The T1s (Year 1) visited the Scott Polar Research Institute (SPRI) as part of their Antarctica topic. The tragic events of Captain Scott’s last expedition were made even more realistic for the children with a question and answer session with the famous explorer’s granddaughter, Dafila Scott, in the University lecture theatre complete with a life-size polar bear skin. The children also had the opportunity to ring the real bell from the Terra Nova as part of their trip.
Dafila Scott is an artist in residence at the SPRI. She enthused the children with tales of her travels to Antarctica both as an adult and as a child. The T1s thought of pertinent questions such as, “Did Captain Scott go to Antarctica in the winter or summer?” and “Did you go on a husky sledge to get there?” and some also asked whether she remembered her famous grandfather and what age he was when he died.
The artist amazed the T1s with details of her month spent in Antarctica for the SPRI. The children were interested to learn that her best part was walking amongst the penguins due to their friendly nature. One T1 commented, “It was funny to discover that the area around the penguins is pink and rather smelly as they bring back their food to feed their young”. Dafila explained the dangers of travelling to such a remote part of the world as she experienced fierce snow storms, despite it being the summer. When asked about her emotional connections with Antarctica, she described her memories of visiting Captain Scott’s hut when she was younger with her parents, as everything was intact and preserved by the cold.
After their informative trip, one T1 observed, “I learnt you had to wear lots of warm layers in Antarctica to stop frostbite” and another said, “I learnt that some of Scott’s crew went to find penguin eggs. Penguins don’t mind if you go near them.”
