The students will experience the lives of children in those days here on Montréal’s very birthplace, at Pointe-à-Callière. They’ll have fun getting a taste of the past, playing the games and doing the chores that were once part of the everyday lives of young people in New France.

It’s a chance to play with tops and bilboquets, try on a cape or a jabot, darn a sock … just like back in the 18th century!

The guide will even challenge them to tell some old-time objects and foods apart from more modern ones. The answers are sometimes surprising. All in all, it’s a workshop that makes learning child’s play!

What will the students do at the Museum?

• Explore a unique site, Pointe-à-Callière, the Montréal Museum of Archaeology and History, where traces from the past come alive to tell them about history.
• Experience everyday life in the 18th century, by playing with quality reproductions.
• Dress up to learn about the roles and duties of different people in New France.

Concepts covered during the workshop

• Demographic characteristics of the population.
• Cultural phenomena: linguistic expressions of the era, diet, men’s and women’s clothing and how it related to their roles within society, entertainment, daily household chores, and customs.
• Economic phenomena: agriculture, business, and the fur trade.
• Influence of certain public figures.

Competencies developed

The activities during this workshop are in line with the Quebec Education Program and help develop the following subject-specific competencies at the elementary school level:

Québec

Academic competencies:
Geography, History and Citizenship Education

Primary