Fourth Grade
Worksheets
Saskatchewan and Alberta Join Confederation
What was it like in the Northwest two hundred years ago? The land was open. There were not many people. The natives hunted and lived on the land. A few Metis lived there. They lived near the trading posts. Furs could be traded for blankets, rifles, or cooking pots.
People began to move west. Farmers moved to Manitoba. After a while it became a province.
The Metis of Manitoba began to move west. They chose land on the Saskatchewan River. They hunted and trapped. Manitoba began to fill up. More people moved west. They began farming. The government of Canada was glad to see these changes. It wanted more land for farmers.
A treaty was made with the First Nations. If they stayed in a certain area, the government would give them food. They could learn to farm. The people agreed. By then, most of the bison had been killed off. The people had nothing to eat. They asked for food.
