Sixth Grade
Worksheets
The Métis: A People of Pride
Caption: knives of the Métis in the British Museum
What would it be like to live on the Canadian frontier? There would be no roads or telephones. The only store would be a trading post. If you wanted new clothes, you couldn't run to the mall; you made them.
The word Métis referred to the "mixed" blood of the people. When the first coureur des bois began exploring the wilds of Canada, they married the women of the native tribes. They blended the French and native cultures, using the best of both worlds to form a new one.
Even as the French today enjoy a reputation of having beautiful clothes, so did the Métis. The fabric shirts and leather pants of the men were decorated with beads and fringes. In the winter they often wore coats cut from warm Hudson's Bay Company blankets. They also wore beaded moccasins.
