Great Guided Enquiry: Doffa’s Reindeer and Air Pollution
Age 7 - 14 years
Curriculum topics: animals including humans, evolution and inheritance, living things and their habitats, plants, seasonal changes
Working scientifically: planning and carrying out a comparative test to gather evidence and answer a scientific question.
Written by Jules Pottle, Illustrated by Rufus Thomas.
Context:
Doffa’s Reindeer is the story of a family in the frozen north. Doffa is a reindeer herder who lives within the arctic circle, where the land is covered in snow all winter long. Food is hard to find but the reindeer manage well enough on the lichens which lie below the blanket of snow. As always, the passing of time brings changes: Doffa grows old and his granddaughter, Ibba, comes to care for him. The town is changing too and Ibba fears their traditional way of life might not survive…
Once you have shared the story, you can explore pupil's understanding about how gases are produced by coal fuelled power stations, transport and household fires. If fuels are not burned efficiently then particles of soot (carbon) enter the air around us which can irritate our lungs and impact on plants and animals, e.g. lichen. We cannot easily see the particles. There is a trade-off between making electricity using these methods and looking after the environment. Humans are responsible for causing much of this pollution so we have a responsibility to learn about the effects and to try to mitigate them.
The enquiry:
This guided enquiry will engage your pupils in planning and carrying out an exciting comparative test to explore air pollution in their local area. They will think of their own scientific questions and try to answer them through analysis of their results.
A great way to introduce this topic and to get children thinking about their environment. The enquiry may prompt your pupils to take action and plan to reduce or mitigate the pollution in their community.
Get started with these resources:
Watch the author, Jules Pottle, tell her story.
Duration: 20 minutes
Watch the linked lesson on investigating air pollution in your school or home:
Duration: 10 minutes
Great Science Stories bring science to life with creative and magical tales to capture your pupils’ imaginations and broaden their horizons. Encourage pupils to ask scientific question with direct to classroom story telling videos from leading children’s authors and illustrators.
Listen, think and share your questions.
