Oh, Canada!

While U.S. citizens celebrated Independence Day last week, Canadians celebrated Canada Day on July 1. This national holiday commemorates the Constitution Act of 1867, which united three separate colonies in Canada.

Let’s find out more about our neighbors to the north.

Provinces

Canada is divided into 10 provinces ... • Ontario

• Quebec

• Nova Scotia

• New Brunswick

• Manitoba

• British Columbia

... and three territories: • Northwest Territories

• Yukon

• Nunavut • Prince Edward Island

• Saskatchewan

• Alberta

• Newfoundland and Labrador

The border with the United States is 5,525 miles long (including the border with Alaska). And although Canada is the second-largest country in the world in area (after Russia), the U.S. has almost 10 times as many people.

Languages

In Canada, most people speak English. Some speak English and French, and all government business is done in both languages. Most French speakers live in Quebec. Other Canadians, especially in the Northwest Territories, speak

indigenous (in-DIJ-eh-nus) languages, or those of the native people of the area.

People

Scientists think the first people to settle in what is now Canada came across the Bering land bridge from Siberia, in what is now Russia, many thousands of years ago. About 1,000 years ago, Norsemen from Scandinavia settled in Newfoundland; other Europeans didn’t arrive until the 1600s. Today, native people are less than 5 percent of the population.

Government

As a part of the British Commonwealth, Canada recognizes Queen Elizabeth II as its monarch, or ruler. However, Canada also has a prime minister, or head of government. Like the United States, Canada has executive, legislative and judicial branches of government. Its parliament includes the House of Commons and the Senate; Canada’s national capital is in Ottawa, Ontario.

School

Most kids in Canada go to school from age 5 or 6 through the 12th grade, similar to the United States. School is in session Monday through Friday, and the school year begins in September and finishes around the end of June.

Sports

While Canadians play all sorts of sports, ice hockey is wildly popular. Historians believe ice hockey started in the 1800s in Nova Scotia with the Mi’kmaq Indians, who used a hurley (stick) to move a wooden block.

The National Hockey League’s championship Stanley Cup is named after Lord Stanley of Preston, who was Canada’s governorgeneral from 1888 to 1893.

Foods

Canada is so big that foods vary depending on the region. But many agree on a few “typically” Canadian dishes:

• poutine, a dish from Quebec made up of french fries and cheese curds covered with brown gravy;

• Nanaimo bars, a dessert with layers of wafer, butter icing and chocolate ganache (named after a city in British Columbia); and

• butter tarts, small pastries.

Resources

On the Web:

• bit.ly/MPCanada

• bit.ly/MPCAanimals

At the library:

• “The Kids Book of Canada” by Barbara Greenwood

The Stanley Cup