Lesson Plan

I Speak for the Polar Bears!

Curated and Reviewed by Lesson Planet

Climate change and weather extremes impact every species, but this activity focuses on how these changes effect polar bears. After learning about the animal, scholars create maps of snow-ice coverage and examine the yearly variability and trends.

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CCSS: Adaptable
Additional Tags
Instructional Ideas
  • Track polar bears, or view previous years' data, as they hunt for seals: https://polarbearsinternational.org/polar-bears/tracking/
  • View updated data on the ice loss and the impact on polar bear populations: https://polarbearsinternational.org/news/article-climate-change/2016-third-hottest-year-in-a-row-sea-ice-at-historic-low/
Classroom Considerations
  • Requires prior knowledge of latitude, longitude, and reading plot lines
  •  The 10th lesson in a series of 21
Pros
  • Provides many links for prerequisite knowledge, vocabulary, learning links, student resources, and further learning
  • Aligns to the National Science Education Standards, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Education Standards, Climate Literacy Principles, and Energy Literacy Principles
  • Includes answers to all of the essential questions 
Cons
  • None