Iceland Missions

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parliament ~ find algae art ~ create your own geography ~ outpace a glacier
Iceland
Iceland
Reykjavik
Blue Lagoon
Arctic Circle
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Gulfoss
Jokulsarlon
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Geysir
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Thingvellir
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Seljalandsfoss
with...
Student pack
Student pack

2. What is in this booklet?
Introduction 3
Mission:Explore on arrival 5
MEICE001 Create your Icelandic identity
MEICE002 Walk on thin ice
Mission:Explore on the road 5
MEICE003 Make a seismograph
MEICE004 Explore ecosystems
MEICE005 Go beyond A-Z
MEICE006 Be moody
MEICE007 Interpret Iceland
MEICE008 Find your home away from home
MEICE009 Travel through time
MEICE010 Find faces ...
Mission:Explore in the hotel 7
MEICE011 Build a foodform
MEICE012 Direct a movie
MEICE013 See the light
MEICE014 Create your own geography
Mission:Explore Blue Lagoon 7
MEICE015 Label the lagoon
Mission:Explore lava tubes 8
MEICE016 Film CSIceland
Mission:Explore Kerid 8
MEICE017 Volcanic rock star
Mission:Explore Gulfoss 8
MEICE018 Get (a bit) wet ...
MEICE019 See double
Mission:Explore Geysir 8
MEICE020 Examine an eruption
MEICE021 Forecast the future ...
MEICE022 Make a meal with nature
Mission:Explore Þingvellir 9
MEICE023 Stand for parliament
MEICE024 Find algae art
MEICE025 Stand somewhere younger than you
Mission:Explore Hellisheidi 10
MEICE026 Get into hot water …
MEICE027 Seismic shimmy
MEICE028 Power-up a plant
Mission:Explore Seljalandsfoss 10
MEICE029 Judge the ‘W’ Factor
MEICE030 Stand in the past, present and future
Mission:Explore Vik, Reynishverfi & Dyrholaey 10
MEICE031 Get fishy feet
Mission:Explore Solheimajokull Glacier 11
MEICE032 Outpace a glacier
MEICE033 Inspect Health and Safety
Mission:Explore Mydalsandur 11
MEICE034 Become an alluvial fan …
MEICE035 Fashion landscape
MEICE036 Seek out modelling materials ...
MEICE037 Find the hidden folk
Mission:Explore Jokulsarlon 11
MEICE038 Become an ice expert
MEICE039 Adopt a piece of ice ...
Mission:Explore Heimaey & Westmann Islands 13
MEICE040 Construct a micro volcano ...
MEICE041 Hot foot it
Mission:Explore more 13
MEICE042 Write a Saga
MEICE043 Dance ‘Iceland style’
Basic training 14
About us 15

3. 3
Iceland. It’s a nice land.
You’re going to love it.
As your plane begins to approach the coast, peer out of the
window and you’ll see a place that is unlike anywhere else on
Earth. Exciting, eh? We asked people who’d been to Iceland to
sum it up in a few words, and this is what they came up with.
Your travels will take you to some awesome places. You’re going
to see the extremes of nature: fire and ice, roaring rivers,
black volcanic sands, sinuous rivers which can wash away the
road in a moment, floating icebergs, erupting geysers throwing
gallons of boiling water high into the air and houses with
grass on the roof.
Ever stood behind a waterfall? You can do that here - Iceland
has over 10,000 of them. Would you like to travel between
Europe and North America in a few minutes? You can do that too,
as well as feel ground that has been warmed by an erupting
volcano.
You can walk on a river of ice, and see an entire country being
formed before your very eyes. You might also see some of
nature’s great spectacles: the aurora borealis (Northern
Lights), clouds of volcanic ash and your teacher in their
swimming costume.
The missions in this guide will help you to see Iceland in a
different way. They have been designed to test your creativity,
curiosity and exploration skills.
This guide is not designed to be ‘filled in’ like a worksheet.
You’ll need all your senses (and your imagination) to complete
it. Your teachers may give you guidance or challenge you
further, but it is up to you to make the most of your time here.
Iceland really is a very nice land...
Geographically exciting
Iceland is a place that geographers get very excited about. It’s
been created by volcanoes, shaped by waterfalls and shaken by
earthquakes. It’s a new country, and is still being created
where two of the earth’s great plates are pulling apart.
It’s an interesting place culturally - there are centuries of
history since a Viking called Ingólfur Arnarson threw some
bits of his chair into the sea over a thousand years ago and
decided to live wherever they came ashore. The resulting city
was Reykjavik, where you may well spend your first night in
Iceland.
When you’re on the coach, keep your eyes glued to the window
(not literally). Every mile you travel will take you past a
landscape which will be unlike any you’ve seen before or are
likely to see again.
Iceland is being made in front of your very eyes. The weather,
flowing water, freezing temperatures, the wind and the pent-up
magma just beneath the surface are all working on the
landscape. Some changes are so slow you won’t notice them, but
others may be more obvious, sudden or violent. You may very
well end up walking where no-one else has walked before, and
doing things that no-one else has done before in the place
where you’re doing them - now that’s exploring !
awesome
Icelandic
brilliant
sexy
different
cool
spine-tingling
hilarious
chilly
spiky life-changing
wonderful
emotional
epic
incredible
freezing
icy unforgettable

4. 4
Before and after
Your Iceland experience doesn’t just involve the days that you
spend in the country. There is plenty of opportunity for you to
immerse yourselves in all things Icelandic before you go, and
after you come back. May the Norse be with you!
Before
. Head to your local library and read up about on Iceland.
. Do a search on a photo sharing site like Flickr to see other
people’s images.
. Google Iceland (not the shop).
. Listen to Sigur Ros through headphones and grow a beard.
. Keep an eye on the weather at http://en.vedur.is which also
shows you any recent earthquakes in the places you’re going.
. Read through the missions to see which ones take your fancy
the most.
. Ask your teachers to laminate the Blue Lagoon map (MEICE015)
. Feel the excitement building...
After
What? The trip is over?! You’re going to be feeling a little sad
that it’s over, but keep the icy vibe alive by sharing your
photos with each other. Have a go at Discover the World’s photo
competition - ask your teacher for details!
When you get back, share your photos and mission reports in
class and online, using the hashtag of any missions you talk
about.
Mission:Explore Iceland
Your main mission is to explore the places that you visit,
enjoy them, and add them to your personal memory bank. You’re
going to remember the next few days for the rest of your life.
We’ve put together some activities which will help you explore
the island and develop your skills as an explorer. They’ll also
help you remember some of the key information about your
visit, which will help you when it comes to exam time (sorry to
mention exams, but they’re a sad fact of school life).
Our missions are designed to get you enquiring into things.
You’ll need to investigate different elements of the places you
stop at or pass through. Most of the main locations are
featured in this booklet.
We’ll ask you to record the results of your exploring in
various ways. Sometimes you’ll need a pencil, sometimes a
camera, sometimes just talking to another explorer will do.
We’ll try to make sure you don’t get lost along the way.
Remember that exploration is for everyone, not just Bear
Grylls and David Livingstone. You’re not here very often, so
make sure you soak up the experience.
Each mission has a unique code, called a hashtag, which looks
like this: #MEICE001. This allows you to search for them
online to see who else has completed the missions.
To find out how to avoid getting your head chopped off or
being boiled alive, turn to the end of the guide.
Let the exploration begin...

5. 5
Mission:Explore on arrival
MEICE001 Create your Icelandic identity
Work out your Icelandic Explorer name, taking inspiration
from the landscape, mythology and people of Iceland. Practice
your signature here.
In Iceland, children take their mum or dad’s first name
then add either sson or dottir to make their last name.
MEICE002 Walk on thin ice
Tread carefully on your way out of the airport while you test
that Iceland isn’t actually made of ice.
Mission:Explore on the road
MEICE003 Make a seismograph
Let the bumps of the journey guide your
pen across some paper as you slowly move
it across the page. Interpret your travel
seismograph: how active are the different
parts of your journey?
MEICE004 Explore ecosystems
Can you spot evidence of the following ecosystems?
desert
rainforest
coniferous
Imagine the island in the seasons that you are not there.
MEICE005 Go beyond A-Z
Find the six extra letters in the Icelandic alphabet. Write
them here with notes to help you pronounce them.
deciduous woodland
tundra
grassland

6. 6
MEICE006 Be moody
Let the environment and weather dictate your mood. Try being
icy, windy, snowy, volcanic, cold, steamy or...
MEICE007 Interpret Iceland
Seek out signs written in Icelandic with no translation. Jot
some words down below and guess the meaning in English. Find
out what it actually says online. Were you close?
MEICE008 Find your home away from home
Take a photo which looks like you could have taken it at
home, then take a photo which couldn’t have been taken
anywhere else.
MEICE009 Travel through time
Explore Iceland at different hours of the day. How does the
(lack of) light change how you see things?
It might get dark very early or very late. Would this
affect the animals (including humans) who live here?
MEICE010 Find faces ...
... hidden in the mountains as you travel around Iceland.
S
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here.

7. 7
Mission:Explore Blue Lagoon
MEICE015 Label the lagoon
Map extremes: smells, noise, happiness, heat, darkness, people,
texture, appearance, highs, lows, light, smiles and danger.
Mission:Explore in the hotel
MEICE011 Build a foodform
Recreate an Icelandic landform that you have seen during the
day using food. Make edible models of:
Laki Eldhraun
Waterfall
Lava tube
Tectonic plate
MEICE012 Direct a movie
Recreate a scene from a movie using the (un)natural
surroundings as inspiration.
MEICE013 See the light
Making a stop-motion animation inspired by the Northern
lights using different shades of light and colour. Then make a
‘Northern darkness’ show using varying shades of darkness to
contrast with your lightshow.
MEICE014 Create your own geography
Make a photo collage of the Icelandic word for geography
(landafræði) using signs, rubbings of (un)natural textures
and shapes found in the landscape.
Polygonal basalt pillars
Kerid
Alluvial fan
Lagoon

8. 8
Mission:Explore lava tubes
MEICE016 Film CSIceland
Take forensic photographs of troll corpses that you come
across then investigate the crime scene.
Mission:Explore Kerid
MEICE017 Volcanic rock star
Use the shape of this crater lake as a natural arena and put on
a performance for other visitors. Draft your set list below.
Mission:Explore Gullfoss
MEICE018 Get (a bit) wet ...
... in as many ways as you can using all the different states of
water you can find around this waterfall.
MEICE019 See double
Survey the scene at the double drop Gullfoss falls by looking
for contrasts and extremes. Find the following:
Lightest area
Scariest bit of water
Noisiest sound
Roughest texture
Wettest area
Slippery parts
Mission:Explore Geysir
MEICE020 Examine an eruption
Stand close to the geyser when it erupts. How does it feel,
smell, taste, look and sound?
Don’t stand too close: the water is extremely hot
when it emerges! It cools down quickly in the air.
Darkest area
Calmest bit of water
Quietest sounds
Softest texture
Driest area
Sturdy parts
WARNING!

9. 9
MEICE021 Forecast the future ...
... predict the next eruption of Strokkur.
Examine the geyser from different angles and directions. Can
you spot a regular pattern?
MEICE022 Make a meal with nature
Cook something delicious using steam, a hot spring or by
buring it in the warm ground.
Make sure you don’t cook yourself.
Mission:Explore Þingvellir
MEICE023 Stand for parliament
Hold a tectonic parliamentary session to create a new law that
everyone must abide by for the rest of the trip. Choose a
country to represent and make your case in the appropriate
accent. Be democratic and vote on the winner.
MEICE024 Find algae art
Discover the most interesting and original graffiti made by
algae on the rocks. What is nature trying to say to you? Design
a piece of art that expresses what you’d like to say back.
Don’t touch the algae: it takes many years to grow.
This process starts when rocks are exposed to air,
showing us where ice has moved in the past.
MEICE025 Stand somewhere younger than you
Identify places between the continents where the rocks being
created are younger than you.
WARNING!
WARNING!

10. 10
Mission:Explore Hellisheidi
MEICE026 Get into hot water …
... argue the case for energy or nature. Big lakes are used to
generate energy and many locals take issue with this. Find out
the arguments for each side.
E-mail your findings to the Icelandic President in Reykjavik.
MEICE027 Seismic shimmy
Experiment with dance moves around the seismograph. What
style of dance makes the biggest/smallest/shortest/longest
‘earthquake’?
MEICE028 Power-up a plant
Find a plant and warm it up. How does it react? Watch for
colour changes, shrinking, stretching, how (un)happy the plant
seems, deformities and any other changes you notice.
Don’t kill the plant or try this on any rare or
endangered species.
Mission:Explore Seljalandsfoss
MEICE029 Judge the ‘W’ Factor
How does Seljalandsfoss compare with Gullfoss and Skogafoss?
Award prizes to the waterfall that is: wettest, tallest,
friendliest, noisiest, prettiest and fastest.
MEICE030 Stand in the past, present and future
Stand under the overhang of the waterfall. Two rocks here have
had a stormy relationship and broken apart. Imagine what it
would have looked like in the past, predict what it will look
like in the future. How safe do you feel standing here?
Mission:Explore Vik, Reynishverfi & Dyrholaey
MEICE031 Get fishy feet
In the past, people living on
Iceland’s coast used fish skin
to make shoes. Create a way to
keep your feet warm using
local materials.
Be respectful: leave things
where you found them.
WARNING!
energy nature
WARNING!

11. 11
Mission:Explore Solheimajokull Glacier
MEICE032 Outpace a glacier
Time how long it takes you to travel 100 metres, the distance
Solheimajokull retreats every year. Look back and examine the
landscape around the ice - how has it been changed by such
rapid melting?
MEICE033 Inspect Health and Safety
Use the blank warning signs below to draw some typically
Icelandic warning signs. What do you think visitors should
be warned about in this area?
You might notice that there are fewer signs warning
about risks than you might be used to. For more
information visit www.safetravel.is/en/
Mission:Explore Mydalsandur
MEICE034 Become an alluvial fan …
... become a fan of something Icelandic, and don’t stop going on
about it till you convert someone else. Design your campaign
banner here.
MEICE035 Fashion landscape
Create a fashion range based on Iceland’s landscape. Think
about materials, colour palettes, textures and designs.

12. 12
MEICE036 Seek out modelling materials ...
... to recreate the streams here. Sketch your creations here.
MEICE037 Find the hidden folk
Find evidence of the Huldi or ‘hidden folk’.
The Huldi are Icelandic elves that are said to live in
stones and other landscape features. Be polite and say
hello if you meet one!
Mission:Explore Jokulsarlon
MEICE038 Become an ice expert
Track the movements of icebergs. Use your knowledge to
predict the winner in a race against others.
MEICE039 Adopt a piece of ice ...
... how long can you keep it frozen?
Attempt one:
Attempt two:
Attempt three:
Mission:Explore Heimaey & Westmann Islands
MEICE040 Construct a micro volcano ...
... using pieces of the real life volcano at Eldfell.

13. 13
MEICE041 Hot foot it
Map which parts of Heimaey are still warm following the
eruption of 1973 by finding the hottest place to stand. Use the
information you collect to map hot spots below.
Try not to melt anything valuable, like your socks
or your feet.
Mission:Explore More
MEICE042 Write a Saga
Icelandic stories are called Sagas. Create your own Saga to
recount the daring tale of your experiences of Iceland.
Take inspiration from Icelandic folklore, nature, the
landscape, dramatic natural events or your own adventures.
MEICE043 Dance ‘Iceland style’
During your time in Iceland, direct a video featuring people
on your tour and new friends you meet dancing to one piece of
music. Bands like Bon Iver and Take That have already done
this. Make sure you give the landscape a starring role!
Want more?
Get your creative, clever brain working and write some
missions to help locals and visitors (re)discover Iceland as
you see it.
WARNING!

14. 14
Basic Training
Don’t expect to be warned about every little danger that you
might come across while in Iceland. There are so many dangers
here that trying to alert you to all the possible risks would
mean the whole place would be covered in little post-it notes
saying, ‘This water is very hot’ or, ‘There’s a huge drop here,
please don’t fall off’. There won’t always be high fences to keep
you safe, and if you’re not sensible you may well find yourself
in bed with strange tubes sticking out of places you’d rather
they didn’t.
Your teachers have already thought
about most of these risks, but we’ve no
doubt that you could probably ‘find’
some that they hadn’t thought of - we’d
appreciate it if you didn’t...
To help you explore Iceland without
falling into a volcano, freezing/
boiling yourself to death or being
poisoned by a fermented shark, complete
this basic training.
Staying safe
You are going to die. This shouldn’t
come as a shock to you, but we’d prefer
it if you died a long time from now and
without making too much of a mess. To
increase your chances of enjoying
successful explorations we’ve cooked up
some basic training for you. Follow
these tips and you’ll be more likely to
come back alive.
Taking risks
Taking sensible risks is a normal part of life. Taking risks
can increase your chances of being healthy, interesting and
knowledgable. Do be creative, try new things and risk failing
but don’t be stupid. Use all your senses to see and avoid
dangerous stuff.
Emergency contacts
Make sure you know who to contact in an emergency.
Emergency contact 1:
Emergency contact 2:
Emergency contact 3:
Icelandic emergency services: 112
Emergencies
If the mission goes pear-shaped, follow these three steps:
1. Don’t panic!
2. Call your emergency contact, tell them what has happened,
where you are, and follow their advice.
3. Stay where you are and wait for them to arrive, unless
advised otherwise by a teacher or another adult who knows
what they are doing.

15. 15
You and your team
All the best explorers have rules that they never break. Here
are some to help you keep your head on:
. Only attempt a mission if you can do it reasonably safely.
. Follow the instructions on warning signs and follow any
other rules that you know about.
. Look after your mates - don’t be persuaded to take silly risks.
. If you get injured tell someone who knows what to do.
. Never go anywhere with a stranger.
. Don’t stick anything in your mouth if you don’t know what it
is. You don’t want to be poisoned and start puking up over
everything.
. Cars are the deadliest beasts around. Avoid crossing roads,
but if you have to, use a pedestrian crossing and make sure the
way is clear.
. Pay attention to your teachers and guides - they are there
to keep you safe and help you learn.
People, wildlife and places
. Protect and care for all people, animals, plants and places
you visit.
. Leave no trace that you have even been to a place or completed
the mission. Leave everything, from gates and hedges to ruins
and parrots, as you find them.
. Dispose of rubbish appropriately or take it home with you.
. Don’t touch plants or animals if you don’t know them
personally. They might bite, scratch, sting or poison you!
. Say hello to the people you meet. They’ll like that and you’ll
like it when they say hello back.
. Be honest and take responsibility if things go wrong. You’ll
get far more respect.
About Mission:Explore
Mission:Explore is a special kind of
training to help guerrilla geographers
(re)discover our world. Buy our books or
visit MissionExplore.Net to discover
more missions, earn points and win badges.
About The Geography Collective
We are a bunch of guerrilla geographers who love travelling
through time, exploring space, changing places, growing stuff
and thinking in new ways. To see what we’ve been up to visit
www.geographycollective.co.uk.
About the illustrator
Tom Morgan Jones’ work crops up in all manner of
places like children’s books, the backs of buses,
the sides of milk cartons and all over satirical
board games. Tom draws with a dip pen, often
making an inky mess, which is why he called his
website www.inkymess.com.
About Discover The World Education
Discover the World Education is a specialist study trips
programme providing tailor-made travel linked to the
curriculum, whether for field study or quite simply through
‘awe and wonder’. Carefully researched itineraries cover
a range of topics including geography, geology, science
& cross–curricular. We specialise in Iceland, Italy,
Morocco, Norway, China, Costa
Rica, New Zealand, Antarctica
and beyond... Find out more at
www.schools-discover.co.uk