Canada

A literature-based Canada unit study
Updated October 2026

Navigate this page: Missions, Books, Art, Cooking, Physical Education, Games, Movies, Videos

Mapping it Out

Crayola.com’s Free printable of Canada’s flag and map, and more
Seterra.com’s Free printable map of Canada and it’s provinces
Seterra.com’s Free online geography games for Canada’s Provinces and the Great Lakes

Missions Spotlight

Prayercast.com/Canada: Prayer topics, Summary, Quick Facts
**parents should preview the prayercast.com video for sensitive topics that may not be age appropriate.

Our Favorite Books

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The following are my favorite books for different age groups and categories:

Science: Only in Canada!
Preschool/Elementary: In My Anaana’s Amautik
Early Elementary: Carson Crosses Canada
Late Elementary/Middle: The Incredible Journey
Middle School and Up: Fatty Legs

Art

We really enjoyed learning about Canadian artist, Ted Harrison, through this picture book: A Brush Full of Colour: The World of Ted Harrison.

Afterwards we made our own scenic landscapes following these two videos:
Ted Harrison Inspired Landscape and Polar Bear
Ted Harrison Abstract Landscape

In celebration of the Inuit, we also engineered a massive igloo out of packing boxes. In case you don’t have packing boxes lying around, this book contains a project on building a model igloo and an Inuit hunting boat: Hands-On History! Eskimo, Inuit, Saami & Arctic Peoples. We also looked at this photojournal book: How to Build an Iglu and a Qamutiik which you can try to follow if you live in a snowy place!

The kids are always collecting things while we walk on nature trails. We did a rubbing of a little maple leaf, cut it out, and made the Canadian flag.

A toilet paper roll craft! They read the meanings of totem animals, I printed the ones they chose, and voila, toilet paper roll totem pole! Even the little one made his own.

The twins started learning to use their own pocket knives. We started them out with whittling s’mores sticks!

Toilet Paper Roll Totem Pole — Ted Harrison inspired art

Canadian Food

Canada is so large that the food is as varied as the ecosystems. The kids had a lot of fun making sweet Nanaimo Bars from British Colombia and fried Beaver Tails from Ontario, even using sharp knives to make the cuts! (See the rest of the food we tried in Recipes by Country: Canada.)

Physical Education

Did you know that a PE teacher from Canada invented basketball while in the US? In addition to playing basketball, we learned the rules of ice hockey and curling! I wish we could have gone skiing or ice skating, but everything was shut down for the pandemic.

Games

We played the board game, Niagara. Even the little ones had fun pushing the kayaks downstream at the end of each round!

Movies!

Bear Named Winnie: This bear inspired A.A. Milne to create Winnie-the-Pooh! There is also a picture book, Finding Winnie, and a chapter book, Winnie’s Great War, based on this true story.
Anne of Green Gables: We preferred the older version with actress Megan Follows to the new one. Anne of Green Gables is set in Prince Edward Island, Canada.
The Incredible Journey and Homeward Bound. Both of these movies are based on the book in which animals travel across Canada.

YouTube Videos

How to make maple syrup (and the science of maple sap)
Caribou vs Reindeer: What’s the difference?
Inuit Dance
Travel Kids Canada: Waterfall
Travel Kids Canada: Polar Bears
Travel Kids Canada: Winterlude
Travel Kids Canada: Stampede
Mouk cartoon, Canada episode Mouk: Land Art
Mouk cartoon, Canada episode Mouk: Shooting Stars and the Hockey Game
Mouk cartoon, Canada episode Mouk: In Search of the Caribous
Mouk cartoon, Canada episode Mouk: Yummy, Maple Syrup!
Mouk cartoon, Canada episode Mouk: Follow that Kite!
Geography Now! Canada (this is a fun resource geared towards adults and older kids; I recommend that parents pre-watch before showing to younger kids)