Arctic & Antarctic Classroom Resources

This collection of lessons and web resources is aimed at classroom teachers, their students, and students' families. Most of these resources come from the National Science Digital Library (NSDL). NSDL is the National Science Foundation's online library of resources for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education. See www.nsdl.org

Beyond Penguins and Polar Bears
http://beyondpenguins.nsdl.org/issue/index.php?date=March2008
Ohio State University and the National Science Digital Library (NSDL) have launched a new online magazine for teachers in the early grades. The National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded publication, Beyond Penguins and Polar Bears, is designed to help teachers develop their knowledge of the Arctic and Antarctica and to use best practices to integrate science and literacy instruction around polar themes. NSF funded the new magazine as part of the agency's portfolio of research and education grants related to the International Polar Year. Also see the NSF news release.

Via Antarctica
http://www.wm.edu/news/?id=5503
This series of six audio/video podcasts was shot in Antarctica in 2006 by Cindy Van Dover, associate professor of biology at the College of William and Mary. The five-week research team explored ecological systems in the Drake Passage.

SciencePoles
www.sciencepoles.org
This Web site gives an overview of polar science and research findings as well as recent and forthcoming developments across a range of scientific disciplines. It is a key tool for the International Polar Foundation in aiming to bridge the science-society divide.

The Antarctic Sun
http://antarcticsun.usap.gov/2005-2006/sctn02-05-2006.cfm
The Antarctic Sun is published during the austral summer at McMurdo Station in Antarctica for the United States Antarctic Program, operated by the National Science Foundation. Learn about people, penguins and projects on and under the ice in Antarctica.

Athropolis Links
http://www.athropolis.com/index.htm
A portal to all things cold, icy and Arctic! This all-encompassing Web site has information and links to almost everything you can imagine relating to the icy climates of the world, including an index of links arranged alphabetically as well as by category.

MaudNESS Cruise: Eastern Weddell Sea, Winter 2005
http://www.esr.org/maudness_cruise/cruise_main.html
Researchers aboard the icebreaker Nathaniel B. Palmer look for clues that cause deep mixing events in the Southern Ocean.

Alaska Science Outreach
http://www.alaskascienceoutreach.com
This site offers original science reporting about Alaskan science and research endeavors.

Dinosaurs on Ice
http://www.nsf.gov/news/mmg/mmg_disp.cfm?med_id=52158&from=vid
A presentation describing the discovery of Cryolophosaurus, a meat-eating dinosaur from the early Jurassic Period and the first dinosaur skeleton excavated from Antarctica.

Teachers Experiencing Antarctica and the Arctic
http://tea.armadaproject.org
The Teachers Experiencing Antarctica and the Arctic program pairs classroom teachers with scientists in the field and requires them to share their experience as broadly as possible when they return to the classroom. The TEA Web site contains journals kept by participants during their fieldwork, a list of participants by state, and suggested lesson plans as well as other resources.

Graphic Stratospheric Ozone
http://cse.ssl.berkeley.edu/segwayed/lessons/Ozone/graphing.html
Online science lesson (grades 9 to 12) graphing Antarctic ozone.

POP Goes Antarctica?
http://literacynet.org/polar/pop/html/home.html
Follows a team of scientists from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) as they study the presence of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in the Antarctic.

Antarctica Field Trip
http://www.field-trips.org/sci/antarctic/index.htm
Focuses on the subject of Antarctica, including plate tectonics, climate, glaciers and ice movement, scientific research, flora and fauna and how decisions are made about the continent. Designed as an electronic tour, it guides the user through different Web sites and outlines teaching objectives, concepts covered and new vocabulary.

Paleomap Project
http://www.scotese.com/
Provides extensive information, maps and interactive illustrations on plate tectonics. Readers view paleographic maps of the Earth's history and climate history to view how our planet looked during various periods in time and the climatic changes that took place. Allows students to manipulate and view virtual globes throughout history.

Arctic & Antarctic Research Overview