Suggested sequence: 70 minutes, split across sessions as needed. Use this introduction within your wider learning plan. Print sheets to record learner work; this page does not save learner responses.
Lesson plan
Materials
Paper, pencils, a hand-drawn practice neighbourhood map, the fictional site cards below and adult access to a municipal government website. No account, contact details or submission is required.
Safety
Use fictional names and locations in practice work. Adults handle any real website navigation or future contact. Do not publish a learner’s address, school, photograph or private family information. Review accessibility through respectful questions rather than assumptions about a person’s abilities.
Teaching Sequence
| Find out first | 5 minutes | Ask who decides where local parks go. Record assumptions before checking a source. |
|---|---|---|
| Read the story | 15 minutes | Read pages 1–20. Identify what is fictional and which general civic ideas can be checked. |
| Teach explicitly | 10 minutes | Compare municipal, provincial or territorial and federal roles. Explain why public input does not guarantee the contributor’s preferred result. |
| Investigate and practise | 30 minutes | Use the practice site comparison below. Add one verified municipal responsibility source. Write a reasoned letter addressed to the appropriate body. |
| Review and extend | 10 minutes | Revise after considering another view. Keep the letter as practice. Later investigate a real public decision record with an adult. |
Timing is a suggested introductory sequence, not a legally required duration. Split it across sessions as needed.
Story teaching stops
Open a page below, then use Lesson & Guide in the book to return here.
Page 02 — Municipal responsibility
Page 05 — Different access needs
Page 11 — Common comparison criteria
Page 13 — A reasoned practice letter
Educator guide
Primary Subject
Social studies
Secondary Connections
Map reading, source evaluation, comparison and persuasive writing
Curriculum Connection
Alberta’s implemented Grade 6 social studies highlights include formal and informal civic participation, provincial and federal government, and democratic principles. This local municipal example introduces participation and revisits earlier knowledge of municipal roles. It prepares for deeper Grade 6 study without substituting for the named government and historical topics.
Scope
Introduced: government responsibility, participation and a public decision. Developed and assessed: source checking, consideration of different experiences and a reasoned practice recommendation. Still needed: provincial and federal institutions, the Charter, discrimination and racism, and Athenian, Roman and Haudenosaunee decision-making systems.
Prerequisites
Distinguish an opinion from supporting evidence; use a simple map; discuss disagreement respectfully. The town, people, budget and council outcome are fictional. Real consultation rules vary by municipality.
Publisher Learning Objectives
1. Identify the government body responsible for a selected local issue using a reliable source.
2. Compare two options using common criteria and consider more than one person’s experience.
3. Draft a recommendation that cites evidence, acknowledges a drawback and uses a suitable participation process.
Vocabulary
Municipal: relating to a local government. Public input: information and views contributed through a process. Criterion: a feature used to compare options. Evidence: information that supports a claim. Trade-off: a benefit gained alongside a drawback. Representative: a person selected to act for others in government.
Educator discussion questions and answer guidance
1. Who has responsibility?
Answer guidance: For this municipal playground example, the municipality is the starting point. Verify the actual body for a real issue rather than applying this answer to every public service.
2. Whose experience should be considered?
Answer guidance: Include users with different access needs and people unable to attend the same meeting. Avoid treating one individual as representative of everyone.
3. What evidence could improve the proposal?
Answer guidance: Examples include path measurements, safe crossings, user feedback, a verified cost breakdown and maintenance requirements.
One reasonable sample: “I recommend Site B because the smooth route and shade may serve more users. Its estimate fits our fictional budget, but the longer route and higher cost are drawbacks. We should check path width and safe crossings before deciding.” Site A can also be defended with relevant evidence and a plan addressing its limitations.
Adaptations And Extension
Offer an oral recommendation or dictate the letter. Extend by comparing a real consultation with the story, using published information only. Add a researched provincial or federal issue next.
Next Lesson
Teach the named Grade 6 institutions, rights and historical systems through verified sources. This story provides a concrete doorway into that larger program.
Canadian Home Education Use
Canada has provincial and territorial home-education frameworks rather than one national required subject list. These pilots retain the report’s Alberta-first planning approach. Families elsewhere can reuse the stories while matching the guides to their own approved or parent-selected plan and local requirements. In Alberta, parents choose resources consistent with the Home Education Regulation and are responsible for planning and evaluating the program. Use these dated work samples within that wider plan.
Curriculum And Home Education References
Government of Alberta. Current social studies curriculum highlights. https://www.alberta.ca/curriculum-social-studies
Government of Alberta. Home education. https://www.alberta.ca/home-education
Connection checked October 2 2026. Exact official outcome identifiers must be verified for the chosen pathway before any claim of complete alignment.
Activity sheets
Main Activity
Recommend a playground site
Materials
Paper, pencils, a hand-drawn practice neighbourhood map, the fictional site cards below and adult access to a municipal government website. No account, contact details or submission is required.
Safety
Use fictional names and locations in practice work. Adults handle any real website navigation or future contact. Do not publish a learner’s address, school, photograph or private family information. Review accessibility through respectful questions rather than assumptions about a person’s abilities.
Method
1. Draw two practice sites on a simple map. Label all site information as invented teaching data. Verify who manages parks using the relevant municipal website and record its title and date.
2. Site A: a 200-metre route, rough gravel, little shade and a fictional installation estimate of $40,000. Site B: a 400-metre route, smooth path, mature shade and an estimate of $48,000. The fictional budget is $50,000. Estimates cover the same stated work and are not market prices.
3. Compare access, shade, cost and route length. Consider a wheelchair user, a nearby family and people attending at different times. State one question the information does not answer.
4. Write a practice letter recommending one site, citing two data points and naming a drawback. Revise it after an adult presents another perspective. Do not send it as part of this activity.
Learner recording sheet
Name: ________________________ Date: ______________
Our initial idea: who manages local parks?
Verified municipal source: title, address and date
Draw our fictional neighbourhood map
Whose experiences should we consider?
One question the site information does not answer
| Criterion | Site A evidence | Site B evidence | Question or trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Route length | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Shade | ________ | ________ | ________ |
| Cost | ________ | ________ | ________ |
Draft a practice letter: identify the responsible body, recommend a site, cite two data points and acknowledge a drawback
Revise after considering another perspective
One unanswered question and a possible next step
Assessment & progress
Evidence
Retain the dated map, comparison, verified government source and revised practice letter. Identify every invented data item. Note which parts the learner completed independently.
Success Criteria
Assess correct responsibility, consistent criteria, relevant evidence, fair acknowledgement of another view and a justified recommendation. There is no single compulsory site choice.
Parent Progress Record
Portfolio record: learner name or initials; date; province or territory; chosen home-education pathway; parent-selected outcome; curriculum version if used; task evidence; assistance given; assessment judgement; next teaching step. Topic connections in these pilots are not exact official outcome-code mappings. Parents using provincial outcomes should add the verified identifiers from the chosen current program before recording full coverage.
Learner / date
Province or territory / home-education pathway
Selected outcome and curriculum version
Evidence retained
Assistance provided
Judgement: Developing / Secure for this task / Applying
Next teaching step