Education Programs

The General Tour or the Littlies Tour is an essential part of every school visit!

This program takes your students through our modern interpretive gallery, then along a wooded trail to the sites of the archaeological remains of the 2 forts. Your students will stand where history really happened and achieve a solid foundation for learning.

Students will explore:

• The stories of the Indigenous and European people who lived, worked, and traded at the forts
• The purpose and context for trade in the 1790s
• The role of culture and community in the fur trade

Grades 3 and up

Dates available: mid-May to Labour Day

Total time: 75 minutes

Cost: $3 per student

Adult to student ratio: 1 to 10

Curriculum Connections

Grade 3:

• What are features of the land in Alberta?
  • Students investigate natural and created features of Alberta.
• Who are Albertans?
  • Students relate diversity to Alberta’s western identity.
• How are natural resources used in Alberta?
  • Students examine natural resource use in Alberta.

Grade 4:

• How did colonies influence the formation of Canada?
  • Students examine significant historical events that contributed to the formation of the country of Canada.
• How did economic opportunities influence the establishment of Canada?
  • Students examine the role of the fur trade in the development of Canada.

Grade 5:

• How has geography contributed to the development of civilizations and empires?
  • Knowledge: 
    • Geographical features, such as oceans and bays along coastlines, supported trade and travel
  • Understanding: 
    • Environment and settlement of people are interrelated.
  • Skills and Procedures: 
    • Determine effects of environmental change on human behaviour.
• How did economic practices contribute to civilizations and empires?
  • Knowledge: 
    • Trade routes provided opportunities to exchange goods over great distances, increasing the variety of products available in places around the world; trade increased contact, which allowed for the spread of cultures, innovations, and ideas.
  • Skills and Procedures: 
    • Relate economic practices in ancient civilizations to economic practices in contemporary societies.

Grade 7:

• Towards Confederation

The General Tour or the Littlies Tour is an essential part of every school visit!

Get ready for your students to use their imaginations and travel back in time as they discover the story of the forts from long ago. Designed with younger students in mind, this exploration of life in the fur trade has students feeling the soft furs, going inside the moose hide tipi, discovering the importance of the bison, and trying their hands at trade. On the walk to the location of the original fort, they’ll have the chance to meet some important plants and maybe even roar like a bison!

Grades: Kindergarten - Grade 2
Dates available: mid-May to Labour Day
Program times available from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Total time: 75 minutes
Cost: $3/child
Adult to student ratio: 1 to 8

Curriculum Connections

Kindergarten:

• What are places within a community?
  • Children examine places in communities.
• How can sharing cultures and histories build connections between people?
  • Children explore expressions of traditions, cultures, and histories.
• How are needs and wants different?
  • Children explore needs and wants.

Grade 1:

• What is the significance of places within communities?
  • Students examine major physical features and key landmarks of our world.
• How can sharing cultures build connections between communities?
  • Students explore cultures of diverse communities.
• How can people work together to satisfy needs and wants?
  • Students examine the exchange of goods and services.

Grade 2:

• How does the land in Canada differ from place to place?
  • Students examine major physical regions of Canada.
• How can heritage build on foundations from the past?
  • Students relate traditions to Canada’s heritage.
• How do communities meet needs and wants?
  • Students examine how trade supports communities.

Bison Hunt (Grades 1-2)

Before the arrival of fire arms, hunting bison required participation and cooperation of the whole community to succeed. Students will learn about the uses of the bison and then create their own stick horse "prairie pony". Then they will participate in a simulated Bison hunt where they will test their skill and speed as they cooperatively drive our friendly bison into a traditional hunting pound.

Grades: 1-2

Dates available: mid-May to Labour Day

Total time: 75 minutes

Cost: $3 per student

Adult to student ratio: 1 to 8

Curriculum Connections

Grade 1:

• What is the significance of places within communities?
  • Students examine major physical features and key landmarks of our world.
• How can sharing cultures build connections between communities?
  • Students explore cultures of diverse communities.
• How can people work together to satisfy needs and wants?
  • Students examine the exchange of goods and services.

Grade 2:

• How does the land in Canada differ from place to place?
  • Students examine major physical regions of Canada.
• How can heritage build on foundations from the past?
  • Students relate traditions to Canada’s heritage.
• How do communities meet needs and wants?
  • Students examine how trade supports communities.

Fur Factor: Voyageur Skills (Grades 2 and Up)

Students learn while having fun participating outdoors in a series of team competitions based on the skills and abilities needed at the forts in the 1790s.

Students will learn:

• The diversity and physical intensity of the work involved in life before modern technology
• The history and geography of Canada
• Initiative, leadership, flexibility, and persistence through team competition

Grades: 2 to adult (core concepts remain the same while specific skills and challenge level reflects age and group size)

Dates available: mid-May to Labour Day

Total time: 75 minutes

Cost: $3 per student

Adult to student ratio: 1 to 10

Curriculum Connections

Grade 2:

• How does the land in Canada differ from place to place?
• Students relate traditions to Canada’s heritage.
• Students examine how trade supports communities.

Grade 3

• Students investigate natural and created features of Alberta.
• Students relate diversity to Alberta’s western identity.
• Students examine natural resource use in Alberta.

Grade 4:

• Students examine the role of the fur trade in the development of Canada.

Grade 5:

• Students examine how geographical features and environmental changes contributed to the settlement and trade of historic civilizations.

Grade 7: 

• Toward Confederation

Archaeology: Puzzle of the Past (Grades 3-7)

Archaeology is all about discovering the past and how people lived. Students will work in teams to excavate, record, and solve the puzzle of the past found in our dig simulation boxes. This program brings the purpose, practices, and processes of archaeology to life and provide students with an opportunity to use critical and creative thinking skills.

Grades: 3-7

Dates available: mid-May to Labour Day

Total time: 75 minutes

Cost: $3 per student

Adult to student ratio: 1 to 10

Curriculum Connections

Grade 3:

• What are features of the land in Alberta?
  • Students investigate natural and created features of Alberta.
• Who are Albertans?
  • Students relate diversity to Alberta’s western identity.
• How are natural resources used in Alberta?
  • Students examine natural resource use in Alberta.

Grade 4:

• How did colonies influence the formation of Canada?
  • Students examine significant historical events that contributed to the formation of the country of Canada.
• How did economic opportunities influence the establishment of Canada?
  • Students examine the role of the fur trade in the development of Canada.

Grade 5:

• Students examine ancient civilizations.
  • Skills and Procedures:
    • Compare the work of historians, archaeologists, anthropologists, and geographers.
    • Distinguish between primary and secondary sources.
    • Compare information provided by primary and secondary sources.
    • Imagine ways that advancements in technology could change interpretations of history.
• How has geography contributed to the development of civilizations and empires?
  • Knowledge: 
    • Geographical features, such as oceans and bays along coastlines, supported trade and travel
  • Understanding: 
    • Environment and settlement of people are interrelated.
  • Skills and Procedures: 
    • Determine effects of environmental change on human behaviour.
• How did economic practices contribute to civilizations and empires?
  • Knowledge: 
    • Trade routes provided opportunities to exchange goods over great distances, increasing the variety of products available in places around the world; trade increased contact, which allowed for the spread of cultures, innovations, and ideas.
• How can citizens become active and informed?
  • Skills and Procedures:
    • Investigate an event or issue using multiple sources.

Grade 7:

• Towards Confederation

From the Bounty of the Land (Grades 4 and up)

This program is combined with the General Tour.

There’s a reason both the North West Company and the Hudson’s Bay Company built fur trade forts in this place two hundred years ago.

And that reason had everything to do with the natural world.

From the Bounty of the Land explores some of the many ways the plants and animals and biome around us impacted the many different people living here and shaped the fur trade.

Your students will learn how the people inside and outside of the forts used the plants, animals, and natural resources found in and around the site for food, medicine, housing, transportation, and tools.

Grades: 4 and up

Dates available: mid-May to Labour Day

Total time: 3 hours (A combined program with the General Tour)

Cost: $6 per student ($3/bounty of the land + $3/General Tour= $6 per student)

Adult to student ratio: 1 to 10

Curriculum Connections

Grade 4:

• How did colonies influence the formation of Canada?
  • Students examine significant historical events that contributed to the formation of the country of Canada.
• How did economic opportunities influence the establishment of Canada?
  • Students examine the role of the fur trade in the development of Canada.

Grade 5:

• How has geography contributed to the development of civilizations and empires?
  • Knowledge: 
    • Geographical features, such as oceans and bays along coastlines, supported trade and travel
  • Understanding: 
    • Environment and settlement of people are interrelated.
  • Skills and Procedures: 
    • Determine effects of environmental change on human behaviour.
• How did economic practices contribute to civilizations and empires?
  • Knowledge: 
    • Trade routes provided opportunities to exchange goods over great distances, increasing the variety of products available in places around the world; trade increased contact, which allowed for the spread of cultures, innovations, and ideas.

Trappers & Trade (Grades 4 and Up)

This fur trade role-playing game is based on the real historical competition that happened in this place between Fort George (North West Company) and Buckingham House (Hudson’s Bay Company).

Students take on the historical identities of trappers coming to trade or try out the role of clerks working at the forts. The companies compete for furs while the trappers bargain at the forts and trade among themselves to get the items they want. Students are immersed in the fur trade, trade using the Made Beaver Standard, and discover for themselves the power of competition.

Students will experience for themselves how Indigenous people from different physical regions (prairie, parkland, boreal forest) interacted differently within the Canada-wide fur trade economy.

Grade: 4 to adult

Dates available: mid-May to Labour Day

Total time: 75 minutes

Cost: $3 per student

Curriculum Connections

Grade 4:

• How did colonies influence the formation of Canada?
  • Students examine significant historical events that contributed to the formation of the country of Canada.
• How did economic opportunities influence the establishment of Canada?
  • Students examine the role of the fur trade in the development of Canada.

Grade 5:

• How has geography contributed to the development of civilizations and empires?
  • Knowledge: 
    • Geographical features, such as oceans and bays along coastlines, supported trade and travel
  • Understanding: 
    • Environment and settlement of people are interrelated.
  • Skills and Procedures: 
    • Determine effects of environmental change on human behaviour.
• How did economic practices contribute to civilizations and empires?
  • Knowledge: 
    • Trade routes provided opportunities to exchange goods over great distances, increasing the variety of products available in places around the world; trade increased contact, which allowed for the spread of cultures, innovations, and ideas.
  • Skills and Procedures: 
    • Relate economic practices in ancient civilizations to economic practices in contemporary societies.

Grade 7:

• Towards Confederation

Trappers & Trade PDFs (Grades 4 and Up)

This fur trade role-playing game is based on the real historical competition that happened in this place between Fort George (North West Company) and Buckingham House (Hudson’s Bay Company).

Students take on the historical identities of trappers coming to trade or try out the role of clerks working at the forts. The companies compete for furs while the trappers bargain at the forts and trade among themselves to get the items they want. Students are immersed in the fur trade, trade using the Made Beaver Standard, and discover for themselves the power of competition.

Students will experience for themselves how Indigenous people from different physical regions (prairie, parkland, boreal forest) interacted differently within the Canada-wide fur trade economy.

Grades: 4 to adult

Purchase resources digitally as an in-class teaching resource

Total time: 1.5 Hours

Cost: $40

Curriculum Connections

Grade 4:

• How did colonies influence the formation of Canada?
  • Students examine significant historical events that contributed to the formation of the country of Canada?
• How did economic opportunities influence the establishment of Canada?
  • Students examine the role of the fur trade in the development of Canada.

Grade 5:

• How has geography contributed to the development of civilizations and empires?
  • Knowledge: 
    • Geographical features, such as oceans and bays along coastlines, supported trade and travel
  • Understanding: 
    • Environment and settlement of people are interrelated.
  • Skills and Procedures: 
    • Determine effects of environmental change on human behaviour.
• How did economic practices contribute to civilizations and empires?
  • Knowledge: 
    • Trade routes provided opportunities to exchange goods over great distances, increasing the variety of products available in places around the world; trade increased contact, which allowed for the spread of cultures, innovations, and ideas.
  • Skills and Procedures: 
    • Relate economic practices in ancient civilizations to economic practices in contemporary societies.

Grade 7:

• Towards Confederation

Grade 9:

• Issue for Canadians: Economics

Game Contents

This is the same game used in the onsite program. The digital files contain the instructions, forms, and playing pieces in PDF format, ready to be printed off. There is additional background information on the forts, trade, and life in the forts. This package is intended to create one complete game.

To Play

Before playing the game the first time, you will need to print and assemble the game components. Additional materials including dice, protective sheet covers, hard candies, and wipe-off pens are required. Complete materials list and assembly instructions are included.

To Purchase

Please send a cheque or money order made out to the Government of Alberta for $40 along with mailing instructions to:

Program Coordinator
Fort George and Buckingham House
8820 112 Street
Edmonton, AB  T6G 2P8