Whales and Sea Ice: Investigating Insulation

Find an explanation for the sea level rise. Pupils investigate the difference that melting land ice and sea ice have on the sea level. Groups create two models—one with ice on land and one with ice in the water. As the ice melts, teams...

Students demonstrate the scientific method by conducting an ice cube melting experiment. They make predictions and observations, and conclude what factors make ice melt more slowly or quickly than normal.

Many arctic mammals, such as polar bears, seals, and walruses, depend on the sea ice about 3 m thick for their habitat. Pupils investigate the properties of polar water and polar ice and their properties through readings, videos, and...

Students study sea ice and its importance in climate and climate change. They discuss sea ice as a presence of a food source for marine animals in the arctic and complete a lab activity. After completing the lab, they watch a video...

Does perfume really contain whale excrement? Only the most expensive varieties! An intriguing video lesson explains the origin of the ambergris ingredient through a tour through the sperm whale's digestive system. Scientists only...

Learners graph sea ice data and predict long term trends in the data. In this climate change lesson, students use sea ice data from the Arctic and Antarctic to construct line graphs. They use their graphs to predict the effects of global...

Students conduct an experiment.  For this salinity lesson, students learn about sea ice, why it is important and how changing amounts can affect the sea.  Students conduct an experiment to find out the effects of salinity on the...

Ice is nice, and its condition on the planet has a significant effect. Junior geoscientists experiment with ice melting in both water and on land to discover how each affect the rising sea level. This detailed lesson outline even...

By 2100, it is projected that nearly all of the Arctic's sea ice will be lost. Explore this region and learn about the effects of global warming on our polar bears, ring seals, whales, and narwhals. What will happen to our arctic sea...

With this simple inquiry exercise young scientists observe the effects of melting ice on water level. Set up an easy experiment with floating ice cubes in a dish of water then have your pupils make and record their observations of the...