This PolarConnect event on Antarctica Day (December 1) 2022 was broadcast live from the Dry Valleys of Antarctica with teacher Lucy Coleman and researcher Rachel Morgan-Kiss.
In a “March Madness” game of survival of the fittest, will your microbe and its genes survive the test of changing conditions on Planet Earth and beyond? Students choose genes from a “toolbox” and pit their microbe against their classmates’, using critical thinking and argument writing to determine the microbe with the best chance of success. Based on PolarTREC
Analogs are used in science investigations to better understand systems we can’t access ourselves. In this lesson, students explore the Dry Valleys of Antarctica to better understand microbial communities on early Earth and what might have been possible on ancient Mars. Students will examine photographs, written descriptions, and artistic renderings of early Earth, the Dry Valley lakes, and
Scientists use bathymetry to understand the ocean floor. This lesson is a basic introduction to bathymetry using salad trays to help students understand how bathymetric maps work.
Objectives
1. Students will be able to identify the advantages to using a bathymetric map.
2. Students will be able to transform a bathymetric map into a three-dimensional model.
3. Using just
PolarTREC alumni Alex Eilers created this mini-exhibit about Antarctica for the Pink Palace Museum in Memphis, Tennessee. The exhibit highlights a variety of topics as well as Ms. Eilers personal experiences in Antarctica. Topics explored include: dressing for the cold Antarctic climate, research on the Weddell seal, the history of human exploration in Antarctica, and extreme facts about the coldest
One of the first things to understand about the Antarctic ecosystem is what kinds of animals actually live there. This lesson provides a basic introduction to important Antarctic wildlife and how they interact with each other.
Objectives
Students will be able to create a food web of the Antarctic ecosystem.
Over three months in Antarctica, PolarTREC teacher Juan Botella took hundreds of pictures a day. He will now display many of those photos in an art exhibit entitled, "ArtArctic Science" at the Overture Center in Madison, WI. The exhibit includes not only Botella’s pictures but artwork by four Monona Grove high school students and two recent graduates.
A poster by PolarTREC alum Dan Frost describing the integration of Arctic research into secondary education through a field season in Svalbard. It details possibilities for curriculum building and outreach through Arctic field work experience.
This San Francisco Examiner talks with the PolarTREC teacher Amber Lancaster in Antarctica and her marine biology students back in San Francisco and the impact of the experience on their lives.
This one hour webinar gives educators the opportunity to learn from PolarTREC educator Alex Eilers. Her projects for education and outreach on the weddell seal project with Dr. Burns provides great examples of bringing polar science to students and communities.