STUDENT RESPONSES TO HISTORICAL THINKING FEEDBACK QUESTIONS ABOUT THEIR
RESEARCH AND FIELD WORK ABOUT THE ST. JOHN’S WARD AND THE CREATION OF THEIR
SELF-GUIDED TOURS ABOUT THE WARD
Responses are gathered from students at Northview Heights Secondary School, March 2015
What are three of the most important things you learned about the St. John’s Ward in doing this
Historical Thinking Missions Project-Walking the Ward?
 I learned that Jewish people faced prejudice
 Most businesses in the Ward were owned by Jewish residents
 There were more than 10 people living in a small room in a house
 Jewish residents were working at the Timothy Eaton factory; they were forced due because of some of
the racism they experienced which limited their job opportunities
 Jewish residents lived close to their workplace
 Most women worked from home so they could earn a wage and take care of their family
 Living conditions in the Ward were poor due to a lack of resources
 The Ward was very over populated.
 There was a lack of necessities, such as water, food and healthcare services
 Living conditions were not very sanitary
 Illnesses were easily spread between people
 The Ward was a very multicultural space historically where people came to settle from all over the
world.
 People lived in poverty, 10-15 people within one house
 People worked very hard to provide for their families
 They were also forced to leave their homes because of the government’s plan to construct new
buildings
 I learned how the (municipal) government forced people to find a new place to live
 I learned that many challenges existed for new immigrants
 I learned that many houses were taken down so that theatres, hospitals, and other infrastructure could
be built
 Although the Ward was poor, the community worked together to build a school to educate children
 Different cultures of people worked together to run their businesses and to be more efficient
 The Ward was a place where immigrants started to build up their lives gradually in order to raise
money to survive
 Many buildings were taken down to build the Armouries, City Hall etc.
 I learned about how the Ward began to improve and became an urban, business-filled community
with a stronger economy
 I learned about the ethical issues surrounding development in the Ward
 I learned that there are many buildings that once existed I the Ward, but that no longer exist
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Which historical thinking concepts (primary source documents, historical significance, continuity
and change, cause and consequences, historical perspectives and the ethical dimension) did you
apply in doing this project? Identify them and explain what strategies you used to apply them.
I used photographs of the Ward as primary sources.
I explored the causes and consequences of using different objects in the Ward.
Photographs taken by A. Goss of the living and working conditions were used as primary sources.
Worked with a chart showing then and now locations which identified patterns of continuity and
change.
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We worked with primary sources to tell a story of the objects used by people who lived in the Ward.
We used the concept of Historical Significance to determine the importance of historical objects-their
uses and purposes.
I used the concept of continuity and change to analyze historical photographs from 1900 and present
day photos.
I used historical significance to determine why a building was important in the past and to evaluate
what impact its loss would have on the community when it was taken down and a new building was
placed in its location.
I used continuity and change to explain the functions of buildings then and now.
We used historical photographs to determine the living conditions.
We used the Chief Medical Officer’s Report to learn about the health conditions and overcrowding
issues.
We used statistics to determine the population growth, increase in multiculturalism and in the
development of new homes.
I used the concept of historical perspectives to seek out different voices in the source materials.
Why do you think doing historical thinking fieldwork like the Walk the Ward Assignment is
important for student historians to do? What did you learn about the work that historians do in this
process?
 It teaches you about the settlement of immigrants to Toronto.
 It teaches you about the government’s strategies for keeping things “clean and sanitized.”
 I learned that historians use all different kinds of sources to find out what happened in the past.
 Doing historical work helps us to understand how historians work and use information/sources to
figure out what happened in the past.
 I think it helps students to connect with the past and to identify differences between life in the past
and in the present.
 I learned that historians do a lot of research on patterns of change and work to uncover the hidden
secrets of forgotten places.
 This assignment is important for students to do because we can learn about the importance of
buildings that people no long acknowledge.
 It is important because it shows us how to do precise research (what thinking concepts to us) and how
to “frame” the focus of our research. I also learned the importance of doing primary source research.
 Historical field work gives students a better understanding of historical issues at different time
periods. I have also learned how historians analyze historical documents to figure out answers to
questions about the past.
 It is important for student historians because we are exploring using our knowledge of the past to
understand what it was like.
 I learned that historians use their knowledge of their past and imagination to imagine as much as
possible using artifacts and information from primary source materials.
 It’s important so students can identify and recognize the living conditions of their city in the past
 Fieldwork helps us to understand the development of our city.
 I think that doing this work is importance because we can learn from our past and change our views
about immigration
 I learned that historians go through multiple sources to confirm any facts and that they must also
analyze sources for every detail to truly understand the past.
 Doing fieldwork is hard but it is the most important process. If historians don’t have evidence they
cannot effectively explain or prove their point/position.
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The project allows us to apply historical thinking in a real-life activity like a walking tour. This is good
because it shows us the application of studying history.
Historical fieldwork is important because it shows us how much Toronto has changed and how we
take a lot of things for granted today that people who lived here in the past didn’t have access to.
I think it is important because it helps us to develop our skills to do the work of historians.
I learned that historians have to judge by looking at primary sources. They have to infer about how
the past actually was.
It allows us to really search through source materials and to find out what is historically significant
and apply it to our work.
Historical fieldwork is important because it allows you to get a different perspective on the past.