In April, 2008, Susan Howard, a Research Associate at ESR, gave a presentation on “The Polar Oceans” to a multi-grade K-2 class at Margaret Mead Elementary in Sammamish, WA. During the 2007-2008 school year, the class focused on several examples of interdependence between people and nature. Susan’s presentation was part of their end-of-study celebration for the ocean unit, in which they learned how sea life, the ocean waters, and people are dependent on each other. Other units studied interdependence in the rain forest, community, and weather. The children are required to do multiple projects with regards to their topic, including a home project and research on a particular question to be presented to the class. They also do multiple field trips to enhance their knowledge.

Susan spoke with the class about her experiences as a polar oceanographer and the importance of the polar oceans. Her presentation, which included hands-on experiments, focused primarily on ice, which makes the polar oceans unique. She showed them pictures of the different types of ice such as sea ice (grease, pancake ice, and pack ice), icebergs, and ice shelves. Susan explained how important sea ice was to our planet, as a habitat for animals and as a component of global climate and ocean circulation. The presentation included information about how polar oceanographers work from ships (icebreakers), ice camps, and polar research stations, as well as what people working in the polar regions wear, and what it is like to live on a ship. The students asked Susan a lot of great questions regarding her work and the oceans.

Following the presentation, the students moved around several hands-on stations where they could try on polar clothing, examine icebergs in a tub of water, test their height against Emperor penguins, and perform experiments explaining how sea ice reflects a lot more of the sunlight than the ocean, and how water becomes denser and sinks as it gets colder and saltier.