Antarctica: a WebQuest

Why is Antarctica important?  Why do we need to protect it?

Introduction

Task 1 - Climate

Task 2 - Wildlife

Task 3 - Human Activities

Task 4 - The Future

Conclusion

Evaluation

Introduction

Gerlache Strait, Antarctica

Antarctica is the world's most southernmost continent.  It is a unique continent of the world.  It is covered by a thick layer of ice (up to 4700 metres deep in place) and snow.

It is the coldest, driest, windiest, and iciest place in the world, making it the harshest environment on earth for life to exist.

There is little life on land in Antarctica.  However, the ocean surrounding Antarctica is the home of many animals, including penguins, seals and whales.  The food web of the Southern Ocean is very fragile because it relies on krill, a tiny crustacean.

You have been chosen to take part in an expedition to Antarctica to discover why the environment of Antarctica is important and why it is important to protect it from further human interaction.

You will have four tasks to hand into your teacher.

Individual tasks:-

Task 1 - a brochure on the dangers of the Climate in Antarctica and clothing required expeditioners.

Task 2 - a "flip card" describing an animal of Antarctica. 

Group tasks:-

Task 3 - completing a table on human activities and their effect in Antarctica

Task 4 - the drawing up of a set of rules to protect Antarctica to be given to visitors.

You will need to:

1. explore and research information about the climate, the wildlife and human activities in Antarctica;
2. use the power of the Internet to research the information about Antarctica;
3. visit the school library or public library to gather books and resources about Antarctica;
4. explore software that has information about Antarctica, eg., World Book;
5. read some stories about Antarctica, eg. Hooper, Meredith, 1998. Tom's Rabbit, a true story from Scott's last voyage. Koala Books, Mascot.  Jenkins, Martin,1999. The Emperor's Egg. Walker Books, London.
6. keep a research log to record all the information you gather;
7. and most of all enjoy the tasks and activities.

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This WebQuest has been designed by Wendy Kemp for the subject 81529 Supervised Project 1 at the University of Southern Queensland.
For problems or questions regarding this web contact wkemp@tig.com.au
Last updated: May 10, 2001.