Cold places: what is it like at the North and South Poles?
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Why this why now
This unit develops pupils’ understanding of extreme environments by applying their knowledge of weather, seasonal change and global geography. Its placement allows for direct comparison of polar regions and builds the foundation for future learning about climate, habitats and adaptation.
Prior knowledge requirements
- Pupils should have experience of measuring temperature, know that the sun’s energy heats Earth and that there are seasonal variations.
- Know that Earth orbits the sun once a year.
- Pupils should have had experience of noticing, measuring, and talking about weather features including temperature, rainfall, snow and ice.
Threads
Why this why now
This unit develops pupils’ understanding of extreme environments by applying their knowledge of weather, seasonal change and global geography. Its placement allows for direct comparison of polar regions and builds the foundation for future learning about climate, habitats and adaptation.
Prior knowledge requirements
- Pupils should have experience of measuring temperature, know that the sun’s energy heats Earth and that there are seasonal variations.
- Know that Earth orbits the sun once a year.
- Pupils should have had experience of noticing, measuring, and talking about weather features including temperature, rainfall, snow and ice.
Cold places: what is it like at the North and South Poles?
This unit explores the North and South Poles through their locations, climates, landscapes, wildlife and ways of life. Pupils learn to compare the Arctic and Antarctic using maps, images and geographical vocabulary to describe features of cold environments.
8 lessons in unit
slide decks, worksheet PDFs, quizzes and lesson overviews. You can select individual lessons from the Cold places: what is it like at the North and South Poles? unit and download the resources you need, or download the entire unit now. See every unit listed in our primary geography curriculum and discover more of our teaching resources for primary geography programmes.