Grade 9 Social Studies: how to help at home
What your child learns in Grade 9 social studies in the BC Curriculum, and simple things to try at home.
The Big Ideas this year
- Emerging ideas and ideologies profoundly influence societies and events.
- The physical environment influences the nature of political, social, and economic change.
- Disparities in power alter the balance of relationships between individuals and between societies.
- Collective identity is constructed and can change over time.
Easy ways to practise social studies at home
- Follow a current event together and ask who is affected and why people see it differently.
- Build a timeline of a family event or a historical topic they are studying.
- Use an atlas or online map to trace a trade or travel route.
- Ask “Whose voice is missing from this story?” when reading about the past.
What each unit covers
Enlightenment & Revolutions
Enlightenment ideas about reason and rights, why the American, French and Haitian revolutions happened, and who was and wasn't included in the rights they promised.
The Industrial Revolution
How steam power and factories changed work and cities, child labour and early unions, railways, and the environmental and social effects of industrialization, including in Canada.
Imperialism & Colonialism
Why powerful countries built empires, the Scramble for Africa, British rule in India, the Opium Wars, new technology, and the lasting effects of colonial rule and resistance to it.
Confederation & Expansion
Why the colonies united in 1867, how Manitoba and BC joined, the building of the railway and who built it, Louis Riel and the Métis, and how expansion affected First Nations.
Indigenous Peoples & Canada
Treaties and unceded land in BC, the Indian Act, residential schools and the potlatch ban, and the ongoing work of reconciliation. This unit describes hard history factually, without graphic detail; consider talking it through together.
Migration & Population
Push and pull factors, famine, gold rushes and urbanization, why the world's population grew in the 1800s, and how migration to Canada and BC shaped communities.
Canada's Landscapes
Canada's main landform regions, how glaciers, erosion and plate tectonics shaped them, and how landscape and resources have influenced where and how people live.
World War I & Canada
The causes of WWI, Canada's part in it (including Vimy Ridge), the conscription crisis, the war's effect on women and on people who faced discrimination, and how Canada's role in the world changed.
What the report card levels look like at home
- Emerging
- Just getting started with this idea. Short, regular practice with lots of support helps most.
- Developing
- Understands parts of it and is building confidence. Keep practising the tricky parts.
- Proficient
- Has it! Mixed review now and then keeps it strong.
- Extending
- Applies it confidently, even in new or harder situations. Try challenge mode and real-life problems.
Your child’s teacher decides the level on the report card. Read the BC report card guide.
Common questions
How can I help my Grade 9 child with social studies?
Follow a current event together and ask who is affected and why people see it differently. Build a timeline of a family event or a historical topic they are studying. Keep sessions short, about 10 to 15 minutes, and stop on a success.
What does my child learn in Grade 9 social studies in BC?
The BC Curriculum Grade 9 social studies units include enlightenment & revolutions, the industrial revolution, imperialism & colonialism, confederation & expansion, indigenous peoples & canada, migration & population.
Free printable Grade 9 social studies practice sheet
Questions from every unit, with an answer key.