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Overview:
Students will learn about the characteristics of the Arctic and Antarctic by looking at a globe and at pictures of the polar landscape and animals. They will plan a vacation to one of these regions and draw pictures or write stories depicting themselves on the trip.
Connections to the Curriculum:
Geography, world history
Connections to the National Geography Standards:
Standard 4: "The physical and human characteristics of places"
Standard 5: "That people create regions to interpret Earth's complexity"
Time:
Two hours
Materials Required:
- Computer with Internet access
- Globe
- Drawing materials
Objectives:
Students will
- view the poles on a globe;
- discuss what it might be like in the polar regions, and answer some questions about these regions;
- show the routes they might take from their home to each of the Poles;
- view pictures of the polar regions;
- sketch the things they might see on a visit to the polar regions;
- share their pictures with the class; and
- draw pictures or write stories of themselves visiting one of the polar regions.
Geographic Skills:
Acquiring Geographic Information
Organizing Geographic Information
Analyzing Geographic Information
S u g g e s t e d P r o c e d u r e
Opening:
Hold up a globe, and ask if anyone can point out the North and South Poles. Make sure all students get a chance to see where each of these points is located on the globe.
Point out the polar regions (above the Arctic and Antarctic Circles), and ask students what they think it might be like in these places. Does the globe give any clues as to what the climate might be like (e.g., white to represent ice)?
Development:
Ask students to pretend they are planning a big vacation to visit each of the polar regions. Have them continue to look at the globe, and ask them to answer these questions in a class discussion.
- Which region is closest to your home?
- Which region has the most water, and which has the most land?
- Which continents are closest to the North Pole?
- Which continents are closest to the South Pole?
Ask volunteers to point out on the globe the routes they might take from their home to each of the Poles. Which continents would they travel through?
Divide the class into two groups, and assign each group either the Arctic or the Antarctic region. Have students look at pictures from their assigned region and draw their own sketches of the things they see. Some pictures can be found at the Web sites below, but students also can use additional Internet or print resources.
Label one side of the classroom "North"and the opposite side "South." Display students' drawings in the appropriate parts of the room.
Closing:
Have students from each group describe their pictures and explain what they might find in their assigned polar region.
Suggested Student Assessment:
Have students look at the pictures their classmates have drawn, and ask them to think about which polar region they would most like to visit. Have them draw pictures or write short stories about what it would be like to visit one of these regions.
Extending the Lesson:
Tell the class that approximately one hundred years ago, some brave explorers were trying to be the first people to get to the North and South Poles. Compare this type of endeavor one hundred years ago to a trip to Mars today.
Ask students to discuss what they think would have been the most difficult, dangerous, and exciting things about being the first people to try reaching the Poles. Why do they think these explorers wanted to make the journeys?
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