but strongly believed that our great nation should have its own representative flag. He felt the time had indeed come for Canadians to cut the umbilical cord with Great Britain. Pearson was so impassioned by this notion that he decided to make it the central issue of the Liberal Party’s election platform. In 1964, Prime Minister Pearson went on to say that he envisioned, “a flag that is ... as Canadian as the Maple Leaf which should be its dominant design."

[4] The little known Canadian who was most responsible for our current flag was John Matheson, the Liberal member for Leeds County in Ontario. On February 5, 1963, he posed two questions in the House of Commons: “Does Canada have national colours, and if so what are these colours? Does Canada have a national emblem and, if so, what is that emblem?" It is with these questions in mind that Matheson proposed a flag containing three maple leaves joined at the stem on a white background. Alan Beddoe, the artist appointed by Pearson to explore this idea, added his own interpretation by including two vertical blue stripes which he said incorporated the idea of a country stretching from “sea to sea.” The great flag debate raged for months both within the government and amongst the populous who protested on Parliament Hill and who wrote countless articles to newspapers. Finally after much debate, on December 15, 1964 the government passed legislation which adopted our current flag design. In an editorial the following day, the Globe and Mail wrote: "Flags that have been torn in battle with a foreign enemy can still fly with pride. This will surely be the first flag in history that was shred by its sons."

1. c 2. d 3. d 4. important (relevant) 5. interpretation (paragraph 4) 6. roots (paragraph 3) 7. answers will vary