Throwback Thursday- Polar Bear Paw Measurement!

This is my first time participating in a Weekly Linky!  I love learning from all of the other fantastic bloggers out there in "Blog Land", so I thought I would join in on the fun!  This Linky party is hosted by Cara at The First Grade Parade.  The theme is "Throwback Thursday".  I have learned so much from all of the fantastic posts!  Pop up on over to Cara's site to read all of the fantastic ideas for yourself. :)

Below is my Throwback post from January 24, 2013. My students love learning about Arctic animals....particularly POLAR BEARS!!  :)  I used this idea in both 1st and 3rd grade.  In 1st grade, I used this idea primarily as an estimation and measurement activity.  In 3rd grade, I added on the measurement conversion component.  The second part of this post is a fun little science experiment on blubber!!  :)  Enjoy!! Have a wonderful afternoon!!


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Polar Bears and Measurement Conversions!

BRRRRR!!!! It is chilly outside here in Indiana!!  The snow outside our classroom window is the perfect backdrop to learn more about polar animals. Below is a fun activity to teach students about polar bears, measurement, and measurement conversions all at the same time!!  We talked about how large a polar bear's paw is--18"x 12"!!!  Each student made a polar bear paw drawn to scale  After looking at our polar bear paws, we estimated the distance to different places in our building.  After we measured the exact distance {by walking our polar bear paws down the hallway! :)}, we could make measurement conversions.  Each polar bear is a half yard in length.  This made it easy to convert "polar bear paws" to yards, feet, and inches.  The students did a great job!!

We confirmed that two polar bear paws measure approximately one yard.

Measuring the distance to the office from our classroom.

                                          

                                              Recording our Measurement  Conversions


                                                       

After our measurement conversions, we also took a closer look at how blubber keeps polar animals warm! This is a simple, yet effective way to show students how blubber keeps animals warm in cold climates.  The first dish is empty.  The second dish is filled with cotton balls and 1/2 cup of vegetable oil.  We placed both cups in the freezer for 20 minutes.  After we took the cups out, the cup filled with cotton balls was almost 30

degrees warmer!! Amazing!!  We talked about how the cotton balls act like blubber to lock in warm air!  

Polar Bear Fact Craft!

Polar Bear Mosaics!

We have had so much fun learning about these amazing animals!! Click below to purchase more activities about polar bears and other arctic animals.   

Click Here to Purchase!! 

Click Here to Purchase!