1. A teaching sequence from the Extinction unit of upd8 wikid
Polar bears
Activity 3 – Trouble
A teaching sequence from the Extinction unit of upd8 wikid
year 7 upgrade 1

2. Expected Learning:
Explore what is causing polar bears to struggle to survive. 3
Activity 3: Trouble

3. Engage
Elicit
Explore
Explain
Elaborate
Extend
Evaluate
From what you’ve seen so far, can you tell me how polar bears are adapted to arctic conditions? 4
Activity 3: Trouble 3 3

4. But look how skinny this bear is. He’s starving!
Engage
Elicit
Explore
Explain
Elaborate
Extend
Evaluate
But look how skinny this bear is. He’s starving! 5
Activity 3: Trouble 4 4

5. Engage
Elicit
Explore
Explain
Elaborate
Extend
Evaluate
Polar bears eat seals. Seals feed under the ice, but they’re mammals like us, so they need to breathe air. 6
Activity 3: Trouble 5 5

6. Have you spotted the seal yet?
Engage
Elicit
Explore
Explain
Elaborate
Extend
Evaluate
Have you spotted the seal yet? 7
Activity 3: Trouble 6 6

7. They keep breathing holes open like this one.
Engage
Elicit
Explore
Explain
Elaborate
Extend
Evaluate
They keep breathing holes open like this one. 8
Activity 3: Trouble 7 7

8. In March, pups are born in a snow den over one of the holes.
Engage
Elicit
Explore
Explain
Elaborate
Extend
Evaluate
In March, pups are born in a snow den over one of the holes. 9
Activity 3: Trouble 8 8

9. Imagine being a polar bear. How would you catch the seals?
Engage
Elicit
Explore
Explain
Elaborate
Extend
Evaluate
Imagine being a polar bear. How would you catch the seals? 10
Activity 3: Trouble 9 9

10. Which of your adaptations would help you?
Engage
Elicit
Explore
Explain
Elaborate
Extend
Evaluate
SS1
Which of your adaptations would help you?
Do seals have adaptations that help them escape? 11
Activity 3: Trouble 10 10

11. _________________________________________________________________
Picture credits
Picture Slide Credit
_________________________________________________________________
Starving polar bear 5 and 12 Giles Breton
Seal at breathing hole 6, 7 and 10 Andrew Johnson
Breathing hole 8 Nicolas Brown
Seal den Jim and Louise Wholey Agitated polar bear 11 Claude Lecours Camping on ice Kathleen M. Heideman
Sea ice extent 14 and 15 NASA
Polar bear on land 16 Noel Rasmussen
Activity from the Extinction unit © Association for Science Education and Centre for Science Education Teachers and others who download this material may use it freely within their institution. For any other usage consult the upd8 team,  ASE and upd8 are not responsible for any revision that may be made to the material after it has been downloaded.
© Association for Science Education and Centre for Science Education 2010
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