Citizen Factory


What is your MP up to?

Parliament is confusing. That's why Citizen Factory is here - it's an online resource for Canadian youth created by Apathy is Boring. Our goal is to make information about Parliament accessible and meaningful so you can find out exactly what MPs are up to.

Try Citizen Factory here!
 

Teacher's Guide

So you want to help youth learn about democracy?

You're in the right place. Apathy is Boring has developed a set of articles, lesson plans, and other resources to help you bring all the information your students need about democracy into your classroom.

Citizen Factory isn’t a traditional educational tool. It uses the most up-to-date information available from the Library of Parliament and other sources to help youth learn about Parliament and become more active citizens.

Citizen Factory also includes a comprehensive collection of articles [LINK] developed by Apathy is Boring which explain the democratic process in a simple, concise, and accessible way. These articles discuss a variety of topics, ranging from how Canada’s Parliamentary democracy works to specific ways that students can become active citizens. Apathy is Boring has also expanded our online glossary [LINK] to help students decipher the jargon of Parliament.

Specifically for teachers, Citizen Factory includes a set of five lesson plans with accompanying PowerPoint presentations. The lesson plans are structured to help you bring the online content of Citizen Factory into the classroom. They provide specific activities to help students learn about their elected representatives and take the first steps towards active citizenship. The lesson plans are also structured to integrate with existing civics curricula, and you can choose among five specific topics:

Who is Your MP?
What's Happening in Parliament?
Who are Senators?
Political Parties
All About Voting

To become lifelong active citizens, students need to learn that Parliament matters in their lives. Citizen Factory captures the living nature of Parliament, bringing civics education into the "here and now." We hope that these resources help you engage students in Canada’s democratic process.

 

 

We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage.
The opinions expressed in this publication (or Web site) do not necessarily reflect those of the Department of Canadian Heritage.

 

News

All News


Articles

All Articles


Glossary

A - L

Aboriginal peoples, Adjournment, Amendment, Back Bencher, Bicameralism, Bill, British North America Act (BNA Act), Budget, Bureaucracy, Cabinet, Cabinet Shuffle, Campaign, Canada – United States Free Trade Agreement (CUSFTA), Canadian Security and Intelligence Service (CSIS), Caucus, Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Chief Justice, Closure, Coalition government, Committee of the Whole, Confidence Motion, Constitution, Democracy, Department of National Defence (DND), Dilatory Motion, Dissolution, Division of Powers, Election, Electoral System, Executive, Federation, Filibuster, First Nations, First past the Post, First Reading, Fiscal Imbalance, Fringe Party, Government, Government Bill, Governor General, Hansard, Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition (Official Opposition), House of Commons, Ideology, In Camera, International Monetary Fund (IMF), Inuit, Joint Committee, Judiciary, Leader of the Opposition, Legislative Committee, Legislative Supremacy, Legislature, Lieutenant Governor, Lobbying,

M - Z

Majority Government, Métis, Minister, Ministry, Minority Government, Motion, Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD), North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Notice of Motion, Notice Paper, Order of Precedence, Order Paper, Paired Vote, Parliamentary Privilege, Party Convention, Party Whip, Point of Order, Political Party, Président, Previous Question, Prime Minister, Prime Ministers Office (PMO), Private Bill, Private Members' Bill, Privy Council, Proportional Representation, Prorogation, Prorogue, Question Period, Repatriate, Report Stage, Riding, Royal Assent, Sanction royale, Second Reading, Seigneurial system, Senate, Senate reform, Session, Sitting, Speaker, Special Committee, Speech from the Throne, Standing Committee, Subcommittee, Supreme Court of Canada, The Notwithstanding Clause, The Privy Council Office, The World Bank (WB), Third Reading, United Nations (UN), Voting, Westminster Model, World Trade Organization (WTO), Written Questions,

View Full Glossary


Tweet

Follow Apathy is Boring on Twitter.

Visual Distraction

All our photos...on Flickr!