If you have been to Québec in the spring, chances are you have heard of this Québécois tradition. You may have even attended a cabane à sucre! Today I am going to share with you how I teach about the traditions of cabane à sucre et le temps des sucres in French class!
I teach all about francophone traditions and celebrations in French 9 as it is a part of the BC curriculum. I always begin by having my students complete a reading comprehension activity on cabane à sucre before moving on to other francophone celebrations and traditions.
What are cabane à sucre et le temps des sucres?
Le temps des sucres translates to maple season in English. As you may have predicted, this tradition celebrates the harvest of maple syrup.
As a matter of fact, maple syrup is an important historical and cultural Canadian icon. Eurocentric historical narratives do not give credit to the origins of this sweet water. Maple syrup was in fact discovered by Indigenous peoples far before Europeans set foot in North America.
Historical background on the tradition cabane à sucre
Using this free text, your students will learn that the First Peoples harvested maple water and boiled it down into maple syrup long before colonization.
In fact, there are many Indigenous legends surrounding the discovery of maple syrup.
For example, in the legend Sweetwater Maiden: The Mi’kmaw Legend of Maple Syrup, a young maiden discovers the sap of a maple tree and boils it down to maple syrup.
As a French student myself who was studying in Quebec, I experienced first-hand a Cabane à sucre during the springtime and it was one of the most memorable experiences of my time in Quebec.
However, I only wish I had known the importance of le temps des sucres to Quebecois identity.
Due to this reason, I created a reading comprehension resource for my own students as part of their francophone celebrations unit. With this resource, students will learn all about the tradition cabane à sucre.
Using the resource, students will
- read about la cabane à sucre and le temps des sucres and their historical origins
- learn how maple syrup was first harvested by Indigenous peoples
- discover how the harvest of maple syrup has changed over the centuries
- learn 20 new vocabulary words connected to maple syrup
- discover how le temps des sucres is an important part of Québécois identity
- watch a series of videos on YouTube to further their understanding of the origins and importance of maple syrup to Indigenous populations and Québec
Supplementary videos to watch
This first video is a quick introduction to the history of maple syrup. This particular video is best suited for French Immersion students Grades 5 & up.
Next up is a video showing how the production of maple syrup has changed over the centuries. Since the reading comprehension article focuses on how maple syrup was originally distilled, this video shows how that process has evolved over time.
Video #3 is perfect as it explains a lot of the information in the first two videos, but in a more kid-friendly way.
Finally, this last video shows how maple water was originally harvested and distilled by local Indigenous populations in the lands now called Ontario and Québec.
This activity includes a pre-lecture, a reading as well as activities for post-reading. I have also included exit tickets and 6 supplemental resources such as YouTube videos and articles that you can show your students.
To receive this resource for free, all you need to do is sign up below!
