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Polar science

Pole of Cold - What does winter mean to you?

  • Key Stage Four,
  • Module,
  • Landscape systems,
  • Environmental interactions and management
  • Overview
  • Lesson one
  • Lesson two
  • Lesson three

“Winter is an intriguing phenomenon and this expedition is inspired by a fascination with day-to-day life in sub-zero temperatures. By exchanging winter wisdom between communities, we hope to provide a fresh look at how we manage our lifestyles during the most severe weather.”   Team manager Felicity Aston

Key words

Seasons, Winter, Arctic, Continentality, Permafrost, Circum-Polar, Culture, Sami, Russia, Extreme, Climate, Siberia

Summary

The expedition (2013-14) was a journey to chase the onset of winter across Europe and Siberia as far as the Pole of Cold, the coldest place in the northern hemisphere: a place called Oymyakon in Russia.The expedition focussed on winter as a geographical concept by exploring the social, cultural and physical implications of the season on the communities they met. Felicity Aston, the project leader said “While enduring testing cold-weather conditions ourselves, we will combine adventure, geography and art to share stories of day-to-day life in extreme climates in order that others might draw inspiration from them to look again at winter and their own lifestyles during the coldest months. It is a fascination for the stories of lives lived in extreme conditions, the peculiarities of nature at subzero temperatures and the challenge of travel that motivates us”.

You might also be interested in the following websites:

Discovering Antarctica

Discovering the Arctic

Key topics and themes

  • How communities and individuals cope with extremely low temperatures

  • How plants and animals are affected by sub-zero temperatures

  • The reasons why certain places are so cold

  • The main characteristics of the landscape in Siberia, and how they are changing

  • Impact of the cold on travel through Siberia

Key Questions

How cold is cold? – when and where are places coldest?

What is life like in the freezer? – how does cold affect people?

Why is Oymyakon the ‘Pole of Cold’? – why do some places get so cold?

About the author

Alan Parkinson CGeog (Teacher) worked for the Geographical Association as Secondary Curriculum Development Leader between 2008 and 2011, after teaching for twenty years in Norfolk. He is a prolific blogger, and received the Ordnance Survey Award for 'excellence in secondary geography teaching' from RGS-IBG in 2008, and the Tivy Education Medal from the RSGS in 2013. He is currently a freelance author and geographer, and also teaches Geography at King’s Ely school.

The researchers

Pole of Cold Team

The Pole of Cold team consists of Felicity Aston, Gisli Jonsson and Manu Palomeque. The Pole of Cold Expedition was funded by the Land Rover / RGS-IBG ‘Go Beyond’ Bursary, an annual award given to an expedition that pushes boundaries and encourages a greater interest in Geography.

This resource was awarded Overall Winner in the Scottish Association of Geography Teachers Awards 2014 (Non Book Category)

'From the field' Awards - Inspiring fieldwork supported by RGS-IBG

Delivered in collaboration with The Goldsmiths' Company, these awards enable geography teachers to work alongside practioners at the cutting edge of geographical research to develop educational resources for the classroom.

Downloads

  • Polar Science GCSE Specification (.doc)
  • Polar Science GCSE Specification (.pdf)
  • Polar Science KS3 Specification Links (.doc)
  • Polar Science KS3 Specification Links (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Additional Links (.doc)
  • Polar Science Additional Links (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Extension Task: Stories from the Road (.doc)
  • Polar Science Extension Task: Stories from the Road (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Ideas about teaching Russia at KS3 (.doc)
  • Polar Science Ideas about teaching Russia at KS3 (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Lesson 1 Coldest Stories (.doc)
  • Polar Science Lesson 1 Coldest Stories (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Lesson 1 Coldest Stories Discussion Prompt (.doc)
  • Polar Science Lesson 1 Coldest Stories Discussion Prompt (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Lesson 1 World Map (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Lesson 1 Continuum of Cold Presentation (.ppt)
  • Polar Science Lesson 1 Cold Card Sort (.doc)
  • Polar Science Lesson 1 Cold Card Sort (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Lesson 1 The Cold Factor (.doc)
  • Polar Science Lesson 1 The Cold Factor (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Lesson 1 Why are places cold? (.doc)
  • Polar Science Lesson 1 Why are places cold? (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Lesson 2 5W's Powerpoint (.ppt)
  • Polar Science Lesson 2 Eurasia Map (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Lesson 2 Pole of Cold Route Spreadsheet (.xls)
  • Polar Science Lesson 2 Land Rover Image (.jpg)
  • Polar Science Lesson 2 Garage Report (.doc)
  • Polar Science Lesson 2 Garage Report (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Lesson 2 How can the cold effect everyday life? (.doc)
  • Polar Science Lesson 2 How can the cold effect everyday life? (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Lesson 2 Polar App Homework (.ppt)
  • Polar Science Lesson 2 App Store Sheet (.doc)
  • Polar Science Lesson 2 App Store Sheet (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Lesson 3 Oymyakon Interview (.doc)
  • Polar Science Lesson 3 Oymyakon Interview (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Lesson 3 Oymyakon Explanation (.doc)
  • Polar Science Lesson 3 Oymyakon Explanation (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Lesson 3 Weatherspark 1 Minute Interview (.doc)
  • Polar Science Lesson 3 Weatherspark 1 Minute Interview (.pdf)
  • Polar Science Lesson 3 Oymyakon Climate Data (.xls)
  • Download all

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