AGES 3-10

LIFE IN THE
ARCTIC CIRCLE
Arctic Circle
Three-Part Cards
Cut out each box then have your child match the word with the pictures.

igloo inukshuk canoe

igloo inukshuk canoe

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 Leaf
snow ice fishing parka

snow ice fishing parka

Leaf
caribou sled husky

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caribou sled husky

walrus ice skates beluga

walrus ice skates beluga

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 Aa
Study on the Arctic Circle
What is the Arctic Circle?
Arctic Circle

The Arctic Circle is one of the five major imaginary circles of latitude that mark the Earth. The Arctic
Circle is not fixed and currently runs 66.5° north of the Equator. Everything north of this circle is
known as the Arctic.

What does the word arctic come from and what does it mean?
The word arctic comes from the Greek word ἀρκτικός (arktikos: which means near the Bear,
northern) and that from the word ἄρκτος (arktos: which means bear).

What is the climate in the Arctic Circle?

The Arctic circle has long, cold winters and short, cool summers. There is a large amount of
variability in climate there. Some parts of the Arctic are covered by ice or snow year-round, and
almost all parts of the Arctic experience long periods with some form of ice on the surface.

What countries are included in the Arctic Circle?

Parts of 8 countries are found in the Arctic Circle. They are: Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia, the
United States (Alaska), Canada, Greenland, and Iceland.

Notes:

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 Arctic Circle
Draw a picture of something found in the Arctic Circle below.

There are parts of 8 .

countries in the Arctic .
Circle.They are Norway, .
Sweden, Finland, Russia, .
United States, Canada, .
Greenland, and Iceland. .
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ANIMAL STUDY ON THE BELUGA WHALE
Beluga Whale

What does a beluga whale look like?

Beluga whales are small white whales that live in cold arctic waters. They have rounded heads with
large foreheads, and no dorsal fin. Beluga whales have teeth, notched tails, and broad paddle-like
flippers, unlike many other whales.

What do they like to eat?

Belugas eat mostly fish but they are opportunistic feeders so their feeding habits depend on the
season and their location.

What is a beluga whale's habitat?

Belugas are mostly seen in shallow waters close to the coast, but they have also been reported to
live for longer periods in deeper water, where they feed and give birth to their young. They live in
coves, fjords, canals, bays and shallow waters in the Arctic Ocean.

What do they use beluga whales for in the Arctic Circle?

The native populations of Alaska, Canada, Greenland and Russia hunt Belugas. They use them for
both consumption and profit.

Notes:

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Bb Beluga Whale

|
TWO SMALL EYES
ROUNDED FLIPPERS
| MELON

|
|
|
FLUKE
WHITE SKIN

How many dorsal fins do

Beluga Whales have? What do Belugas mostly eat?

0
Bugs

Fish
Plants

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 Cc
ANIMAL STUDY ON THE CARIBOU
What is a caribou?
Caribou

Caribous are members of the deer family. They have brown shaggy fur and a white neck and
stomach. In some areas, caribous can be almost all white. Caribous have long snouts, short
tails, and long legs with rounded hooves.

What do they like to eat?

In the summer,Caribous eat grasses, herbs, ferns, mosses, shoots, and leaves. They are also
opportunistic carnivores, eating lemmings, birds, eggs and arctic char (fish). In the winter they
eat almost exclusively lichens and fungi which they often access by sweeping snow and ice
away with their antlers and/or hooves.

What is a caribou's habitat?

Caribou live in Alaska, Canada, Greenland, northern Europe and northern Asia in tundra,
mountainous and woodland habitats.

What are traditional uses for caribou by humans in the Arctic?

Caribou were traditionally hunted and different parts of them were used for meat, clothes, and
even shelter by indigenous people in the Arctic.
Notes:

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 Cc Caribou

ANTLERS

|
|
LONG SNOUT SHORT TAIL

|
SHAGGY FUR
|

LONG LEGS
|

LARGE ROUNDED HOOVES

|

How many legs does a caribou

What size are caribou's
have?
hooves?

4
Large

Small
Medium

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 Ii
STUDY ON THE IGLOO
What is an igloo?
Igloo

An igloo is a shelter built of snow, typically built in very cold climates that have firmly packed snow.
They are also called snow houses.

What is an igloo used for?

Historically, igloos were built in many sizes, from single room temporary shelters to larger multi-
room dwellings for arctic peoples to live in together throughout the winter. Although they are no
longer common housing nowadays, they are still sometimes temporary shelters, and still hold
deep cultural significance to the Inuit people.

How is an igloo built?

Blocks of snow are cut out from hard-packed snow drifts and are arranged in a dome shape, that, if
built correctly, can support a person standing on the roof. One King Block fits in the center of the
dome of the igloo and helps to hold up the walls. Gaps between the blocks are filled in with more
snow, to provide insulation from the harsh arctic winds.

Who invented the igloo?

The Inuit invented the igloo centuries ago. The igloo was a way for hunters to survive brutal winters
in eastern Siberia, Greenland, Alaska and parts of Canada.
Notes:

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 Ii KING BLOCK Igloo

ENTRANCE
|

|
SNOW BLOCKS

How many King Blocks does

each igloo have? Who invented the igloo?

1
The Inuit
Native Americans
Europeans

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 Arctic Circle
Counting
Count the cards and select the right quantity.

5 6 3 3 7 1 9 1 5

7 4 1 2 6 5 2 8 6
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 Arctic Circle
Comparison
Compare the sizes of the different objects.

Circle the bigger one.

Draw the pictures.

A smaller sled A taller canoe

A bigger snowflake

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 Clip Trace Write
Use clothes pins to clip to the word you are working on,
trace the word, then write the word.

CLIP TRACE WRITE

snow snow
igloo igloo
caribou caribou
walrus walrus
husky husky
sled sled
inukshuk inukshuk

parka parka
beluga beluga

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 Arctic Circle Maze
Ride the slide through the snow to make it to the igloo.

START

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Spot the Difference
Compare the images below and circle six differences.

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 Arctic Animal
Match
Follow or trace the lines to learn the name of the animals you can find in the forest.

Caribou

Beluga

Husky

Walrus
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 Arctic Circle
Wordsearch
Find the terms related to the Arctic Circle in the word search below.

ARCTIC WALRUS SLED

IGLOO HUSKY ICE
INUKSHUK CARIBOU SNOW
CANOE BELUGA PARKA

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Cc CARIBOU
Color the picture below

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ESUOHLOOHCS TATIBAH 0202 ©
SDRACHSALF ELCRIC CITCRA

BELUGA WHALE
CARIBOU

WALRUS
HUSKY
 EARTH

CARIBOU HUSKY
Caribou (if domesticated, also known Huskies are used by people for
as Reindeer) are a species of deer pulling sleds in the Arctic Circle.
ESUOHLOOHCS TATIBAH 0202 ©

native to the Arctic. There are also competitions in dog

SDRACHSALF ELCRIC CITCRA

sled racing!

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BELUGA WHALE WALRUS

Beluga whales are water mammals Walruses are known by their
that often live in the shallow waters prominent tusks and whiskers, and
of the Arctic. their size. Adult male walruses in the
Pacific can weigh more than 4,400
lbs. (2000kg)

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 ESUOHLOOHCS TATIBAH 0202 ©
SDRACHSALF LAMINA ELCRIC CITCRA
ICE FISHING

CANOE
ICE SKATING
SLED
 EARTH

ICE FISHING SLED

Ice fishing is catching fish with lines Sleds are used for travel in the Arctic,
and fish hooks through an opening in from afternoon outings for families
ESUOHLOOHCS TATIBAH 0202 ©

the ice on a frozen body of water. Ice going sledding to multi-day hunting
SDRACHSALF ELCRIC CITCRA

fishers may fish in the open or in trips covering miles of terrain. They
heated enclosures. are typically pulled by several
huskies.
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CANOE ICE SKATING

Canoes are light narrow boats that Ice skating is the self-propulsion of a
are are propelled using paddles and person across a sheet of ice, using
are primarily used for transport and metal-bladed ice skates to glide on the
trade in the Arctic. surface for recreation, exercise or travel.
Ice skating in the Arctic is done outside
on frozen bodies of water.
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ESUOHLOOHCS TATIBAH 0202 ©
SDRACHSALF ELCRIC CITCRA
INUKSHUK

SNOW
IGLOO

PARKA
 EARTH

INUKSHUK IGLOO
An inukshuk is a structure made of stones Igloos are houses or shelters built
piled on top of each other. Inukshuks were using blocks of hard packed snow,
used for navigation in the frozen north
ESUOHLOOHCS TATIBAH 0202 ©

when the snow is suitable, and are

SDRACHSALF ELCRIC CITCRA

where, in the snow, everything looks the

also known as snow huts or snow
same. They also are used as a signpost to
houses.
mark a good hunting or fishing spot.
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SNOW PARKA
Snow is precipitation in the form of A parka is a type of winter coat,
small white ice crystals at a often lined in faux or real fur.
temperature of less than 32°F (0°C). Traditionally they were made by the
Many places in the Arctic Circle are Inuit from caribou or seal hide to
covered with snow. keep warm in the frigid arctic.

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 Arctic Circle Booklist
Tacky the Penguin by Helen Lester
Arctic White by Danna Smith
Dot in the Snow by Corrinne Averiss
The Polar Bear Son: An Inuit Tale by Lydia Dabcovich
The Polar Pack by Madeline Rogers
Ten on the Sled by Kim Norman
Way up in the Arctic by Jennifer Ward
Snow by Erin Edison
The Antarctic Habitat by Molly Aloian & Bobbie Kalman
All About the North and South Poles by Christina Mia Gardeski
The Story of Snow: The Science of Winter’s Wonder by John Nelson Ph.D.
& Mark Cassino
Living in the Arctic by Allan Fowler
Over in the Arctic by Marianne Berkes
In Arctic Waters by Laura Crawford
Polar Opposites by Erik Brooks
Walruses of the Arctic by Sara Swan Miller
What Can Live in the Snow by John-Paul Wilkins
Arctic Tundra by Michael H. Forman
Beluga Whales for Kids (Amazing Animals) by Rachel Smith & John
Davidson
Hello, Baby Beluga by Darrin Lunde
Yukon: Sled Dog by Judith Janda Presnall
The Great Serum Race: Blazing the Iditarod Trail by Debbie S. Miller
The Walrus and The Caribou by Maika Harper
A Caribou Journey by Debbie S. Miller
Caribou by Rachel Grack
Caribou by Susa E. Quinlan
The Igloo by Charlotte & David Yue
Igloos (American Indian Homes) by Jack Manning

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