Have you ever wondered how polar bears, penguins, and other arctic animals stay warm in the cold?

In this educational video, Jessie shows you a fun Arctic Cold Experiment you can do at home to understand the answer to this question!

Cover your hand with shortening to simulate the layer of fat and blubber arctic animals have. Then, dip your hand in a bucket of ice.

What happens? Is your hand cold? Or did the shortening keep you warm?

This is a great representation of how arctic animals protect themselves in freezing and icy conditions.

Experiment by using more or less ice and shortening to understand the process in different ways. Have fun and stay warm!

Materials needed:

• Resealable plastic bag
• Bowls
• Water
• Shortening
• Ice

When you’re done with this project, we’d love to see it! Send us a picture at [email protected], upload to social media using #virtualbgc, or comment below!