Teachers, parents & youth
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Promoting second-language learning opportunities is one of the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages’ priorities. The more Canadians become bilingual, the closer Canada will move towards substantive equality of English and French. Here are some fun educational tools and useful resources for learning Canada’s official languages.
Presentations in schools
From coast to coast to coast, we give presentations to discuss the advantages of being bilingual, of linguistic duality, of bilingualism and official languages in Canada, and of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and language rights in Canada. These 60- to 75-minute presentations are provided to elementary and high schools free of charge. Virtual presentations are also offered, as needed. For more information, please contact your regional representative.
Timeline
Use our timeline to discover—or rediscover—the milestones that have marked the history of linguistic duality in Canada since 1867.
Teaching Guides
Let’s discover Canada through its official languages!
Inspired by our timeline on official languages, this classroom activity guide is intended to help students from Grade 4 until the end of high school discover Canada through its official languages. It includes a quiz designed to help teachers integrate the timeline into their lesson plans.
One Charter, Two Languages, A Thousand and One Voices
To mark the 25th anniversary of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in 2007, we developed a teaching-guide - archived for high school teachers, along with a video - archived in which young adults share their thoughts on linguistic duality. Although they are now archived, these resources are still a valuable source of information.
Activities
Quiz
How well do you know the history of Canada’s official languages? Students from Grade 8 to Grade 12 will have fun testing their general knowledge online with this quiz. Good luck!
Pencil holder
Need some extra storage space? Children of all ages can have fun printing and making this pencil holder themselves!
Origami game
How can you improve your second-language skills? Children of all ages can have fun printing, making and playing this origami game that will surely inspire you!
Make English a part of your life: Download the English origami game in PDF (2.09 MB)
Make French a part of your life: Download the French origami game in PDF (2.08 MB)
Colouring pages
How can you introduce young children to their second official language? These printable colouring pages feature summer and winter sports in English and French.
Winter Games colouring pages: Download the Winter Games colouring pages in PDF (2.25 MB)
Summer Games colouring pages: Download the Summer Games colouring pages in PDF (1.60 MB)
Bilingual posters
The perfect size for classrooms and children’s play areas, these colourful posters (bilingual on both sides) will help students learn a variety of terminology in both official languages. They are available free of charge, with no shipping costs!
Videos
Find out what some Canadian celebrities think about bilingualism and the Official Languages Act: Be Officially Amazing / Votre bilinguisme, votre fierté. Watch more videos on official languages.
Articles
Use the articles in the Beyond Words e-newsletter to stimulate discussion. It is a great online resource featuring a wide range of topics related to Canada’s official languages, including arts and culture, languages of the world, current events, history and second-language learning.
Storytelling
Meet youth who have participated in language exchanges and second-language teachers who are passionate about their work by visiting the Storytelling section of our website.
Statistics
How many people speak English in Canada? How many French-speaking Canadians are there? How many are bilingual? If you’ve ever asked yourself these questions or been asked these questions, the Statistics section of our website is a valuable source of information. We also have data on the first official language of Canadians by province and territory.
Infographics
Did you know that 8 in 10 Canadians agree that more needs to be done so that young people can become bilingual? To learn more on this specific topic, or on all the data we have gathered and analyzed for our studies and audits, check out our infographics.
Studies
Check out our studies to learn more about the challenges of second-language education:
- Accessing opportunity: A study on challenges in French-as-a-second-language education teacher supply and demand in Canada
- French Culture and Learning French as a Second Language: Perceptions of the Saskatchewan Public - archived
- Four Provinces, Four Days: Report on Atlantic Round Table Discussions on the Continuum of Second-Language Learning Opportunities - archived
- Two languages, a World of Opportunities: Second-language learning in Canada’s universities - archived
- Rights, Schools and Communities in Minority Contexts: 1986-2002 - archived
- School Governance: The Implementation of Section 23 of the Charter - archived
Learn more
The following links are provided as a public service. The Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages of Canada is not responsible for the content of these sites, and their views do not necessarily reflect those of the Office of the Commissioner. Please note that only the sites of Canadian federal institutions are subject to the Official Languages Act.
- Association canadienne d’éducation de langue française (in French only)
- Association canadienne des professionnels de l’immersion (in French only)
- BAP (Banque d’activités pédagogiques) (in French only)
- Canadian Association of Second Language Teachers
- Canadian Parents for French
- Canadian Teachers’ Federation
- Commission nationale des parents francophones (in French only)
- Council of Ministers of Education, Canada
- Destination Clic
- Exchanges Canada
- Experiences Canada
- Explore
- Fédération de la jeunesse canadienne-française (in French only)
- Fédération nationale des conseils scolaires francophones
- French for the Future
- Language Portal of Canada
- Languages Canada
- Odyssey
- Office québécois de la langue française (in French only)
- Réseau d’enseignement francophone à distance du Canada (in French only)
- Réseau des cégeps et des collèges francophones du Canada (in French only)
- Réseau pour le développement de l’alphabétisme et des compétences
- TEACH magazine - Special issue on official languages
- Youth in Canada
- Young Canada Works