Dive into the wonders of Antarctica with this multi-grade lesson collection! Tailored for K–2, 3–5, 6–8, and 9–12, each unit includes engaging activities, thought-provoking discussions, and hands-on projects to uncover the mysteries of the frozen continent. Enhance your teaching with stunning BBC video clips showcasing Antarctic wildlife, research stations, and breathtaking icy landscapes. Printable resources like animal fact sheets, scientist journal templates, and conservation challenges bring the learning to life for your students. Perfect for science, geography, and environmental lessons!
Embark on an Antarctic research expedition with your students! Write a journal entry from the perspective of a research scientist about their experience in Antarctica.
In The Global Race to Discover New Worlds, learn how the Kepler telescope, launched in 2009, revolutionized the search for exoplanets by detecting a “wink” of light when a planet passes in front of its star. Despite the challenges of detecting distant planets, scientists work together, competing to be the first to discover intelligent life on another planet.
Take your students on a research journey to Antarctica! Explore what is known about the animal, identify gaps in scientific knowledge, and suggest future research areas.
The article "How Scientists From Around the World Helped Shape Modern Science" from BBC's HistoryExtra explains how science in the 16th to 18th Centuries wasn't only shaped by famous Europeans like Copernicus or Newton. Thinkers from Asia, Africa, and the Americas also made important contributions.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is months into a serious Ebola outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo species of the virus. Its rapid spread has prompted health officials to raise the risk assessment to "very high" nationally, "high" regionally, and "low" globally. The Bundibugyo species has a case fatality rate of about one in three people, and there's currently no approved vaccine for this type of Ebola. Scientists at the University of Oxford are racing to develop one, using a strategy that may sound familiar.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, scientists were able to develop vaccines quickly by using a harmless virus to deliver genetic material from the coronavirus. It may sound like the world’s worst Amazon delivery, but that material acts as instructions to teach the immune system what to recognize, so it can fight the real virus if a person is exposed later. It’s like showing your immune system a "wanted poster" of a criminal, and giving your body time to figure out how to respond if faced with the actual criminal.
Now, scientists are using the same strategy for Ebola: a harmless virus delivers genetic instructions from the Bundibugyo Ebola virus, helping the immune system prepare without causing the disease itself. Health officials hope the outbreak can be contained without a vaccine, but because Ebola can spread quickly and cause severe illness, having a vaccine ready would provide another powerful tool to help stop it — a definite case of "better safe than sorry."
In How Earth's Extreme Environments Are Helping Scientists Search for Habitable Worlds, astrobiologist Louisa Preston explores how life in extreme environments on Earth can provide clues for finding life on Mars. Scientists believe that if life can survive in Earth’s harshest conditions, similar life could exist on Mars. This exploration not only advances our search for life on Mars but also helps us better understand the origins of life on Earth and may lead to future innovations in space exploration.
The article "A Cougar-Like Predator Is Attacking Lemurs in Madagascar — Both Are in Jeopardy and Scientists Don't Know What to Do" from BBC's Discover Wildlife explains how researchers in Madagascar discovered that the fossa, a vulnerable predator, is targeting diademed sifaka lemurs, which are critically endangered. Both species urgently need protection, making the situation a complex issue for conservationists.
In this lesson, your students will step into the shoes of Antarctic scientists! They'll dive into the fascinating world of Antarctic research stations and unique wildlife with video clips from BBC’s Seven Worlds, One Planet and Frozen Planet. After exploring the videos and researching more about this frozen continent, your students will write a creative journal entry from the perspective of a research scientist sharing their experiences in Antarctica. You’ll wrap up the lesson with a meaningful class discussion about why studying Antarctica matters and how the discoveries made there could shape our world.
Take your students on a research journey to Antarctica! In this lesson, students will become Antarctic scientists as they explore the continent’s unique wildlife using video clips from BBC’s Seven Worlds, One Planet and Frozen Planet. Students will watch the videos, then research an Antarctic animal of their choice. They will explore what is known about the animal, identify gaps in scientific knowledge, and suggest future research areas. Finally, students will present their findings in a class display to inspire others to learn more about this amazing environment!
In Discoveries at the South Pole, narrator Sir David Attenborough describes how scientists on Antarctica work to learn about the atmosphere, how volcanoes influence the air we breathe, about cosmic rays that are just reaching Earth, and what the interior of Antarctica is made of. 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.
Dive into the wonders of Antarctica with this multi-grade lesson collection! Tailored for K–2, 3–5, 6–8, and 9–12, each unit includes engaging activities, thought-provoking discussions, and hands-on projects to uncover the mysteries of the frozen continent. Enhance your teaching with stunning BBC video clips showcasing Antarctic wildlife, research stations, and breathtaking icy landscapes. Printable resources like animal fact sheets, scientist journal templates, and conservation challenges bring the learning to life for your students. Perfect for science, geography, and environmental lessons!
Embark on an Antarctic research expedition with your students! Write a journal entry from the perspective of a research scientist about their experience in Antarctica.
In The Global Race to Discover New Worlds, learn how the Kepler telescope, launched in 2009, revolutionized the search for exoplanets by detecting a “wink” of light when a planet passes in front of its star. Despite the challenges of detecting distant planets, scientists work together, competing to be the first to discover intelligent life on another planet.
Take your students on a research journey to Antarctica! Explore what is known about the animal, identify gaps in scientific knowledge, and suggest future research areas.
The article "How Scientists From Around the World Helped Shape Modern Science" from BBC's HistoryExtra explains how science in the 16th to 18th Centuries wasn't only shaped by famous Europeans like Copernicus or Newton. Thinkers from Asia, Africa, and the Americas also made important contributions.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is months into a serious Ebola outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo species of the virus. Its rapid spread has prompted health officials to raise the risk assessment to "very high" nationally, "high" regionally, and "low" globally. The Bundibugyo species has a case fatality rate of about one in three people, and there's currently no approved vaccine for this type of Ebola. Scientists at the University of Oxford are racing to develop one, using a strategy that may sound familiar.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, scientists were able to develop vaccines quickly by using a harmless virus to deliver genetic material from the coronavirus. It may sound like the world’s worst Amazon delivery, but that material acts as instructions to teach the immune system what to recognize, so it can fight the real virus if a person is exposed later. It’s like showing your immune system a "wanted poster" of a criminal, and giving your body time to figure out how to respond if faced with the actual criminal.
Now, scientists are using the same strategy for Ebola: a harmless virus delivers genetic instructions from the Bundibugyo Ebola virus, helping the immune system prepare without causing the disease itself. Health officials hope the outbreak can be contained without a vaccine, but because Ebola can spread quickly and cause severe illness, having a vaccine ready would provide another powerful tool to help stop it — a definite case of "better safe than sorry."
In How Earth's Extreme Environments Are Helping Scientists Search for Habitable Worlds, astrobiologist Louisa Preston explores how life in extreme environments on Earth can provide clues for finding life on Mars. Scientists believe that if life can survive in Earth’s harshest conditions, similar life could exist on Mars. This exploration not only advances our search for life on Mars but also helps us better understand the origins of life on Earth and may lead to future innovations in space exploration.
The article "A Cougar-Like Predator Is Attacking Lemurs in Madagascar — Both Are in Jeopardy and Scientists Don't Know What to Do" from BBC's Discover Wildlife explains how researchers in Madagascar discovered that the fossa, a vulnerable predator, is targeting diademed sifaka lemurs, which are critically endangered. Both species urgently need protection, making the situation a complex issue for conservationists.
In this lesson, your students will step into the shoes of Antarctic scientists! They'll dive into the fascinating world of Antarctic research stations and unique wildlife with video clips from BBC’s Seven Worlds, One Planet and Frozen Planet. After exploring the videos and researching more about this frozen continent, your students will write a creative journal entry from the perspective of a research scientist sharing their experiences in Antarctica. You’ll wrap up the lesson with a meaningful class discussion about why studying Antarctica matters and how the discoveries made there could shape our world.
Take your students on a research journey to Antarctica! In this lesson, students will become Antarctic scientists as they explore the continent’s unique wildlife using video clips from BBC’s Seven Worlds, One Planet and Frozen Planet. Students will watch the videos, then research an Antarctic animal of their choice. They will explore what is known about the animal, identify gaps in scientific knowledge, and suggest future research areas. Finally, students will present their findings in a class display to inspire others to learn more about this amazing environment!
In Discoveries at the South Pole, narrator Sir David Attenborough describes how scientists on Antarctica work to learn about the atmosphere, how volcanoes influence the air we breathe, about cosmic rays that are just reaching Earth, and what the interior of Antarctica is made of. 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.