French Orange Shirt Day Activities for Grades 2–4
Looking for French Orange Shirt Day activities for primary students? This ready-to-use Orange Shirt Day lesson in French helps students learn about the history and meaning of La Journée du chandail orange, residential schools, their lasting impacts and reconciliation in an age-appropriate way.
Created by an Indigenous educator, this French Orange Shirt Day resource was designed for Grades 2–4 and includes a 7-page lesson, a French classroom poster and an interactive orange shirt writing craft.
Students will learn about Orange Shirt Day, residential schools, the lasting effects of the residential school system and ways we can continue learning and contributing to reconciliation.
French Orange Shirt Day Lesson
The 7-page French lesson uses clear, primary-friendly language to introduce important topics related to Orange Shirt Day and Truth and Reconciliation.
Students will learn:
✿ What Orange Shirt Day is
✿ Why we wear orange shirts
✿ Why residential schools existed
✿ What happened at residential schools
✿ Who attended residential schools
✿ The lasting impacts of residential schools
✿ An age-appropriate introduction to generational trauma
✿ Ways students can learn, listen and take respectful action
✿ Historical photographs to support student understanding
This lesson can be read together as a class, making it especially useful for younger French Immersion or primary students who may need teacher support with some of the vocabulary.
French Orange Shirt Day Poster
Also included is a French classroom poster featuring the message:
La réconciliation commence avec nous.
Display the poster during your September learning, add it to an Orange Shirt Day bulletin board or use it to begin a classroom conversation about reconciliation.
French Orange Shirt Writing Craft
After the lesson, students can reflect on their learning with an interactive Orange Shirt Day writing craft in French.
Students respond to the prompt:
Que puis-je faire pour aider les autres à se sentir respectés, importants et en sécurité?
Students colour the orange shirt, complete their writing, cut out the pieces and assemble the two layers to create a flip-up craft.
Finished shirts can be displayed together on a bulletin board or classroom wall as part of your Orange Shirt Day learning.
Perfect for French Immersion and Primary Classrooms
This French Orange Shirt Day resource works well for:
✿ French Immersion classrooms
✿ Francophone classrooms
✿ Core French and FSL
✿ Grades 2–4
✿ La Journée du chandail orange
✿ September 30
✿ National Day for Truth and Reconciliation
✿ Journée nationale de la vérité et de la réconciliation
✿ Residential school lessons
✿ Indigenous education
✿ September Social Studies
✿ Classroom discussions about reconciliation
Teach Orange Shirt Day in French
Finding meaningful French Orange Shirt Day activities for younger students can be challenging. This resource gives teachers a ready-to-use way to introduce this important history in French while keeping the language clear and appropriate for primary learners.
Use the lesson and activity together for a complete Orange Shirt Day lesson, or add them to your existing Truth and Reconciliation learning throughout September.
Please note: This resource discusses residential schools and their impacts. Teachers are encouraged to review the lesson before teaching and provide support based on the age and needs of their students.
All original artwork included in this resource was created by West Coast Indigenous Teacher and is copyrighted.
