It is important to encourage young children to think about what it takes to be really good at an activity, whether schoolwork, a sport, or a hobby. In this lesson, students will think about the skills and qualities required to be a good mountain climber and read about renowned climber Ed Viesturs and his experiences in the Himalaya mountains, especially Mount Everest. Finally, students will consider how studying mountain climbing has taught them about what it takes to be good at their own favorite activities. This lesson plan can be used in conjunction with the National Geographic site Everest celebrating the 50th Anniversary Everest Expedition, which was made possible in part by the generous support of American International Group, Inc.

Geography, earth science

Standard 4: "The physical and human characteristics of places"

One to two hours

• Computer with Internet access
• World wall map

Students will

• think about the skills and qualities they think a mountain climber needs to have;
• discuss some of the difficulties associated with mountain climbing;
• discuss the meaning of the phrase "I can climb any mountain";
• discuss the skills and qualities necessary to excel at their favorite activities; and
• draw pictures of Ed Viesturs climbing a mountain and of themselves doing one of their own activities to the best of their ability.

Show students a few pictures of mountains and climbers by exploring these mountain photographs. What do students think it would take to climb a mountain? What qualities do they think these mountain climbers possess? Are they brave, strong, crazy? Discuss students' ideas as a class, and list them on the board.

Have students look at pictures of Mount Everest and help them locate it on a world map. What does it look like? Do they think it would be difficult to climb?

Ask students if they have ever experienced any of these discomforts: being too cold, not having enough air to breathe (perhaps due to lying under a heavy blanket), or carrying something very heavy a long distance or up a few flights of stairs. Explain that a mountain climber has to deal with all of these difficulties as he or she ascends the mountain. Climbers must be able to climb in cold weather with low oxygen, all while performing some very difficult climbing maneuvers and carrying a heavy pack full of equipment.

Explain that as a person climbs upwards, there is less oxygen in the air. Since we all need oxygen to breathe, climbers usually take oxygen canisters that provide extra oxygen for them to breathe. Show students a picture of a climber wearing an oxygen mask. As climbers ascend, they also find that the air becomes much colder. Have students ever experienced this phenomenon as they have gone up hills or mountains?

Give students a brief description of Ed Viesturs, a famous mountain climber who has climbed several of the world''s highest mountains, including Mount Everest. Viesturs is such an experienced and adventurous climber that he makes it even more challenging by climbing mountains without using extra oxygen.

Now that students have learned a little more about mountain climbing, ask them if they want to add some new words to the list on the board.

Ask students if they have ever heard someone say that they feel like they can "climb any mountain." Are mountain climbers the only people who make this statement, or might other people say it as well? Ask students to imagine that someone who has never climbed a mountain proclaims that she can "climb any mountain." Point out that this is a phrase that means the person feels confident, as if he or she can accomplish anything.

Ask students to think about their favorite activities. What would it take to perform these activities to the best of their ability? What would they need to be able to do to confidently and to make the statement "I can climb any mountain!"? You can also have students think about this concept in terms of schoolwork—what would they need to be able to do in order to have this level of confidence at school?

Give each student a piece of blank white paper, and have them divide it into two equal parts. Ask them to draw pictures of Viesturs climbing a mountain on the left half of the page. On the right half, have them draw pictures of themselves doing a favorite activity (or an activity they would like to do) to the best of their abilities with the feeling that they can "climb any mountain."

Have students take turns sharing their drawings with the class. Ask them to explain what they think would be the biggest challenges and the most dangerous things about performing their activity and what would be the best things about being able to perform it well.

• Have students take turns thinking of words that describe the pictures of mountain climbers they have seen. Perhaps they will say "brave," "exhausted," or "uncomfortable." Then ask them if they have ever done any activities for which they could use the same words. For example, have they ever done anything that was brave, exhausting, or uncomfortable?
• Ask students to discuss the decisions that mountain climbers have to make as they are climbing. For example, they would need to decide where to place their feet and which route to take up the mountain. Ask students what decisions they have to make while performing their own activities. (Provide some examples, such as a soccer player making decisions about whom to kick the ball to and when to kick it). How quickly do they have to make these decisions? How easy is it to decide what to do? If you are just learning a sport, is it easy or difficult to make a decision about how to play the sport?
• Have students look at the pictures of mountaineering survival skills at Surviving Denali, and help them figure out what the people are doing in each of these pictures. Ask them to explain the reasons why a climber would need to understand how to take the actions shown in the pictures.

Mountain Zone
National Geographic News: Everest Anniversary Expedition
National Geographic: Everest—Measure of a Mountain
PBS: NOVA Online—Denali for Kids