Indigenous Inventions
Indigenous peoples made this light boat out of tree bark so they could easily paddle down Ontario's rivers and carry it over land.
What is a birchbark canoe?
On Ontario Day (June 1st), schools across the province raise this bright, multi-coloured symbol to show that every student belongs.
What is the Pride Flag?
In 1922, doctors in Toronto discovered this life-saving medicine that helps people with diabetes stay healthy.
What is insulin?
First baked in Barrie, Ontario, over 120 years ago, this sweet, gooey dessert has a flaky crust and is usually filled with raisins or pecans.
What is a butter tart?
Ontario is home to four of these five massive bodies of water, which hold about 20% of the world's fresh lake water.
What are the Great Lakes?
To walk on top of deep winter snow without sinking, Indigenous peoples invented these wide, wooden shoes held on by leather straps.
What are snowshoes?
In 2003, Ontario became the very first province in Canada to say it is legal for any two adults who love each other to do this.
What is marriage?
Alexander Graham Bell came up with the idea for this world-changing invention while sitting in his backyard in Brantford, Ontario, in 1874.
What is the telephone?
In 1955, an Ontario TV producer, George Retzlaff , changed sports forever by figuring out how to show a hockey goal a second time on TV, right after it happened. This is called an instant... what?
What is an instant replay?
This beautiful, diving waterbird is the official bird of Ontario. You can find its picture on the Canadian 1-dollar coin!
What is the loon?
This fast-paced game is Canada’s official summer sport. It was invented by Indigenous nations, who originally played it with hundreds of players using sticks with nets.
What is lacrosse?
In the year 2000, Toronto schools became the first in Canada to make strict rules protecting students who feel different on the inside than the gender they were born with. This is called gender... what?
What is Gender Identity?
Long before iPhones, a company in Waterloo, Ontario, invented this famous cell phone that had a tiny, real keyboard you could type on with your thumbs.
What is a black berry?
In 1909, Thomas F. (Tommy) Ryan at the Toronto Bowling Club, changed regular bowling to make it easier for kids by using smaller balls and only using this many pins
What is 5 pin bowling?
This world-famous, massive waterfall in southern Ontario drops about 50 meters and attracts millions of tourists every year.
What is Niagara Falls?
Indigenous people discovered that boiling the bark of a willow tree could cure a headache. Today, scientists use that same ingredient to make this common medicine.
What is aspirin? (or pain medicine)
Indigenous cultures have a special tradition for people who carry both a male and female spirit inside them. This respectful term is called being "Two-..." what?
What is Two-Spirit?
An Ontario inventor from Toronto, Alfred J. Gross , created this portable, two-way radio device in 1938. Today, police officers, firefighters, and kids playing spy games use them to talk.
What is a walkie-talkie?
To protect players' heads from getting hurt on the ice, Ontario hockey star, Eddie Shore, in 1933 became one of the first people to ever wear this piece of safety gear.
What is a hockey helmet?
Indigenous peoples gave this giant lake in northwestern Ontario its name, which means "clear water" or "where the big rocks are." It is the largest freshwater lake in the world by area.
What is Lake Superior?
Indigenous farmers invented a smart way to grow food by planting corn, beans, and squash together so they could help each other grow. They called these plants the Three... what?
What are the Three Sisters?
Every summer, Ontario cities host colorful parades filled with music, dancing, and flags to celebrate love and equal rights for everyone.
What are Pride Parades?
An engineer in Toronto, John "Jack" Hopps , worked in collaboration with University of Toronto Surgeons helped invent the first battery-powered version of this medical device, which is tucked inside a person's chest to keep their heart beating at the right speed.
What is a pacemaker?
John D. Millar, in 1930, was the very first person in the world to paint these down the middle of a highway to keep cars safe.
What are traffic lines/ lanes?
Deep in Ontario’s forests, you might find this majestic animal—the largest member of the deer family—which can grow to be as tall as a school bus is long!
What is a Moose?