Spring on the Sea Ice: What Happens to Polar Bears When the Arctic “Wakes Up”

Activity: “Spring Ice Map”, Where Would a Polar Bear Hunt?

Bears

Kit needed
4 steps

Run with a class

If you picture spring as green grass and puddles, polar bear spring will reset your brain.

Activity: “Spring Ice Map”, Where Would a Polar Bear Hunt?

Goal: Students learn that habitat isn’t just “Arctic.” It’s specific features: edges, cracks, and breathing holes.

CER prompt:
“Spring affects polar bears because ____ changes the ice habitat, which changes ____.”

Questions to ask

“Spring Ice Map”, Where Would a Polar Bear Hunt?

Where it comes from

For polar bears, spring isn’t about flowers. It’s about light returning, ice changing texture, and a short window when the Arctic becomes a hunting buffet, before the floor literally breaks apart.

Spring is when polar bears do their most important work of the year:

Read the blog post ↗ Spring on the Sea Ice: What Happens to Polar Bears When the Arctic “Wakes Up” · 2026-03-06

Run it

Ticks stay in this browser, so you can set up now and teach later.

What you need

A simple map you draw (sea ice with an ice edge, a crack/lead, and a few breathing holes)
Polar bear tokens + seal tokens
Optional: “weather cards” (warm week / windy week / refreeze week)

Steps

Place seals at breathing holes and near the ice edge.
Students place polar bears where hunting would be most efficient.
They must justify with evidence “Seals must surface here” “Edges concentrate movement” “Cracks create access points”
Add a “breakup” change remove half the ice and ask students to re-place bears and explain what changes.

00:00

Workspace

Run it with your class

Set up the class, count what needs counting, write down what happened, then save it and take it with you. Everything here stays in this browser until you download it.

The class

Class or group Date Students Students per group

Counters

Results table

Notes as you go

Step 1: Place seals at breathing holes and near the ice edge. Step 2: Students place polar bears where hunting would be most efficient. They must justify with evidence: “Seals must surface here” “Edges concentrate movement” “Cracks create access points” Add a “breakup” change: remove half the ice and ask students to re-place bears and explain what changes. Anything else: what worked, what to change

Answers to the questions

“Spring Ice Map”, Where Would a Polar Bear Hunt?

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