Schools in Orkney Islands and the Canadian Arctic link up

P7 Class at Glaitness School in Kirkwall Orkney are looking forward to a closer connection this week with their partner school Ataguttaaluk Elementary School in Nunavut when Glenn Morris visits the school on their behalf. 

Ataguttaaluk School is in Iglulik, one of the northern most settlements in the Canadian Arctic.

Glenn Morris, the expedition leader for Arctic Voice, the project which has facilitated the school partnerships, arrived in Iglulik this week.  When he visits Ataguttaaluk School, Year Six children there will open a box sent to them by P7 Class in Glaitness School. 

The box contains everyday objects which the children used to describe their lives in Orkney.  Glaitness School also sent a workbook they made with information about Orkney history and culture.  The two schools have been emailing and sending each other pictures.

Lesley Mackay, P7 Class teacher at Glaitness School phoned Shontell, the class teacher at their twin school, earlier today.  (See the photo of Shontell in Iglulik above.)  The Class heard about the weather, Inukshuks (traditional statues), dogs, and what they were doing at school today.   P7 plan to update their blog at the first opportunity.

Children in the Orkneys are looking forward to receiving a box from Ataguttaaluk School with information and objects shedding light on the lives of children there.

The partnership offers Orkney children an opportunity to discover about life in the arctic first hand.

The community in Iglulik have already been reporting their experiences of climate change to Arctic Voice's Glenn Morris. 

They told him that recently a polar bear came near the town and attacked and killed a dog team.   They say this kind of attack is unprecedented and they are linking it with climate change.  The bear was thin and obviously very hungry and the Inuit say that because of the shrinking ice the polar bears cannot hunt in the normal way.

How did they do that?

Find out more about the partnership at the Glaitness school website - click on the Arctic Voice page.

The schools have been put in touch via Arctic Voice, a UK based project which is linking schools in the UK with schools in the Canadian Arctic.

Arctic Voice enables UK schools to contact schools in remote communities via Glenn Morris' annual journeys via kayak and dog sledge. 

Schools can also read Glenn's blogs on the Arctic Voice website  –  which Glenn aims to upated twice a week.  His trip is around 1,000 miles and will take until April to complete.

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