Citizen science provides an opportunity for students to capture data both locally and globally while supporting the real-time work of scientists seeking to understand natural events. In this article, the authors present a project-based approach that explores climate at home and abroad to help develop elementary students' local-to-global…

In the U.S. Antarctic Program, NSF-funded scientists--most from universities--perform basic research in geosciences and other disciplines at research stations or field camps throughout the continent and the Southern Ocean. Scholars in the humanities, as well as support specialists from various fields, work closely together with the scientists.…

The Parallel Curriculum Model (PCM) lends itself to considering curriculum development from different angles. It begins with a solid Core Curriculum and can then be extended through the Curriculum of Connections, Practice, and Identity. This article showcases a way of thinking about the creation of a PCM unit by providing examples from an…

Australian company Antarctica Flights runs summer sightseeing trips out of Australian capital cities to tour the Antarctic coast. The Laby Foundation of the University of Melbourne, through its "Classroom Antarctica" program, sponsored Kent Street High School science teacher, Ms Suzy Urbaniak and 18 of her students to take the trip, to…

When one thinks of the amazing creatures of Antarctica, an insect probably does not come to mind. But this unlikely animal, and a scientific expedition to Antarctica, was the foundation for a learning event that created a community of learners spanning kindergarten through sixth grade and extended beyond the classroom. Miami University's Antarctic…

Climate change is complex, requiring critical thinking on both local and global scales. Its effects vary dramatically around the world and require new strategies to help students grasp its complexity, scale, and interrelatedness. This article describes a project to help biology students think critically about climate change from a global…

There are lots of exciting ways for children to learn science. Going on a journey is one of them. However, when going to distant places is not possible, a virtual journey may be the next best option. Ricky, one of the authors' puppets, helps children to make virtual journeys, and this can create an exciting context for them to raise questions and…

By studying Antarctica via satellite and through ground-truthing research, we can learn where the ice is melting and why. The Landsat Image Mosaic of Antarctica (LIMA), a new and cutting-edge way for scientists, researchers, educators, students, and the public to look at Antarctica, supports this research and allows for unprecedented views of our…

The authors introduced polar science in a fourth-grade classroom by means of 3 hands-on activities that addressed (1) the melting of glaciers and ice, (2) the differences between the North and the South Pole, and (3) the geography and landforms of Antarctica. An assessment 4 months after the original activity showed that students remembered the…

The great ice sheets in Antarctica and Greenland are vast deposits of frozen freshwater that contain enough to raise sea level by approximately 70 m if they were to completely melt. Because of the potentially catastrophic impact that ice sheets can have, it is important that we understand how ice sheets have responded to past climate changes and…

When ice sheets melt, and reduce the load on the surface of the Earth, the land areas beneath them bounce back up. New, accurate observations are needed to investigate this uplift and its implications effectively. This article provides a topical starting point for investigating some applications of physics applied to the polar regions of the…

The National Science Foundation-funded Arctic Climate Modeling Program (ACMP) provides "curriculum resource-based professional development" materials that combine current science information with practical classroom instruction embedded with "best practice" techniques for teaching science to diverse students. The Sea Ice Board…

In this article, the authors describe the mechanics of They're M-e-e-elting!, an activity wherein middle school students can simulate glacial retreat in Antarctica. They're M-e-e-elting! allows students to melt glaciers, change the water level and salinity of the Southern Ocean, and examine alterations to the Antarctic food web--all without…

Sea ice in the polar regions plays a key role in both regulating global climate and maintaining marine ecosystems. The international Sea Ice Physics and Ecosystem eXperiment (SIPEX) explored the sea ice zone around Antarctica in September and October 2007, investigating relationships between the physical sea ice environment and the structure of…

In 2006, a unique scenario transported eighth-grade Earth science students from the classroom into the cold, dry, pristine surroundings of Antarctica. The mission was to expose the students to hands-on science using satellite telephones, Contact 3.0 software, and some very creative improvisation. In addition, a detailed, well-illustrated blog…