A Flagof Canada'eOwn Shouldn'ta countryhave a flag of its own? Thisquestion was askedby the Canadiangovernment after World War I and again after World War II. Many Canadiansfelt 1 it was time for the country to choose a flag that would show \ Canadahad a unique identity and was separatefrom Britain.This feelingbecame especially strong as Canada's100th birthday approached.So, membersof all political partiesvowed to work together to createa new flag for Canada. In 1964,with Canada's100m birthday only threeyears away, PrimeMinister Pearsondecided it was time onceand for all for Canadato have its own flag. He organized a flag committeemade up of 15 membersof Parliamentfrom the five political parties representedin the House of Commons. The committee'sjob was to find a flag design that would appealto all Canadians. As well as getting advice from flag experts,the flag committee askedCanadians for their suggestions.Thousands of people sent in ideas.The flag committee room was soon filled with bagsand bags of mail containing lettersand drawings from acrossCanada, and even from Canadiansliving outside the country. Schoolchildren,families, businesspeople and organizationssent in drawings,paintings, collagesand photographs, on tissue,wrapping paper,cardboard and fabric. Even a 100kg (220 lb.) flag model with blinking lights was sent in. As membersof the committee chosetheir favourite designs,they stuck them on the walls of the committee room. Soon the room was coveredwith hundreds of designs. 4 SectionA Grade6 Assessmentof Reading, Writing and Mathematics, 2004-2005 Everyletter and flag design that was sent in to the governmentwas delivered to the flag committee for consideration.People felt strongly about the need for a new flag, and most encouragedPrime Minister Pearsonwith his mission. Famousartists, such as the Group of Seven'sA. Y. Iackson,sent in sketchesand even spoke to the flag committee. Somesymbols were unusual,including rabbits,eagles, Canada geese and evenhockey sticks. Often peoplesent in detailedletters explaining the meaningof their designs.Others mailed in poems,songs and even essaysthey had written in support of their ideas. Today,thousands of those submissions,ranging from simple crayon sketchesto professional artists'paintings, are savedat the National Archivesof Canada as part of Canada'sheritage. ,.., {:;-- Mostof the suggestionsin the multi-leafcategory Flagdesigns based Designswith a single hadthree leaves. on the Red Ensignalso mapleleaf came in usedthe fleur-de-lis manycolours and with or othersymbols. or withoutborders. StudentBooklet: Language 1 SectionA 5 After weeksof looking at designsand listening to experts,the flag committee had to choose a designto presentto Parliament for approval. First the committee divided its favourite designs into three groups:versions of the Red Ensign,flags with a single maple leaf and ones with a number of maple leaves.Then the committee had to chooseone of thesegroups. The committee members were from five different political parties,so imagine how surprised they were when the votes were counted and they had all chosen the same category-the single maple leaf. The flag committeepresented its choiceto Parliament.Now all membersof Parliamenthad to vote on whether to approve this design as Canada'snew flag. Getting them to agreewould not be easy. Prime Minister Pearsonwanted a flag that was "distinctlyCanadian which could not be mistakenfor the emblem of any other country." He appealedto the honourable members to unite around the new flag. But lohn Diefenbaker,leader of the Opposition, fought hard to keep the Red Ensign that showedCanada's historic link to Britain.Discussion led to debate that lasted for 15 days.It was one of the longest debatesin the historyof CanadianParliament! The public gallerieswere jam-packed with people. At 2:13 a.m.on December1.5, 7964, debatewas closed-something that is rarely done-and a vote was taken. Cheers,screams and desk- banging greetedthe announcementthat the Maple Leafflag had receivedan overwhelming majority of votes from the members of Parliament. 6 SectionA Grade6 Assessmentof Reading, Writing and Mathematics, 2OO4-20O5 Threedays Iater the Senatepassed the flag motion, and on December3l', 1964, Queen ElizabethII, Canada'squeen, gaveher approval.Now it was official-after almost a hundred years,Canada had its own flag. One reasonCanada's Maple Leaf flag is recognizedall around the world is becauseof its great design.That designwas the result of a lot of hard work by a number of experts. GeorgeStanley, a professorat Royal Military College in Kingston, Ontario, suggesteda single maple leaf designin red and white becauseit could be seenclearly from a distance. Once Parliamentvoted for the red-and-whiteMaple Leafflag, flag committeemember John Matheson worked to perfect the design.Red borders were included to balancethe bold centralleaf and make the flag stand out. Then Mathesonhad to choosea maple leaf as a model for the flag'sleaf. He wanted to pick one that most Canadianswould recognize,so he chosethe sugarmaple leaf. The design of the leaf on the flag was developed by designerfacques St. Cyr.His 11-pointleaf looks like a real maple leaf when the flag flies on a windy day. Justas there are many maple leaf shapes,there are also many shadesof red. A bright scarlet shadewas chosenfor Canada'sflag so that it would be different from the lighter red of Britain'sUnion Jackand the darker red of the American flag. Most Canadiansgot their first glimpseof the new flag on February15, 1965.It was a cold cloudy day in Ottawa, but people began to gather on Parliament Hill early in the morning to welcome Canada'snew flag. The crowd cheeredand the sun broke through the clouds as the new Maple Leaf flag reachedthe top of the flagpole for the first time. Today,that original flag hangsin the prime minister's office. Writtenby Ann-MaureenOwens and JaneYealland. lllustratedby Bill Slavinand EsperanqaMelo. StudentBooklet: Language 1 SectionA 7 1, What is the main idea of the text "A Flagof Canada'sOwn"? 2, According to the authors,why did many Canadianswant a new flag? 3. The authors begin the passagewith a question most likely becausethey a do not know if Canadahad a flag of its own. b want readersto think about their own opinion. c aregoing to answerthe questionin the first paragraph. d think Canadaneeded to be separatefrom Britain. 4, Readthe sentencebelow. The committee members were from five different political parties,so imagine how surprisedthey were when the votes were counted and they had all chosenthe same category-the single maple leaf. This statementsuggests that a no one liked the multi-leaf design. b members of different political partiesusually agree. c members of different political partiesusually disagree. d the single maple leaf categorywas unpopular. I SectionA Grade6 Assessmentof Reading, Writing and Mathematics, 2OO4-20O5 5. Which of the following statemenrsis an opinion rather than fact? a Flagdesigns were sent in from many places. b Some flag designswere better than others. c Many Canadianssent in their ideasto the flag committee. d Prime Minister Pearsonappealed to membersto support the new flag. 6. Readthe sentencebelow. Firstthe committee divided its favourite designsinto three groups:versions of the Red Ensign,flags with a single maple leaf and ones with a number of maple leaves. The colon is used to a begin a list. b divide the senrence. c separateeach of the three groups. d draw attention to the words that follow 7, Describehow you know that "A Flag of Canada'sOwn" is a narrative. StudentBooklet: Language I Sectionn 9 B. Prime Minister Pearsonorganized a flag committee representingthe five political parties to choosea new flag for Canada. Why was it a good idea for Pearsonto form a committee to make this decision rather than making the decisionon his own? Use ideasfrom the text and your own ideas to answerthe question. 9. Identif. and explain the unique characteristicsof the design of Canada'sflag. 10. Readthis sentence: But Iohn Diefenbaker,leader of the Opposition,fought hard to keepthe RedEnsign that showed Canada'shistoric link to Britain. In this sentence,what part of speechis the word "hard"?. 10 SeciionA Grade6 Assessmentof Reading, Writing and Mathematics, 2004-2005 11. How do you know that all of the flag submissionswere valued? 12, In some ways,creating a new flag is similar to working on a classart project. There needs to be a plan, and you need ideasfor a good design. In what ways was creatingthe new Canadian flag different from working on a classart project?Use your own ideasand ideasfrom the text to answerthe question. 'A 13. PrimeMinister Pearsonin Flagof Canada'sOwn" could be describedas a strong- minded person. Use information from the text to explain why he is a strong-minded person. StudentBooklet: Language 1 Sectionn 11 14. If you were askedto presentthe information contained in this text using a different form of writing, what form would you choose?Explain your choice. 15. Accordingto the text, where would you find the original Canadian flag today? a on a pole in front of the ParliamentBuildings b in the prime minister's office c in the CanadianNational Archive d in the flag committee room 16. Readthis sentence: So, members of all political partiesvowed to work togetherto createa new flag for Canada. Which of the following wordshas the samemeaning as the word "vowed"?. a co-operated b promised c hoped d tried 12 SectionA Grade6 Assessmentof Reading, Writing and Mathematics, 2OO4-2OO5 17. Which of the following people actedboth as a flag committee member and as a flag designer? a Prime Minister Pearson b John Matheson c CeorgeStanley d A. Y. Iackson 1&. Whatis the nameof the writing beloweach flag on page5? a caption b heading c label d subheading 19. Readthe following sentencefrom the text: At2:I3 a.m. on December15, 1964,debate was closed-something that is rarely done-and a vote was taken. Write the compound word from the above sentence. 20.Why do the authorsinclude the carroonon page5? StudentBooklet: Language 1 SectionA 13.