Glaciers

Ideas for using the Glacier Poster Map from Canadian Geographic magazine and The National Atlas of Canada (submitted by CCGE chair, Dick Mansfield)
(PLEASE NOTE: Glacier Map is no longer available)

AS PART OF OUR ONGOING SUPPORT for classroom teachers across Canada, the CCGE is pleased to provide members of the National Teachers Network with a complimentary copy of this poster-map. This is part of an ongoing series produced and included in issues of Canadian Geographic. Network members will realize that this is another in the series of poster-maps and accompanying lesson ideas included for Network members. We are anxious to hear back from you as to whether you are finding these posters and accompanying ideas of any value/use in your classroom program.

PLEASE e-mail, fax, call or write us with your reactions. Your feedback is significant in helping us continue this series as part of the CCGE mailings.

Panoramic Photo and Shaping the Land

• Examine the photo carefully. The location of this glacier is noted at the bottom right of the photo. Refer to an atlas of Canada and locate the area of this glacier on a map of Canada.
• Examine the photo carefully. Describe how easy or difficult it might be to walk or travel by any means across the sheet of ice from one side of rock to the other. Explain WHY you think it might be difficult or easy.
• If you look closely at the photo you will observe some long streaks of a darker colour within the ice. Look at the block diagrams at the right and identify what these darker coloured features might be.
• Examine the block diagrams at the right and then compare them with the photo on the left. Which form of glaciation do you think is represented in the photo - alpine or continental? Why?
• Examine the block diagrams at the right and then compare them with the photo on the left. Which STAGE of glaciation (before, during, end, today) do you think that the photo represents? Why?
• What parts of Canada would we go to today to find examples of glaciation? What kind of glaciation would we find in these differing parts of Canada (Alpine in the Rockies and Coastal Ranges and Continental in the Arctic)? Consult an atlas of Canada to find examples of glaciers which still exist today. What colour symbol is usually used on maps to illustrate permanent ice (glaciers) (white).
• Read the section 'Shaping the Land'. In what ways have glaciers proved to be a BENEFIT to our modern society?
• In the description of Continental glaciers, the authors describe glacier movements as being like a 'conveyor belt'. Examine the photo carefully and describe any visual evidence which would lead one to believe that the glacier shown here is actually moving - even though it would be so slow that one would not see it (gently curving flow lines in the ice and the moraines).

The Glaciers of Canada

• The Big Freeze - Read over this section and study the accompanying two diagrams. What was the name of the last major ice age in what is now Canada (Pleistocene)? How long did it last (1.5 million-10,000 years ago)? During that time how many different ice advances and retreats have scientists been able to trace (4)? What was the name of the period between these glacial advances and retreats (interglacials)? The largest of the most recent glacial advances was known by what name (Laurentide Ice Sheet)? Using the information on the other side of this sheet, determine whether this particular glacial advance was an Alpine or Continental Glacier. Explain why. What made the ice sheets retreat (warmer temperatures)? How long did it take for the ice sheets to retreat to their present state (approx. 8,000 years)? How thick was the ice in parts of this largest ice sheet at its maximum advance ( approx. 4,000 metres thick)? Compare this to the height of the CN Tower (553 metres).
• Examine the two diagrams and indicate which provinces or territories of present-day Canada were or were not covered with ice 18,000 years ago. Repeat the process for today.
• The Glaciers of Canada - read this section carfully and answer the following questions. In what ways have glaciers 'modified' or changed the natural landscape over which they have passed? Why do scientists still study glaciers?
• A Peek at the Past - what is the value of having glaciologists travel to the eastern Arctic to gather core samples from the ice?
• Why does the Eastern Arctic hold some records for Canadian 'superlatives' in terms of glaciation? Which one of the islands of the Eastern Arctic has the most ice cover today?
• Ice World - Read this section carefully and examine the accompanying world map. Identify the two (2) areas of the world today which are still covered extensively by glacial ice (Greenland and Antarctica). Name an area in Africa (Mt. Kilimanjaro and Kenya) and Asia (Himalayas) which are still covered by glaciers. Review the block diagrams on the side A to determine which kind of glaciers these are (Alpine or Continental).
• What happened to sea levels 12,000 years ago when the glacial ice began to melt (levels rose 100-140 metres)? Measure this distance if you have a suitable place outside of your school. Imagine turning this horizontal distance vertical and how this would impact on any people living in these areas!
• If all of the ice in the current ice sheets melted today, it is extimated that the mean water level would rise by approx. 70 metres. Measure out a distance of 70 metres to get a real sense of how high the water level would rise. Using an atlas, determine the elevation of your community above mean sea level. Using a topographical map with elevations marked on it, determine the impact of a global rise of sea level on particular parts of the world
• Life Below Zero - Scientists have determined that there is some 'life' even on the glaciers. Read this section carefully and list examples of the kind of life forms that have been found in these areas.
• Coastal Mountain Retreat - Some of these glaciers have been 'retreating' rather rapidly - for ice that is! Use a measuring tape, measure out the distance that some of these glaciers have retreated on an annual basis (10-30 metres). Pace out this distance to get a 'feel' of the real shrinkage involved. What do scientists think might account for this retreat of the galciers?
• Mount Logan is Canada's highest mountain. Examine the map to find its location. In which province or territory is it located (Yukon)? In what mountain range is it located (St. Elias)?
• The Rockies: Feeding the Flow - What does this title actually mean, and why is it so significant for many Canadians?
• If you examine the map carefully you will find part of a highway which runs between Jasper and Banff which is named after the glaciers. What is its name (Icefields Parkway)? What economic advantage would there have been to construct a highway in this area (tourism)?

This is just a start!! I am sure that you and your students will be able to come up with many more interesting and creative ways of using this great resource!!