This inquiry based project looked closely at "Why do animals go extinct as well as the whole notion of extinction in our world today." Students were able to develop new perspectives and understandings. They made connections between their community and the world. These connections linked the notion of extinction issues in the world to issues within their community of Bragg Creek. Issues of extinction from the world became relevant issues that they explored in their community. What impact did these issues hold for them now and for others in the future? It was a two-year focus for students beginning in Grade One and journeying together through Grade Two. They followed a process of inquiry that evolved as much as it was directed.

As with most science, the most exciting aspect of the study of extinction is not necessarily what we've found out, but the questions that remain to be answered. The subject of mass extinctions is still a 'hot topic' in the scientific community, and new discoveries are made each year.

Extinction is, quite literally, the end of a particular evolutionary line, the end of a species, a family, or a larger group of organisms. While it may be bad news for the victims, it's a 'natural' event in the history of life on earth. Extinctions, mostly at the level of species, have been occurring constantly at a low 'background rate', usually matched by the rate at which new species appear - with the result that biodiversity is constantly increasing.

But there have been periods in the Earth's history when biodiversity crashes. Indeed this has been a powerful force in evolution, wiping the slate clean of up to 96% of all species, and providing the survivors with a world full of opportunities into which they can diversify. These are the mass extinctions, when more than 50% of the Earth's species vanish in the geological instant of a few million years.

Some paleontologists argue that there have been times when species have not gone extinct but adapted and changed to deal with the changed ecosystem in which they find themselves. In fact some even contend that dinosaurs live! The long-lost creatures are still with us as birds.