This polar-themed unit plan provides a resource for teachers looking for ways to integrate a variety of challenging lessons and activities into their curriculum. The lessons touch on a variety of subject areas including language arts, math, and science. The unit is designed for a 3rd grade class but can be adapted for other grade levels. A helpful media list
This detailed animation shows how the Earth is lit by the Sun throughout the year. The lighting of the Arctic and the Antarctic is detailed for every month of the year to help explain, among other things, the resulting polar night.
The animation is available in the following languages:
NPR and National Geographic teamed up to create an animated video series that begins with the basics of Carbon as an element and with 5 episodes draws the links between carbon and our warming planet. This is a part of the Climate Connections Series
In an explosive clip from the BBC's landmark series, scientists drill into a frozen lake to ignite methane gas that is trapped in bubbles beneath the surface. Do greenhouse gases pose a signficant threat to our planet? Dr Iain Stewart assesses the dangers.
A young marine biologist from Portugal shows the science, the beauty and the importance of the polar regions to the planet from a research cruise en route to Antarctica. Film is primarily in Portuguese with some English.
Storyteller Films presents the scientific efforts to understand and detect the movement of King Crab from Deep to shallow waters off the continental shelf of Antarctica. The film was made by the Palmer and Oden 2010/2011 expeditions. The crabs are an invasive species that may have large effects on this diverse marine ecosystem. The film ha a comical flair though
Plan and run a family fun afternoon or evening with several hands-on activities. Students help run the activity stations and share what they have learned about the Polar Regions. A great culminating activity for a unit on the Arctic, Antarctica, or both, and a fun way to involve families in the learning experience.
Polar science is a topic both your students and you can get into. This publication gives you a variety of angles to choose from in implementing a study of polar science. This resource was created under a National Science Foundation Grant by Middle School Portal 2: Math & Science Pathways.
This information is a resource on everything Antarctica created by 3 students in a Thinkquest project, collaborating internationally - Oliver Strebel, Robert Merki and Ho Lik Man.