Student+Handout

You are about to begin a journey which will continue for the next three weeks. During this time, you will assume the role of a musher in the Iditarod race in Alaska. Before you become one of the mushers, you need to gather some information to help you along the way.

You will need use the hotlist [|__http://www.kn.att.com/wired/fil/pages/listiditarodde2.html__] to go to each site listed on this page to find answers to questions and gather information that you will be useful to you during this unit on the Iditarod.

Task 1: Using your computer, go to [|__http://www.kn.att.com/wired/fil/pages/listiditarodde2.html__] and click on the link for Task 1. ([|__http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/iditarod/historic/index.asp?article=historic_iditarod__]) Here you will find information that will tell you about the history of the iditarod.

Vocabulary Work: Write a description of what these words mean.

serum:

commemmoration:

Answer the following questions. When was the first Iditarod race?

How long did it take the first winner to finish the race?

How long did it take the winner from last year to finish the race?

Why is there an Iditarod Race?

**Task 2:** Go back to the hotlist. Watch the first four slides of an audio slide show. ([|__http://teacher.scholastic.com/scholasticnews/indepth/serum_run/__]) Does this information agree with what you leaned from the other site about the history of the Iditarod Race? Write down any differences that you noticed.

**Task 3:** <span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">Again use the hotlist to go to ([|__http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/sled-dogs-an-alaskan-epic/interactive-dogsledding-101/4355/__])to get some information about the dogs, sleds, and your job as a musher.

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">Click on the picture of the dogs, sled and musher to find the answers to the following questions. You will use this information later on in your journal when you “become” a musher.

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">Which type of sled would the mushers use to run the Iditarod? A Tobaggon sled or a Basket sled? Why? What differences do you notice between the two types of sleds?

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">What are some of the types of dogs used for sled dogs?

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">What holds the mushers gear?

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">How do mushers tell their dogs to get going?

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">**Task 4:** <span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">One of the most important parts of being a musher is having good sled dogs. This site will give you more information about sled dogs. You **will** need this information to help you be a good musher! Use the hotlist to go to ( [|__http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/iditarod/dogs_life/index.asp?article=dogs_life__]). <span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">According to the mushers that were interviewed... what makes a good sled dog?

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">Who was interviewed?

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">Why do you think they were chosen?

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">What kind of dogs do you think you would choose for sled dogs if you were building a dog team? Why? What characteristics would you look for in the dogs?

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">Extra Credit:

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">Go to the following site (from the hotlist) and find out a little bit about a museum that is located at one of the checkpoints on the Iditarod Race Trail. ([|__http://www.travelalaska.com/Destinations/Communities/Wasilla.aspx?tab=3__])

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">What is the most unusual exhibit at the iditarod trail headquarters log cabin museum?

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">Does this information on the history of the race match what the other two sites said?

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">Did you discover any new information about the history of the race? What?