READING 2: THE ENGLISH AND FRENCH COME TO CANADA
In 1497 Giovanni Caboto (also known as John Cabot) sailed from England to Newfoundland. He claimed the land for the King of England. The English were glad that Caboto found Canada because the fishing was very good. Every summer many ships would sail to Newfoundland to fish off the Grand Banks and then would return to England for the winter.
In the early 1,500s the French came to Canada. When they first came, they wanted to find a Northwest Passage to get through North America to India, but they soon settled permanently. They were the first permanent settlers from Europe. They set up fur trading posts in Acadia (parts of Nova Scotia) and Quebec. The first Canadian city, Quebec City, was founded by Samuel de Champlain on the site of an older Indian village called Stadacona. The French lived by hunting, farming and Fur trading with the Indians (First Nations people). The First Nations people brought pelts of beaver and other animals to the French, who traded blankets and European objects in return. The French then sold the pelts in Europe for a lot of money.
The English began to settle in Canada too. There were many struggles between the French and the English for control of Canada. In 1763, at the end of the Seven Years’ War (between England and France), France was forced to give all its land in North America to England. The Canadian colonies now had an English king, but the majority of the people who lived there were French.
Although the colonies in what is now Quebec came under British control, the Quebec Act of 1774 gave the people in that region some basic rights (freedom of religion and French civil law).
The British traveled to the West, where they set up fur trading posts and settlements. Today, English is spoken by the majority of people in Canada. The Canadian system of government is based on the British system.
Today, about 80 percent of the people living in Quebec speak French as a first language. French speakers are found in every part of Canada. There are French newspapers, radio and TV stations across the country.
1) Why did the English come to Newfoundland every summer? (1 mark) ______
2) What were the French looking for when they first came to Canada? (1 mark) ______
3) Who were the first European settlers in Canada? (1 mark) ______
4) What was the first city in Canada? (1 mark) ______
5) Which province has the most French speaking people? (1 mark) ______
6) What did the French trade with First Nations people? (1 mark) ______
7) What happened to Quebec after the English took control? (1 mark) ______
8) Do you think that First Nations people were treated fairly when they were trading with the Europeans? Why or why not? (3 marks) ______
9) If you were a First Nations person, what would your first reaction to the Europeans be and why? (3 marks) ______
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