Ice e-mystery going to Olso! June 2010

Yes folks, the Ice e-mystery project is being presented twice at the International Polar Year Science Conference in Oslo in June 2010. Sheryl Sotelo from McNeil Conyon School in Alaska and Anne Briggs from Margate Primary School in Tasmania are presenting one session and Andy Baird from the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery is presenting another. Two perspectives: one from the classroom and one from the project coordination side. The conference has a sister function; a Polar Teachers conference preceding it, so the whole event should be a great chance to talk to educators and scientists about polar communicationa and education in general. Keep you posted!

Happy Christmas and New year 2009!

The stories have unfolded and some will now be turned into e-books. Lots of the polar learning has been ‘behind the scenes’ - away from this website. Teachers have sent in lots of images about their class projects to the project coordinator, done performances around the Ice e-mystery project in school assemblies and generally we have only  the tip of the iceberg (couldn’t resist) of all that’s been achieved represented here on the website. A little sample of some of the classroom and museum work follows.  Stay tuned to this site for the final products early in the new year.

10th December 2008

The latest is an Ice e-mystery teacher’s reflections:

“I must admit to being amazed at the effect of this project on the children’s writing.  We are seeing perseverance, sustained enthusiasm and profound skill improvement in many of the students.  Not all of their work is making it to the website but even the younger children are making huge improvements.” Imogen Hunt, Peregrine School Principal, Tasmania.

STOP PRESS 8th December 2009

Museum of the Air? The Tasmanian Musem and Art Gallery flew to Cape Barren Island in the Bass Strait between mainland Australia and Tasmania on the weekend. Staff took specimen and conducted activities for the Ice e-mystery students from Cape Barren Primary school. Who said Penguins couldn’t fly! (You will have to read the Group 1 story to understand that reference!)

TMAG staff Emma Abbott and Kate Morris with a flying King Penguin

TMAG Educator Emma Abbott with students from Cape Barren Primary School

September 2008

Well the site is up - be interesting to find out how easy everyone finds entering text and images. Be honest in your comments and we may be able to keep things improving. Also if there are other images/ text for your schools then send it on. cheers Andy B.

So a few comments coming in via email, if you think they are of interest to everyone please  enter them here. One thing to note: A Tassie school did such a good job with the frame up using the model egg, with the students convinced it was a real egg and getting totally into the research of Apsley Cherry-Garrard  that eventually I had to write a letter to the students explaining how it was a model egg (I didn’t use the word ‘fake’!) to get the teachers off the hook! Hope everyone has that problem!