Title: Got Blubber?

Subject: How arctic animals keep warm

Grade/Level:

Time: 20 minutes

Introduction & Problem Statement: Students have been learning about the scientific method recently.
In order to help students practice each step we have created a lesson where students will need to complete
a small amount of research (handout), make a hypothesis and then test it. Because it is winter time, we
have decided to focus our study around polar animals. More specifically how they are able to survive in
such cold temperatures. To help introduce todays topic we will read the childrens book titled: Polar
Bear Night, by Lauren Thompson.
Essential Question: How can animals survive in the extreme temperature of the Arctic and Antarctic
regions?
Objectives and Learning Results:
3-LS3-2.
Use evidence to support the explanation that traits can be influenced by the
environment.
I can...identify why animals are able to keep warm in the arctic.

Safety, Management and Diversity: All materials will be placed on the students tables ready to go
when they enter the room. There will be five bowls of ice water, five bags already with shortening in
them, and stop watches placed on the table. There is an issue of possible water splashing but the
expectations will be put in place that the water stays in the bowls. There will be rolls of paper towels at
each table to help facilitate clean up post-experiment and during the experiment should there be any
accidental spills. Groups will be pre-assigned so there are no possible behavior issues. Groups will be
separated based on skill level, with multiple skill levels in each group. Extra bags will be on hand for
those who would prefer to have their own bag for putting it in the bag with shortening. Any students with
reading disabilities can have any item read to them. Mainly the blubber article.

Materials:
10 gallon sized Ziploc baggies
2 bags of ice
5 large containers
20 blubber information sheets
Large container of Crisco shortening
Polar Bear Night book
5 stop watches
20 scientific method worksheets
Paper towels

Procedure:
(3 min) Introduce todays topic: how arctic animals keep warm. Hand all students the scientific method
worksheet and explain to them that we will be doing an experiment about the days topic. Have students
fill in step number one of the worksheet.
(2 min) Read Polar Bear Night to the students
(4 min) Hand out the blubber article to all students and have them read through it individually. When
students are finished they are welcome to discuss the article with the members of their group in order to
answer the question on step number 2.
(2 min) Students will be told about the brief experiment we will do today. We are going to use Crisco
shortening as our blubber to see if it will keep our hand warm from the ice bath. Have students fill out
step number three of their worksheet indicating their hypothesis. (All experiment materials will be set-up
in advance)
(6 min) Students will use a stopwatch to time how long their other group members are able to keep their
hands submerged in the ice bath. (The blubber hand and the bare hand).
(3 min) After completing the experiment students will need to fill out steps five and six of their scientific
method worksheets. We will collect all finished materials as students finish.

Data and Analysis:

Student Name

Bare Hand Time

Blubber Hand Time

Time Difference

1.
2.
3.
4.

Conclusion: It is extremely cold in the Arctic and Antarctic. However, this does not stop animals from
living there. What is one thing that animals have to help them survive? How do I know this will help them
survive?
Assessment: The formal assessment will be the completed scientific method worksheet. We will be
looking that students can identify that blubber (insulation) helps keep animals warm in cold climates.
They need to be able to state that it is because they can keep their hands in the water longer because the
blubber (insulation) helps to keep body heat in. Informal assessment can be done by just walking around
the room and having conversations with students and talking to them about what they are experiencing
during this experiment.
Reflection: I thought this lesson went pretty well although I found it difficult to treat my colleagues as if
they were 3rd graders. In looking back I think I would have liked to have a longer introduction to arctic
animals and this experiment. One of the suggestions I received following the lesson was that not all 3rd

graders might know the types of arctic animals there are and that perhaps it would be best to spend time
discussing the various types and the similarities to one another. While the students completed the
experiment they seemed to be enjoying themselves. One thing I would change in the future would be to
have smaller group sizes. I also would have liked people to go one at a time when timing how long they
can keep their hand in the ice water, especially if this were done with actual 3rd graders. This is a similar
lesson to one Ive done with preschoolers and it is a hit every time! In fact one of my classmates has
asked for the lesson plan so she can do this with her second grade students.

Blubber Article

Blubber is a thick layer of fat, directly under the skin of all marine mammals.
Blubber covers the entire body of animals such as seals, whales, and walruses
except for their fins, flippers, and flukes.
Blubber is an important part of a marine mammal's anatomy. It stores energy,
insulates heat, and increases buoyancy.
Storing Energy
Energy is stored in the thick, oily layer of blubber. The energy stored in blubber
includes both proteins (mostly collagen) and fats (mostly lipids). The ability of
blubber to use these stored nutrients means marine mammals are not forced to
search for food for long periods of time. Nursing mothers, for instance, build up
thick stores of blubber before giving birth. In addition to feeding offspring,
mothers cannot regularly search for food. They rely on the energy stored in their
blubber.
Insulation
Blubber also insulates marine mammals, or helps keep them warm in icy waters.
This insulation is necessary.Mammals are warm-blooded, meaning their body
temperature stays about the same no matter what the temperature outside is.
Keeping a warm body temperature in cold water requires more energy than
keeping a warm body temperature in warm water. Some marine mammals, such as
sea otters, have a thick fur coat, as well as blubber, to insulate them.
To insulate the marine mammal, blood vessels in blubber constrict, or get smaller,
in cold water. Constricted blood vessels reduce the flow of blood, thus reducing the
energy required to heat the body. This conserves heat.

Scientific Method

Name: ____________________________________
1) Ask a Question:
__________________________________________________________
2) Do Background Research:
Answer to the question: _________________________________

3) Come up with a Hypothesis (Educated Guess!):

I can keep my bare hand in the water for ___________________

I can keep my blubber hand in the water for ________________________

4) Test your Hypothesis in an Experiment

Record your results here:

Bare Hand:

Blubber hand:

5) Analyze Your Data and Draw a Conclusion:

Was your hypothesis right?

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

What is your conclusion?

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

6) Communicate Your Results

**Talk with other group members and discuss your results