In Winter Underwater With Weddell Seals, narrator Sir David Attenborough explains how Weddell seals spend the winter underwater where the 28°F (-2°C) water is warm compared with the frigid temperatures above. Watch the Weddell seal glide through a watery world that has not changed for millions of years. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Frozen Planet, a series that shows a fragile world of beauty and hostility, where nature finds a way to survive and thrive in frigid conditions.

In Weddell Seal Pups in Antarctica, narrator Sir David Attenborough reveals the challenges newborn seal pups face in one of the harshest environments on Earth. From enduring subzero temperatures and blizzards to entering the icy water for the first time, every decision impacts their survival. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Seven Worlds, One Planet, a series featuring remarkable animal behavior from all seven continents.

In A Weddell Seal Family's Journey, narrator Sir David Attenborough describes how a mother seal and her pup brave the freezing cold near the South Pole. These seals are the only animals that can survive here, staying warm thanks to a thick layer of fat beneath their skin and their special fur. The mother feeds her pup and carefully maintains their diving hole in the water to prevent it from freezing over, ensuring they can get air. And, at just one week old, the pup takes its first swim beneath the ice! This video is excerpted from BBC’s Life, a show that explores the remarkable strategies animals and plants use to ensure their survival.

In Traversing Extreme Winters in Antarctica, narrator Sir David Attenborough explains how two animals, the Weddell seal and the emperor penguin, live in the extreme environment of Antarctica. Watch the aurora borealis in the northern and southern hemispheres. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Blue Planet, a definitive documentary series diving into the mysterious depths of the sea to discover the natural history of the world’s oceans and the rarely seen marine life that reside there.

Bring your students on an icy exploration of the polar ecosystem! The Arctic and Antarctica may look frozen and empty at first glance, but they’re full of life perfectly adapted to the cold. 

✨ Perfect for Grades 3–8, here’s what you need to bring ecosystems to life:

• Iconic BBC Videos: Share the clips on this page to introduce the location, plants, animals, and climate of the polar regions. (Don't miss the narwhals and emperor penguins!) Brought to you by world-class BBC programs like Planet Earth, Frozen Planet, and Seven Worlds, One Planet.
• Free Printable: Use the Polar Brochure Template to help students pull it all together in an ecosystem report with facts they’ve learned (and a little extra research).

It’s everything you need to make ecosystems easy to teach and truly memorable for your students.

• Location of the ecosystem on a world map
• Adjectives that describe the ecosystem
• Three animals that live in the ecosystem
• Three plants that grow in the ecosystem
• The climate of the ecosystem
• What makes the ecosystem important
• Their favorite fun facts

Your students will summarize the most important details in their own words while keeping it clear and easy to understand. As they choose what to include, they’ll sharpen their ability to evaluate and combine information from different sources. Best of all, they’ll show off their creativity and communication skills by designing a brochure that’s as fun to read as it is informative!