Lesson 4: Past and Current Land Use Of Saskatchewan

Have students watch the brief movie clip from The Saskatchewan Resource Series - Agriculture. (Check your library for a full length VHS copy.)

Have the students reflect on life in Saskatchewan during the 1930's. Review the rules for brainstorming and then brainstorm with the class to record some observations about weather, economic and social conditions during this time. The following are some examples:

• world economic depression
• drought
• low prices for produce
• unemployment
• dust storms

Have students participate in a focused imaging activity to visualize life during this decade. Take the students through this by using phrases expressed in a low, calming voice. Some suggested phrases are given below.

• Sit comfortably. Relax. Breathe in deeply through your nose, out through your mouth. (Repeat three times).
• You are outside in a farm yard.
• It is 1933 and very dry and windy.
• It is your birthday. (Breathe in deeply, and out.)
• Last year you received some clothes your mother had remade from some clothing sent from the East.
• This year there is even less available.
• Listen to the wind, smell the dust in the air.
• What are you thinking?
• How do you feel?
• (This can continue...)

Have each student record in a journal format their reflections as if they were living in southern Saskatchewan at that time. Suggest that they put themselves in a situation such as moving from southern Saskatchewan to northern Saskatchewan, celebrating Christmas or birthdays, watching a dust storm or knowing there would be no crop and no money...again.

History of Agriculture in Saskatchewan

Divide the class into small groups. Each group is responsible for developing a topic related to agriculture for presentation to the class. This activity will provide the information necessary to provide background knowledge to the topic. Then, some of the other activities can be used to expand on their knowledge base.

• Saskatchewan soil, an important agricultural resource (Past and Present)
• Specific agricultural operations such as beekeeping or fish farming and their places in the agricultural industry (Past and Present)
• Agriculture is food production (Past and Present)
• Changing technology in agriculture (Past and Present)
• Women's role in agriculture (Past and Present)
• Five Indian Nations and their early agricultural practices (Cree, Nakota (Assiniboine), Dakota (Sioux), Dene (Chipeweyan), and Anishinabeg. (Past and Present)

Encourage the students to use presentation formats other than print. For example, posters could be used to describe "agriculture is food production". After groups and topics have been chosen, some time should be spent with the class discussing where information can be found and how the report will be presented. Evaluation should also be discussed. It is a good idea to keep a master list of the ideas presented during the discussion on a flip chart, or on an overhead. See the teacher information sheet for more details. The student research information sheet has also been provided. This will assist the students with the organization of their research.

Develop a historical cookbook. Encourage the students to talk to their parents, grandparents and friends about old recipes that have been used by their families over the years. Include all cultures. Visit the senior housing and extended care facilities in your area to talk to people there about what they used to eat. Include their comments and reflections in the book. Publish the recipes and other information gathered in cookbook form. Student committees will be needed to carry out the following activities.

• Prepare and administer a budget.
• Develop artwork for the cover and inside pages.
• Sort the recipes and decide on the categories.
• Proofread recipes.
• Develop a marketing strategy if the book is used as a class or school fundraising project.

Have students use the video camera and video editing software in your school to produce a video. Have each group choose a theme about the agricultural history of your area. Some of the ideas may be:

• simulation of historic events such as naming your town
• representative architecture of your area
• the founding of the town
• the development of the town
• early pioneer life
• land uses of the region around your town

Students should create a story board (a plan or mock up on paper) for their video including music and textual information. The story board should be approved by the teacher prior to beginning taping.

The videos produced could be exchanged with another school in another area of the province. Contact the Regional Coordinator of Curriculum and Instruction in your area for help in arranging this exchange.

Have the students bring any items to school that have been used in the past by their families or friends. Have the students find out the name of the item, how it was used, when it was used and what we use today that accomplishes the same task. A comparison of efficiencies of the present and former items may be interesting. These items could be displayed in an attractive manner with labeled cards outlining the information the students found. Part of the display could be a background mural created by the students on large sheets of paper. This mural could trace the history of Saskatchewan development, including some written commentary about the items displayed or about what was occurring economically and socially in Saskatchewan during the years depicted in the mural.