Let's Do Science
School Programmes

The Canadian Museum of Nature has developed three school programmes related to climate change. Each programme has a downloadable presentation (PowerPoint) and additional information (Acrobat).

Digging for Diatoms

Grades: 7 to 9

Curriculum links: Science; classification, ecology.

• Describe interactions between biotic and abiotic factors in an ecosystem.
• Analyze factors that affect productivity and species distribution in marine and freshwater environments.
• Describe interactions and explain dynamic equilibrium within ecological systems.
• Appreciate the role and contribution of science and technology in our understanding of the world

Students are introduced to the wonderful single-celled world of diatoms and what they can tell us about climates of the past. They will have the opportunity to examine diatoms in the context of current research conducted in the Canadian Arctic while using their newfound investigative skills to unravel the climates of the last 7,000 years!

Download:

• Digging for Diatoms - Presentation (2.8 Mb in PowerPoint format).
• Digging for Diatoms - A How-To Guide for Educators (71 Kb in Acrobat PDF format).

Increase Your Albedo!

Grades: 7 to 12

Curriculum links: Science & Geography; physics, ecology, political geography

• Explain patterns of change and their effects on Earth.
• Describe factors that affect glaciers and polar icecaps, and describe their consequent effects on the environment.
• Describe how various surfaces absorb radiant heat.
• Describe the interactions of the ocean currents, winds, and regional climates.
• Describe interactions of components of the hydrosphere, including the cryosphere.

Why does my white t-shirt keep me cool in the summer? Students learn about albedo while discovering the importance of arctic sea ice as an agent of planetary climate regulation. Real-time clues from a Canadian research icebreaker will shed light on the case of vanishing sea ice and the fate of polar bears, Northern communities and the fabled Northwest Passage...

Download:

• Increase Your Albedo! - Presentation (3 Mb in PowerPoint format).
• Increase Your Albedo! - A How-To Guide for Educators (84 Kb in Acrobat PDF format).

You must have Adobe Reader (version 5 or greater) in order to access the PDF-format files. You can download this software from the Adobe Web site.