The Story of Tommy Douglas
Learning Goals
At the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
- Understand and use new vocabulary words
- Read words ending in -ism and -ist
- Use commas to separate items in a list
- Write a paragraph that tells a story
Get Ready to Read
- Is free health care important to you? Why or why not?
Vocabulary
Figure out what the bold word means by looking at how it is used in the sentence. Match it to the best meaning.
| 1. Tommy joined a socialist party called the CCF because he believed that really important things should be run by government, not business. | a. Someone who believes the government should own everything. People and companies should not own property, like houses or cars. |
| 2. People tried to scare voters by saying Tommy was a communist. | b. The leader of a province |
| 3. Tommy became premier of Saskatchewan in 1944. | c. Someone who believes the government should run health care, schools, and other major services |
| 4. In 1961, Tommy was voted into the federal government. The federal government put many of Tommy’s ideas in place for the rest of Canada. | d. The level of government responsible for things that affect the whole country |
Write a complete sentence to answer each question. Use the word in bold.
- Do you like the premier of your province?
- Would you ever vote for a socialist party?
- Would you ever vote for a communist party?
Word Attack Strategy
Word Patterns
A suffix is an end part of a word.
- A word that ends with –ism is a name given to a set of ideas.
- A word that ends with –ist means “a person who.”
Fill in the blanks with the best words from the box.
| racism | ageism | classist | sexism |
| classism | sexist | racist | ageist |
1. __________________ is the set of ideas that one gender is better than another.
2. __________________ is someone who believes in sexism.
3. __________________ is the set of ideas that rich people are better than poor people.
4. __________________ is someone who believes in classism.
5. __________________ is the set of ideas that some races are better than others.
6. __________________ is someone who believes in racism.
7. __________________ is the set of ideas that young people are better than old people.
8. __________________ is someone who believes in ageism.
Note: Not all words ending in –ism and –ist are negative. An artist is someone who makes art. A pianist is someone who plays piano. A scientist is someone who works in the sciences.
Use Your Reading Skills
Read The Story of Tommy Douglas in your reader. Return to this page when you are done.
Check Your Understanding
Find the Topic and Main Idea
1. What is the topic of this text?
a. Health care
b. Saskatchewan
c. Tommy Douglas
2. What is the main point of this text?
a. This text explains why it is wrong that people who fight for their rights are sometimes beaten and killed.
b. This text explains the disadvantages of letting cats be in politics.
c. This text tells the story of how Tommy Douglas stood up for the rights of working class people.
3. Open and print a Sum It Up sheet. Fill in the main idea and supporting details.
Understanding Sequence
1. Put these events in the correct order.
a. Tommy became a minister to help people.
b. Tommy made lots of changes in Saskatchewan to help working families, such as free health care.
c. Many of Tommy’s ideas were put in place for all of Canada.
d. Some striking miners in Tommy’s town were killed.
e. Tommy Douglas saw some workers on strike get shot by the police.
f. Tommy became premier of Saskatchewan.
g. Tommy joined the CCF.
Understanding the Difference Between Fact and Opinion
A fact is something that can be proven. People can usually agree on the facts. An opinion is a judgment. People can disagree on whether an opinion is right or wrong.
Look at each statement. Which one is a fact? Which one is an opinion?
1. Socialism is evil.
2. Tommy Douglas was a socialist.
3. Tommy Douglas was premier of Saskatchewan.
4. Tommy Douglas was the best premier that Saskatchewan ever had.
5. The police shot two protesting workers in Winnipeg in 1919.
6. Guns should be banned.
7. Tommy made a law that bosses must give workers two weeks of paid vacation.
8. Workers should have at least four weeks of paid vacation.
Grammar
More Capital Letters
Edit these sentences by adding capital letters where needed.
1. tommy was born in falkirk, scotland.
2. he moved to canada in 1910.
3. he studied at brandon college to become a minister.
4. he married a woman named irma in 1930.
5. tommy began working in politics in saskatchewan.
6. tommy told a famous story about a place called mouseland.
Commas in a Series
Grammar Rule
Use commas to separate items in a list.
Examples:
- Tommy Douglas enjoyed public speaking, acting, and boxing.
- Tommy worked as a paperboy, factory worker, minister, and premier.
Add commas to these sentences.
1. In a boxing match, Tommy broke his nose lost some teeth and hurt his hand.
2. Tommy could speak English Spanish and Portuguese.
3. Tommy lived in Winnipeg Regina Burnaby and Nanaimo.
4. Tommy beat Terry Fox Pierre Trudeau and Frederick Banting to be named Greatest Canadian in 2004.
5. Tommy has three grandchildren named Keifer Thomas and Rachel.
6. As premier of Saskatchewan, Tommy made a bill of rights gave everyone two weeks of paid vacation and made health care free for everyone.
Writing
Writing Task
Have you ever been to a hospital or visited a doctor? If it had cost money, would you have been able to pay? Write about a time you were really glad Canada has free health care for everyone.
- First, use the Tell a Story sheet to think about the details of the story.
- Then, write your story in paragraph form.
- Next, edit your paragraph with the checklist below.
- Finally, hand in your paragraph to your instructor.
Checklist:
- Does my story have a beginning, middle, and end?
- Did I use linking words: first, then, next, finally?
- Are the events in the story clear?
- Is the story in a logical order?
- Have I used complete sentences, starting with capital letters and ending with a period (.), a question mark (?), or an exclamation mark (!)?
- Have I used irregular verbs correctly?
- Are words spelled correctly?
Answer Key
| Vocabulary | |
| QUESTION | ANSWER |
| 1 | c |
| 2 | a |
| 3 | b |
| 4 | d |
| Word Attack Strategy | |
| QUESTION | ANSWER |
| 1 | sexism |
| 2 | sexist |
| 3 | classism |
| 4 | classist |
| 5 | racism |
| 6 | racist |
| 7 | ageism |
| 8 | ageist |
| Check Your Understanding | |
| Find the Topic and Main Idea | |
| QUESTION | ANSWER |
| 1 | c |
| 2 | c |
| Understanding Sequence | |
| QUESTION | ANSWER |
| 1 | e, a, d, g, f, b, c |
| Understanding the Difference Between Fact and Opinion | |
| QUESTION | ANSWER |
| 1 | opinion |
| 2 | fact |
| 3 | fact |
| 4 | opinion |
| 5 | fact |
| 6 | opinion |
| 7 | fact |
| 8 | opinion |
| Grammar | |
| More Capital Letters | |
| QUESTION | ANSWER |
| 1 | Tommy, Falkirk, Scotland |
| 2 | He, Canada |
| 3 | He, Brandon College |
| 4 | He, Irma |
| 5 | Tommy, Saskatchewan |
| 6 | Tommy, Mouseland |
| Commas in a Series | |
| QUESTION | ANSWER |
| 1 | In a boxing match, Tommy broke his nose, lost some teeth, and hurt his hand. |
| 2 | Tommy could speak English, Spanish, and Portuguese. |
| 3 | Tommy lived in Winnipeg, Regina, Burnaby, and Nanaimo. |
| 4 | Tommy beat Terry Fox, Pierre Trudeau, and Frederick Banting to be named Greatest Canadian in 2004. |
| 5 | Tommy has three grandchildren named Keifer, Thomas, and Rachel. |
| 6 | As premier of Saskatchewan, Tommy made a bill of rights, gave everyone two weeks of paid vacation, and made health care free for everyone. |
Attributions
Hospital
Image by Eloisa is in the public domain.
Tommy Douglas
Tommy cropped by Samuell is in the public domain.