Iditarod Race
Created by Walter McKenzie - Creative Classroom
Consulting
January 22,
2000
I make no bones
about the fact that I love the Iditarod as an
integrated
Winter unit for the classroom. This year there are more
websites than
ever to help you do it up big with your students. And now
is the time to
begin your unit study: history, geography, traditions,
culture, musher
biographies and so much more. Regardless of how you plan
to approach the
topic, there's resources here for you.
In addition to
all the goodies offered here, you may wish to peruse my
short pieces on
a rationale for following the race
http://surfaquarium.com/romance.htm
and the humane treatment of the dogs during the race http://surfaquarium.com/dogs.htm
Beyond this, feel free to email me if you
have specific questions or resource needs you can't seem to find anywhere else.
I'll be glad to help you discover the excitement and possibilities of this
fabulous study!
Last Great Race
- http://www.edsoasis.org/TGuild/Lessons/Race.html
My own six week
unit for teaching the Iditarod, recognized as a
MasterSearch
contest winner last Spring by EDs Oasis. Loose guidelines
so you can
adapt it as you need, with basic time frames and essential
resources to
make your experience smooth and successful with the kids.
Let me know
what you think!
Official 2000
Iditarod Site - http://www.iditarod.com/
Yup, the
official site of the Iditarod Trail Committee. Lots of
information
here - everything you need to follow the race for FREE! But
watch out for
their School Store at the Teacher's Lounge - $$$$$!
Tilford on the
Iditarod Trail -
http://www.vinton-shellsburg.k12.ia.us/tms/seventh/rdg7/iditarod/idit.html
Judy Tilford's
fabulous class site designed to follow the 2000 Iditarod
- you'll love
her sense of humor!
The Great
Iditarod Reading Race -
http://www.indep.k12.mo.us/Elementary/impact/schrik/exchange/bookclub/clubhome.html
A great online
version of the Iditarod to encourage your class to read -
check it out!
Iditarod Tour -
http://www.virtualblackboard.com/webtours/idit-s/framever.htm
Online tour of
Iditarod web resources - easy to navigate and maintained
in your own
safe little frames environment
Picture
Portfolio - http://www.adn.com/iditarod/portfolio/index.html
Over a dozen
great pics from past races in thumbnail format for easy
loading - a
great supplement to your study
2Net Iditarod -
http://www.go2net.org/alaska/idita.htm
Lots of good
basic information in a plain format: Iditarod Trail Route
Map, Official
Race News, Weather, the 2Net Dog mushing page, Other Sled
Dog Races and
the Northern Lights Predictor!
ABCNews Special
Report -
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/sports/Iditarod/Iditarod_intro.html
Coverage of the
1998 race for those of us trying to get a feel for the
drama and
excitement the race offers
About Sled Dogs
and Sled Dog Racing -
http://www.rt66.com/~srlee/FAQ/sled_dogs.html
Stephen R.
Lee's coverage of the basics of mushing in simple, easy to
understand
format
AKC Alaskan
Malamute Page -
http://www.akc.org/breeds/recbreeds/alasmal.cfm
Wonderful,
detailed information on the breed that fuels the race; the
kids love the
dogs and this site makes you an instant authority on their
characteristics,
breeding and upkeep
Alaska Lesson
Plans -
http://www.kpbsd.k12.ak.us/akhistory/aktools.htm#akplans
Great material
for the teacher who wants to dig deeper into the history
and culture of
the land that gives us this enduring racing tradition
Alaska Official
Student Information Guide -
http://www.dced.state.ak.us/tourism/student.htm
Everything your
class will need to learn about state facts, economy,
geography,
boroughs, population, public lands, the pipeline, and so much
more.
Alaska Science
Explained - http://www.alaskascience.com/
Neal Brown
hosts this site, which includes a nice segment on the Aurora
Borealis and a
good presentation of remote mapping to boot
Alaska Web
Sites Iditarod - http://www.alaskan.com/iditarod/
Pics, audio
clips, collector's cards and profiles from last year's race
Alaska Wildlife
Notebook -
http://www.state.ak.us/local/akpages/FISH.GAME/notebook/notehome.htm
Great site on
all kinds of native animals presented by the Alaska
Department of
Fish and Game
Anchorage Daily
News - http://www.adn.com/iditarod/
No news
organization will cover the race like this hometown rag; nice
way to tie in
newspapers with all the other dimensions of an iditarod
unit
Alaska's
Iditarod Sled Dog Race -
http://tqjunior.advanced.org/3796/Index.htm
ThinkQuest
Junior entry with some worthwhile activities - once you get
past the
oversized text =)
John Beargrease
Sled Dog Marathon -
http://www.cloquet.k12.mn.us/was/Kim/newbear/bear1.html
Site of a
January sledding race with lots of links to other sledding
information and
activities
Beyond Land's
End - http://beyond.landsend.com/iditarod/prologue/
The Land's End
company features Bill Cotter, his family and his dogs as
he races and
prepares for his participation in the Last great Race -
nice, personal
insights
Black River
Sled Dog Site - http://www.gsinet.net/~blackrvr/Default.htm
Lots of great
information on mushing, the dogs, and the people who love
them
Build Your Own
Dogsled -
http://www.rt66.com/~srlee/JUNIOR/GARAGE/k12sled.html
OK, so you're
really into this race and you want to go above and beyond
with your class
this year? The directions are meticulous and
well-diagrammed.....have
at it!
Discover Online
-
http://www.discovery.com/area/exploration/iditarod/iditarod.html
Chronicles the
journey of Billy Snodgrass from the lower 48 to his first
run in the
Iditarod. Classic story!
Fairbanks
Daily-News Miner - http://www.newsminer.com/iditarod/
Newspaper out
of Fairbanks Alaska covering the race; currently it
presents the
coverage from last year's event
Fascinating
Facts - http://www.bena.com/lucidcafe/library/iditarod2.html
Lots of trivia
and historical facts you may not know yourself, or you
may want to use
to stump and impress your students
Blake Freking's
Site - http://www.ssanadyr.com/
Home page for
Blake's 2000 Iditarod team plus information on his Howling
Dog Farm
Hall of Fame - http://www.adn.com/iditarod/hallfame/members.html
Provided by the
Anchorage Daily News, check out the links on the 12
members of this
exclusive club
Vern Halter's
Iditarod Update - http://www.kelotv.com/halter/
Vern is a
regular in the race, and this page allows you to follow his
team
exclusively - check out the teacher's toolbox!
How to Help a
Musher - http://members.spree.com/sip/wolfsong/help.htm
You may not be
ready to take up a collection for large sums of money,
but this page
is useful even as a Math comparison to appreciate the
costs of
keeping and caring for a dog team
How to Support a
Musher -
http://members.spree.com/education/sunhusky/support.htm
Sister site of
"How to help..." brought to you by Sun Husky; lots of
addresses here
to help your class get in touch with actual Iditarod
personalities
Hyperstudio
Stack - http://168.99.7.17/bergerm/Iditarod.html
Hyperstudio
presentation of the Iditarod - be sure you download the
viewer to enjoy
it
Iditarod: The
Last Great Race -
http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/lesson103.shtml
Article I wrote
for Education World a year or so ago; gives examples of
ways to
integrate the Iditarod into your Winter curriculum
Iditarod 411 - http://www.designperfect.com/iditarod/
More links
(some duplicated) that help you delve into the many facets of
a classroom
Iditarod study
Iditarod
National Historic Trail -
http://www.anchorage.ak.blm.gov/inhthome.html
This trail was
designated by Congress in recognition of its significance
as a historic
transportation route; the system was created to provide
areas for
hiking and for meeting the outdoor recreation needs of an ever
expanding urban
population
Iditarod 1999 -
http://w3.nai.net/~chewie/iditarod.html
Nice
kid-centered site from last year's race. I don't know if it will be
updated for
this year, but it is still worth a look for the resources it
offers
Iditarod
Elementary School - http://www.ide.mat-su.k12.ak.us/
Located right in
Wasilla, this school is in the heart of Iditarod
country; a nice
way to have your class compare your environment with
that of the
Alaskans!
Iditarod in the
Classroom - http://www.rims.k12.ca.us/iditarod/class/
Bulletin board
for teachers plus books and activities covering Language
Arts, Math,
Science and the Social Studies
Iditarod
Weather -
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Bluffs/3892/ID99Weather/IDWeather.html
Maps and
forecasts for the race - regularly updated once the teams are
underway
Junior Mushers
- http://www.rt66.com/~srlee/JUNIOR/
Not updated
since '96, this site still has viable links and lots of
kid-appropriate
activities all pertaining to mushing - good for
elementary
students
Learning
Expedition - http://www.midtel.net/~burtont/
An online unit
for teachers - has yet to be updated for the upcoming
race, but still
useful for adapting as you like
Musher Mike - http://www.alaska.net/~mushmike/bio.htm
Great mushing
site for kids with loads of info and human interest
stories - check
out his Husky Howler newsletter too!
Mushing - http://www.mushing.com/
Online version
of the magazine devoted to sled dog racing; there's a
good bit of
information available here without having to get tangled up
in subscription
rates
Natives of the
Midnight Sun - http://library.thinkquest.org/26020/
ThinkQuest
presentation on the Inuit peoples of Alaska, their history,
culture and
traditions
Nome: The
Iditarod Finish Line -
http://www.alaska.net/~nome/iditarod.htm
Nice look at
the end of the race, the history of the red lantern, an
lots of facts
and statistics at your disposal
Northern
Virginia Fortune Seekers -
http://members.tripod.com/~jupiterx/pictures.html
Great pictures
from a family who won a free trip to last year's race
Gary Paulsen - http://www.scils.rutgers.edu/special/kay/paulsen.html
Paulsen page on
all his books, many of which have to do with dogs and
sledding -
nevermind the fact that he's an awesome writer
Libby Riddles -
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/frontiers/riddles.html
Libby was the
first woman to win the Iditarod, and this NASA feature is
part of their
Female Frontiers presentation online
Joe Runyan's
Iditarod Updates - http://www.joerunyan.com/ie_index.htm
Joe loves
working dogs, and he uses his site to tout the malamutes and
the Iditarod
with an array of resources suitable for classroom use
Snow Activities
- http://www.teelfamily.com/activities/snow/
Science, Art.
Literature and Food activities ready to go in your
classroom,
links to additional resources as well
Snowtastic - http://tqjunior.advanced.org/3876/
Award-winning
ThinkQuest entry on snow covering literature, health,
history and
science with games, activities and a bibliography to boot
Webquest - http://inkido.indiana.edu/w310work/Iditarod_webquest/
If you haven't
seen this site before, it's a good one; not too heavy on
the problem
solving but a nice product for following the race
Webquest - http://www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/fil/pages/webiditarodma.html
Different
webquest designed for seventh graders by Marty O'Connell of
New Hampton
Middle School; includes a very useful hypertext dictionary
Wild-Eyed
Alaska - http://www.hhmi.org/alaska/
Dedicated to
the wild life of Alaska - beautiful pics, audio and video
clips; a great
Science extension for your Iditarod unit
Women of the
Iditarod -
http://library.thinkquest.org/11313/Iditarod/index.html
Susan Butcher,
Libby Riddles, DeeDee Jonrowe and Mary Shields: four
reasons for the
saying "Alaska...where men are men and women win the
Iditarod"
Working Dog Web
- http://www.workingdogweb.com/Iditarod.htm
Lots of
information and some teacher links too - nice child-friendly
Design