Caribou - STEM Challenge

Written By Shannon Hardy
 
 

Caribou Migration Challenge

Did you know that Caribou live in large groups called herds which can reach up to almost 1 million members? Twice a year these herds migrate from their winter range in the trees and forests to their summer breeding grounds - and back again. There are a number of factors that can influence this migration including predators, food, water, calves and mosquitoes! In this STEM Challenge, let’s make and play a Caribou Migration Game!

Materials

  • A large piece of cardboard or paper to create a board game

  • x blank cards (depending on the number of players) 

  • pencils/crayons

  • Game pieces to represent each herd 

  • Score card

Phase 1: 

Divide into 4 groups. Each group will need to research a season (spring/summer/fall/winter) and create a list of the different situations a caribou herd may encounter at that time of the year.  

Finding food, walking through snow, running from wolves, searching for mushrooms.

You will use this information to create your game cards.  

Phase 2: 

Devise a set of guidelines to help your game flow.  We don’t want to give away too many of our own rules but here are a few that we came up with:

  • # of players 4+

  • Decide how many landing spaces to include, and make each season an equal number of spots. We suggest a minimum of 20 total to make 5 spaces per season..

  • We think it’s a good idea to start the game in the Spring just before calving season.

  • You can use health points and herd points. These can be gained or lost depending on the card picked. Keep a tally of your numbers 

  • Divide your class or group into 4 and have each group make a season of cards (Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter). We like this because each season will have different challenges.

  • Each Season should include health and risk cards. 

Game cards - the idea behind the game cards is that they can move your herd forward or backward, gain or lose members to your herd OR add and subtract health points. 

**We decided to have both Herd and Health numbers.  You can simplify your game by combining those into a single score.

Phase 3:

Create a board that represents the different seasons that your caribou will migrate through. The journey represented by your spaces can take whatever shape you would like as long as it starts and ends in the same seasonal area.

Each season should have an equal number of playing spaces.

Phase 4:

It is now time to make your playing cards. The cards determine if you move forwards or backward, gain or lose health points and herd size. Here are some of our suggestions to get you started.

 
 

Disease: Lose 10 Caribou and 1 health point

  • Mushroom Munch: Move ahead 2 spaces

  • Calves are born: Add 20 caribou to your herd

  • Flooded River: move back 2 spaces

  • Encounter Hunters: Lose 5 Caribou

  • Mozzquito cloud: Move ahead 1, lose 1 health point

  • Food Scarcity: Lose 1 health point

  • Lichen Lunch: Move ahead 2 spaces and Gain 2 health points

  • Mushroom Munch: Move ahead 2 spaces

  • Wolf Pack Attack: Lose 2 Caribou

  • Frozen river: Move ahead 3 spaces

  • Encounter Hunters: Lose 5 Caribou

  • Disease: Lose 10 Caribou and 1 health point

  • Snowstorm Lose 5 Caribou,  miss a turn

  • Grizzly bear in the area: Move back 1 space

  • Easy terrain for travel: Move ahead 4 spaces

Let’s Play!!

We challenge you to come up with the rest of the rules and decide who and how you win the game.  Is it based on health points? Or a number of herd members? Or is it the quickest around the board?  You decide.

If you find that your game needs improvement, you should try creating new playing cards and/or make changes to the rules.

 
 

Live It Earth STEM Challenges are learner driven, problem based, interactive activities that are designed to spark curiosity and inspire kids to care, in and out of the classroom. If you enjoyed this STEM challenge, here’s 3 more you might like: Make Your Own Dog Treats in our Dogs STEM Challenge, Grow Your Own Fungi in our Fungi STEM Challenge, or Design and Build an ROV in our Deep Sea STEM Challenge.

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Shannon Hardy
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