TVO Learn is designed to meet each student where they are on their learning journey. Learning Activities are comprehensive and require guided instruction from an adult, while Resources for Learning, Apply the Learning prompts and Vocabulary lists work well to reinforce specific skills or to enable independent exploration of a subject. Use these helpful tips to get the most from TVO Learn.
Due to curriculum changes, content in Social Studies is currently being reviewed and revised to meet the new curriculum expectations.
How to Use These Resources
Curriculum Overview
In Grade 4 social studies, students will develop their understanding of how we study the past, as they use various methods to examine social organization, daily life, and the relationship with the environment in different societies including First Nation and Inuit societies. Students will build on what they have learned in earlier grades to investigate a number of early societies from different regions and eras and representing different cultures. Students will also investigate the interrelationship between daily life and the environment in these societies and will compare aspects of it with present-day Canada.
Students will also be provided with opportunities to develop an understanding of the connections between the past and present and the interactions within and between diverse communities, including First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities as well as the interactions for a student’s own community
The social studies curriculum is divided into two strands:
- Heritage and Identity: Early Societies to 1500 CE
- People and Environment: Political and Physical Regions of Canada
Interested in learning more? View Curriculum PDF
For French resources, please visit idello.org
On this page:
Learning Activities
Learning Activities provide opportunity for deeper exploration of a subject. Organized by grade and topic (or strand), students should be guided through each Learning Activity by an adult. Before clicking on a topic to prepare for or begin this guided instruction, be sure to read these helpful tips about how to get the most out of TVO Learn.
Learning Activities 
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To access this learning activity, please visit this page in a desktop or tablet browser.
Resources for Learning
Chosen by TVO educators, these resources support the curriculum outlined above. Review the below list of options along with the activities. Then, read, watch, listen or play to build understanding and knowledge.
Please be aware by accessing the resources below you will be leaving TVO Learn and entering other TVO domains that are subject to different privacy policies and terms of use.
Complete the suggested activities using these resources and other TVO resources.
Apply the Learning
Choose from the following to consolidate learning across all curriculum strands.
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Create your own definitions for 20 of the words in the vocabulary list.
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Take the time to research an ancient civilization. Ask yourself: How did the people meet their needs using the environment? Create a poster showing what you have learned.
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Why are the temples at Angkor Wat or mosques at Timbuktu such important archaeological sites? What can they tell us about the societies that built them?
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What farming techniques used by the Mayans and the people of ancient India are still practised by Canadian farmers today?
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What does the Inuksuk tell you about the relationships between Inuit societies, the land, and the environment?
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Research a mineral and how it is extracted from the earth. How does the mining process benefit a community? What are the negative effects? For more information check out: https://www.tvokids.com/preschool/now-you-know-kindergarten/videos/rocks
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What impact can human activities have on the natural environment?
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How do we find the balance between environmental stewardship and human needs/ wants?
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Why is it important to consider the long-term impact of human activities?
Vocabulary
Review this list of vocabulary associated with the curriculum. Practice spelling, research definitions, and find these vocabulary words when engaging with the TVO resources or completing learning activities.
Students should understand and be able to apply these words in context.
- Heritage and Identity
Early Societies to 1500 CE
- People and Environment
Political and Physical Regions of Canada
1500 CE
Canada
community
culture
daily life
environment
First Nations
interrelationship
Inuit society
indigenous
national scale
past
present-day
relationship
social organization
society
balance
beliefs and values
climatic regions
citizenship
digital map
environmental stewardship
interactive map
landform
mapping skill
municipal
physical regions
political regions
power
print map
provinces
region
stewardship
territories
vegetation
