By Jeri Ferris

1. Arctic Explorer: the Story of Matthew Henson By Jeri Ferris

2. Vocabulary Words to Know • expedition - a journey made to accomplish something • arctic- having to do with a region of the North Pole • glaciers- large slow moving masses of ice • constellation- a group of fixed stars having a name • insulation- a material that keeps heat from being lost expedition arctic glaciers constellation insulation

3. Matt Henson the first African American to explore the Arctic Region • A small group of explorers set out to visit the north pole in June 1891 • The group included Matthew , Robert Peary and his wife, Josephine • Matt Henson had worked before with Robert Peary in exploring jungles • The boat they sailed on was named the KITE.

4. They set sail for Greenland • The trip to Greenland would be long, so they needed lots of supplies, like food and camping equipment and coal for fires • They reached Greenland on the first day of summer, June 21 • Icebergs were everywhere and they used their boat to break cracks in them up to go forward

5. They landed in McCormick Bay • They unloaded supplies, and made a camp • The boat, Kite, left for home before the water froze up again • Matt celebrated his 25th birthday in Aug.8 • They ate mock turtle soup, stew of little auk, green peas, corn and apricot pie • They built a small wooden house to live in

6. They meet the Eskimos • They made friends with the Eskimos to learn how to survive the winter • The Eskimos taught them to hunt for polar bear, seals, walruses, reindeer and caribou • The Eskimo woman would chew the fat off of the animal furs to make them usuable for coats, hats, boots • In exchange, they gave the Eskimos, pots,pans, needles, tools and other household items.

7. Matt looked like the Eskimos • Matt’s skin color was brown just like the Eskimos • The Eskimo family, Ikwa, his wife, and 2 children became very fond of Matt, and called him “ Miy Paluk”, meaning dear little Matthew in Inuit language • They had a run- in with some very unfriendly walruses, and almost got killed

8. The Sun was setting for the Winter By September, the sky grew darker and then the sun was gone for 6 months • The men hunted by the full moon and lived in igloos • The Eskimos taught them how not to freeze and how to make clothing out of animal pelts(skins) • Matt also learned how to drive a sledge with a dog team

9. Eskimo Life • Matt learned how to make an igloo out of snow- the Eskimos could do it in about an hour • They ate frozen meat and raw meat • They would hunt the white arctic hare by watching for the shadows on the snow • They watched for the stars in the sky to help pass the time • They lived simply – no laws, no wars, no schools, no churchs • They lived only to survive the elements of ice and snow.

10. The Sun Appeared again • In February, the sun began to come back • For many days the sky was just pink • Then every day the sun would stay longer and longer • The birds came back, and the water turned a deep blue • Matt tried to cross the ice cap with the group, but his foot became frozen • He went back to stay with Mrs. Peary to heal his foot.

11. Summer came • While the other men looked for the North pole, Matt helped at the campsite • He learned how to cook and to speak the Eskimo language. • Peary and one other man crossed the ice cap, all the others turned back. • They never did get to the North Pole, but vowed to try again, Matthew and Robert Peary

12. the end Questions? • What did the group try to explore? South pole___ Africa____ North Pole__ 2. Where did they land the boat? Iceland___ England___ Greenland___ 3. How long were they gone? 2months___ 2years___ 5 years____ 4. When did this take place? June 1981___Feb 2003____June 1950___