Adventure to Alaska

What would it be like to take a trip to Alaska in the coldest, darkest months? Use your imagination and research skills to create a virtual tour of the "Land of the Midnight Sun."

• 1.

  Alaska is the largest state in the United States, about 2.3 times the size of Texas and about one-fifth the size of all of the contiguous 48 states. As the northernmost state, Alaska boasts great views of the Northern Lights, more active glaciers than the rest of the inhabited world, 29 volcanoes, 33,000 miles of coastline, and Mount Denali, the tallest mountain in North America.

• 2.

  Gather more information about Alaska to help you plan an imaginary expedition there. Obtain travel information and maps. Choose your mode of transportation—by rail, river, sea, land, or even dogsled. Decide where you want to go, what you want to do, who you will meet, and what you want to see! Use your imagination to design 2-D and 3-D items to represent your chosen Alaska attractions. These are just a few ideas to get you started.

• 3.

  To create a sounding whale or a glacier, for example, use Crayola Air-Dry Clay to sculpt them. A paper plate is a convenient, clean, and dry work surface. Use craft sticks and other modeling tools to make realistic replicas. Air-dry the sculptures for at least 3 days.

• 4.

  Mount the whale tail on folded, recycled cardboard with Crayola School Glue. Sketch the rest of the submerged whale on the horizontal section of cardboard with a Crayola Erasable Colored Pencil. Just erase until you’re satisfied with the drawing.

• 5.

  Cover your art area with newspaper. Paint the entire whale, including its 3-D tail, with Crayola Premier™ Tempera. Paint the sea and glacier backdrop. Add light-reflective details to the wet or dry paint by brushing and dabbing areas with Crayola Pearl It

• 6.

  Present details of your Adventure to Alaska to classmates, other students, or families at an open house.

Benefits

• Students research the U.S. state of Alaska and plan a virtual tour of the state’s science and social studies features.
• Children develop fine-motor skills and art techniques working with clay and paint.
• Students sculpt and paint a replica of a whale, glacier, or other highlights of Alaska using modeling techniques and problem-solving skills.

Adaptations

• Focus on Alaska’s diverse wildlife by creating a virtual Arctic animal preserve. Locate the geographic region of arctic Alaska. Research animals native to that area. Create displays demonstrating how each animal’s body features enable it to survive the co
• Explore Alaska’s indigenous and immigrant cultures. Obtain artifacts such as masks, carvings, and replicas of totems. Learn about the long history of Alaska’s native peoples.
• Invite each classmate to submit one clue for an Alaska scavenger hunt. Each clue should lead you to a specific display to find information that answers the clue. Compile all of the clues for a class-wide activity to explore everyone else’s presentations.
• Assessment: Before starting this activity, create a rubric of what an excellent, good, acceptable, and unacceptable Adventure to Alaska display would look like. Work together with students to identify which components must appear in every display. Brainstorm ideas that can turn an acceptable display into an excellent one. Use the rubric to assess each child’s work. Informal interviews to gain insight into student learning.