Position at 0700 on 12th/13th March Latitude: 61°12’0” S Longitude: 059°44’2” W Course: 177° Speed: 14.2 kts Barometer: 998hpa Air temp: 0° C Sea temp: 8.1° C Wind Speed: W 6 Penguin count: 0 Whale count: 1
It’s Day Two! We’re all up early because the excitement of this trip is keeping us energised! We can hardly believe it, but we’ve already spotted our first whale, and basically… there’s no words to describe these wonders unfolding before us and as always we feel so honoured and privileged to be here on this journey, representing Upschool.co and sponsored by the wonderful team at Aurora Expeditions.
Last night, before we settled in for dinner, we got to meet some of the amazing crew that are on board the Greg Mortimer with us on this trip – and what a lovely, experienced & knowledgeable bunch they are! With luck on our side, we’re hoping for the chance to spend some time with each and every one of them, so we can tap into their expertise, and mine their minds for the nuggets of knowledge to enrich our Upschool lessons.
In the lecture hall, each crew member introduced themselves and spoke a few words on their particular expertise.
Eduardo is the kayak guide and also a biologist.
Anna is on board as assistance.
Eloisa is also a kayak guide and a marine biologist.
Serge is the zodiac master – zodiacs being the little boats we head out on to cruise around to and from shore.
Pete is a kayak guide and also seal whisperer!
Hannah is a naturalist and expert on wildlife and seals.
Pia is a marine biologist.
Ella is a snorkelling guide and environmental scientist.
Staz is a snorkel guide.
Renato is the ship photographer.
Jeff is a historian.
Reba is the onboard expedition manager.
Linda is the expedition medic.
Matt is a kayak guide.
Pat is a marine biologist and oceanographer.
Isabelle is the assistant expedition leader.
Dan is a kayak guide.
John is a marine biologist and zodiac master.
Christian is the expedition leader and ornithologist.
For much of the rest of the 12th and 13th, we familiarised ourselves with the ship and crew members, caught up with some of the staff who we remembered from our previous Arctic expedition, and readied/steadied ourselves for the cruise down the notorious Drake Passage!
Position at 0700 on 11th March Latitude: 56°18’6” S Longitude: 068°24’8” W Course: 130° Speed: 15 kts Barometer: 1002hpa Air temp: 4° C Sea temp: 1° C Wind Speed: NW 6 Penguin count: 0 Whale count: 0
Hello everyone, and welcome to Upschool’s daily journal as we travel through Antarctica to create free inspiring educational programs for children around the world! It’s Day One and we’re already on board and on our way so let me get you up to speed. It’s time to meet the team!
As of last year in July 2022 when we went to the Arctic, this year I’ll be assisting with editing the written materials involved in the production of the educational videos, as well as writing this daily journal of our adventures in Antarctica! For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Tanya Natalie. I own and operate a second-hand bookshop in Hornsby, NSW, Australia and I am also a professional editor, working with local and international writers on their manuscripts, be it fiction, fantasy, biography … or any form of writing, really!
Tanya Natalie
This year, our trip to Antarctica includes a team of FIVE! Apart from myself, we have Graeme Myburgh from Sydney, NSW, Australia – who you might remember also joined us on the Arctic trip last year. Two newbies joining us are Jordan Brun from Ogden, Utah, USA and Matt Iuliano from Melbourne, VIC, Australia. Finally, bringing together the team, we’ve got Upschool’s very own, very inspiring, Gavin McCormack from Sydney, NSW, Australia.
The Frosty Five!
Graeme is back on board with us as our photographer, capturing the vast, pristine beauty of the environment, and integrating his images into the lessons to inspire the children into action. Graeme and Jordan will be working together, using the photos to draw out artistic opportunities and inspiring children to create their own art from references around them. He is most excited “to photograph the plethora of Antarctic penguins that thrive in this icy region, especially the gigantic King Penguin”.
Jordan is our illustrator and visual arts curriculum coordinator, on board to create cross-curricula learning opportunities for the children, blending Visual Arts lessons with core curriculum to help reinforce and encourage academic growth. He’s on loan from the amazing people at Young Art, who promote visual arts education to underserved communities throughout the world, including, most recently, Costa Rica, Afghanistan and Nepal. He sees Antarctica as “an opportunity of a lifetime to be inspired by the wide vistas of this most unique continent”.
Matt is our videographer and he has been in the industry for over ten years, working in everything from documentary, to studio tv, to music videos. Matt will be working closely with Gavin and all of our guest speakers, producing and directing the cinematography to bring the wonders of the Antarctic into the classroom. To Matt, “Antarctica is a filmmaker’s dream, where every shot captures the raw beauty of nature’s unfiltered magnificence. It’s a place where the camera lens brings to life the majesty of icebergs, penguins and whales, and the awe-inspiring vastness of a world untouched by civilisation”.
Gavin, from Upschool, rounds out our team and brings 20+ years of educational training to the effort. He is the ambassador to Montessori Education in Australia, holding conferences around the world on purposeful education. In his spare time, if there is any, he writes children’s books, builds schools in Nepal and India, and occasionally runs a charity marathon or two. Antarctica, to Gavin, is “a place that reminds us of our responsibility to cherish and preserve this fragile planet we call home”.
So, that’s us! The Frosty Five!
I’m writing to you from Ushuaia, Argentina, where we are about to head off on this grand Antarctic adventure involving penguins, whales, leopard seals, elephant seals, and the albatross. If all goes to plan, we’ll be seeing at least one of each – please!
We’re so excited to be here, on behalf of Upschool.co, and to be creating educational programs for children all around the world to access for free – sponsored by the amazing Aurora Expeditions team! Through this Antarctic opportunity, we are hoping to be able to produce four purposeful educational programs;
The Solar System and Beyond. This is an education journey from Earth to deep space.
The Power of One. Through this program, we learn life’s greatest lessons from the natural world of Antarctica.
Young Art USA. In this cross-curriculum program, we use nature as the backdrop for creativity and artistic expression.
Animal Stories. This program involves seeing life through the eyes of the Antarctic animals.
At the moment, we’re on board the ship Greg Mortimer and soon, we’ll be heading towards the Drake Passage. For now, though, it’s time to go meet the crew and do a few essential emergency, health & training drills.
Creating a story is a lot like taking your reader on a train journey through your writing. As you travel further into your tale, take time along the way to describe the setting, the characters, and the important events. We are trying to take your readers on a journey towards your story’s final lesson.
Download the worksheet below to help your students begin brainstorming the important parts of their story! We encourage them to refer to the example for inspiration if needed.
Knowing how to take care of both your emotional and physical well-being is so important!
Unless we take the time to recharge by doing healthy activities that we enjoy, it can be hard to produce our best work or be there for others. We must make sure to take care of ourselves first! Consistently practicing a variety of self-care activities is a great way to generate positive feelings. Maybe you enjoy taking the time each day to read, listen to music, do yoga, or make art. Whatever works for you, try to prioritise doing something each day that makes you happy!
We encourage you to practice healthy self-care habits using the challenge below! For extra fun, try the challenge out with a friend or family member.
Do you and your friends have a great story to tell? What better way than by working together to write a book!
Getting together a group of peers to write a book is an excellent way to practice your team work skills. It is also a great chance to learn how to play different roles while working towards a common goal. Some tasks you might consider assigning to different people are front cover artist, class manager, blurb writer, and more!
Download the resource below to start writing your own book today! Consult the descriptions on the first page to help pick who to assign to each role.
So you have a great idea for a story to tell! What’s next?
In order to set up our story, we must ask ourselves the important ‘W’s!’ Who are the main characters? Where and when does the story take place? What happens?
A great way to conclude is to also think about how the story ends, what the characters feel, and what we want our readers to have learned!
By thinking about the answers to the questions above, you will be set to brainstorm an amazing story in no time! We encourage you to download the resource below and get to writing!
Not only do trees help to generate oxygen, but they are also responsible for providing homes to many animals, absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, and preventing flooding by soaking up excess water. Trees also serve as an energy source for us and many animals with the fruits, nuts, and leaves they produce. Clearly, we have a lot to thank trees for!
We encourage you to download the resource below to help develop a greater appreciation for trees. By connecting with trees and other forms of nature, we hope to inspire you to act kindly and responsibly toward our precious planet. Saving the Earth starts with you!
We all have a part to play when it comes to saving the world!
Climate change is an issue that will require all of humanity to come together to fix it. This means that we need your help! Change starts with you.
The easiest way to prevent further climate change is by practicing sustainable habits. Turn off the lights when you are not in the room, walk or bike instead of driving, plant a tree, and be mindful of the waste you create. The more sustainable habits that we practice in our daily lives, the easier they are to maintain. Who knows, you might even inspire your friends or family members to do the same!
Download the poster below to inspire yourself and others to begin saving the world through your actions today!
Let’s take a trip to the Arctic to get to know the polar bear!
Believe it or not, this beloved animal is actually the largest bear species on Earth, weighing in at up to 800 kg! Though they might appear cuddly, polar bears hold a critical position in the food chain as apex predators.
Since they hold such an important role in their ecosystem, it is crucial that we work to protect our planet’s polar bears. They are currently at risk of harm from many threats- melting ice, pollution, and hunting, just to name a few. Most of these threats are related to global warming, which can be prevented. But in order to do so, we need your help! A great way to do your part is by adopting sustainable everyday practices, such as recycling and reducing waste.
Download the resource below to learn more about the polar bear! By developing an appreciation for this incredible animal, we hope to inspire a deeper connection and sense of responsibility to give back to our planet. We encourage you to also go further and use the research questions provided to outline other amazing animals!
It is normal for everyone to feel overwhelmed from time to time! This is why it is so important to develop healthy calming strategies for those moments where we feel like life is throwing a lot at us.
Calming strategies work best when consistently practiced! Every person is different when it comes to which strategies they find the most effective, so we encourage you to try out multiple to see what works best for you. From deep breathing, to listening to music, to writing, there are so many different approaches that may work for you.
Whether you are a teacher looking at this resource for your students, a parent to a child, or a student yourself, we encourage you to download the infographic below for some ideas on what to do next time you feel overwhelmed. Knowing how to regulate your emotions under stress is an excellent skill to have!
