Essential Questions

Essential questions are the "big ideas" that are used to engage students and reflect the core or the essence of the topic being studied. Included are essential questions pertaining to each theme area, as well as questions that relate to exploring the whole Mavericks site. These questions can provide many possible ideas as to how students can examine Alberta history.

Questions specific to Ranching

• Has ranching changed for the better since the 1880s?
• How did the arrival of ranching in Alberta affect the First Nations people?
• What impact did early Alberta ranchers have on the culture of Alberta?
• Is it possible for humans to actually own land?
• Who should own land and its resources? How should we decide how the resources should be used?
• How has the idea of owning land and placing fences around it changed our landscape and how we use the land?
• How did the ranchers' notion of "the land" compare with the First Nations conception?
• Why was "the land" so important to the development of Alberta?
• How has Alberta's landscape and climate affected our lifestyle and culture?
• What is the balance between preserving nature and continued development?
• What is the story or perspective of "the land" itself? How would it ask for us to treat it?
• How can humans avoid conflicts between cultures or nations?
• Why do people move onto and take away other people's lands?
• Is there ever a proper reason to take away or settle on other people's lands?
• How did Western Canadian settlement affect First Nations peoples?
• How should the Canadian Federal Government deal with First Nations land claim settlements?
• How do humans beings and their environments influence each other?

General questions that apply throughout Mavericks

[ Project Plans | Essential Questions | Knowledge Hunt | Glossary | Links ]