dogsledding project

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Thank You, Heckmans!

Our Iditarod grand finale was a visit from our real NH mushers—the Heckmans.

They shared some of the character qualities required in their sport, such as discipline, healthy choices, patience, and planning.  They also showed us ways that working hard in school is important in real life.  The following is an excerpt from our i-movie script, which will be part of our presentation at the spring meeting of the New England Sled Dog Club.  We hope to encourage other mushers to get involved in their local schools the way the Heckmans have.

 

Danny:  How cool!  A sprinting sled!  We saw the brakes and the hook for hooking into the ground.

 

Alyssa:  I liked getting attached to the sled, and I learned that the dogs are treated nicely but don’t get baths as often as my dog Hot Rod.

 

Phalen:  My favorite part of our visit was getting hitched up like the dogs.  I LOVED the dogs because they were cute.

 

Tylor:   It was cool to see the dogs and the sled.

 

Kelsey:  I like that we got to be hitched to the sled and see how the team stretches very far in front of the sled!  We felt like sled dogs!

 

Madisen:  We learned they don’t put booties on the sprint racing dogs.  I loved that the Heckmans brought dogs with them!

 

Kayla:  I liked being able to see how the harnesses go on the dogs.  We also saw how the vests go on to keep them extra warm.  My favorite part was petting the dogs.

 

 

ALL:  THANK YOU!!!!!!  MUSH ON!!!!

 

 

 

 

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Iditarod-Inspired Poetry

Breath of the Iditarod

by Mrs. D. Shedd

I huff; I puff, blow powerfully about, and shout.

I whine, I whistle, swirling sounds all around.

I moan, I groan, eerily frightening, and cold.

I howl, I growl, wild, menacing, and mean.

I am the bitter voice of the blustery, boisterous North wind.

 

 

 

Love of the Race

by Miss Blessing

 

I yelp and yip, ready for the Last Great Race.

I tug on the line to show my strength.

I run and run and run,

Mile after mile after mile.

On rest breaks, I gobble my salmon snacks.

I snoot and sniff in the powdery snow.

How I love the speed!

How I love my musher!

I am the loyal, fast-as-the-wind Iditarod dog.

 

Now check out the students’ blogs to read their Iditarod poems.

<a href=”http://www.newfound.k12.nh.us/elemtech/4bloggers0809.htm”>Student Blogs</a>

 

 

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Interactive Maps–Math is Everywhere!

One of the “wicked cool” features of the Iditarod website is its interactive map.  We are becoming experts on graphic sources in our reading curriculum, so we knew right what to do to read and understand the map.

    

 We investigated sections of the trail. Some are dangerous.  Some are long.  Each section has its own challenges.  

We shared our favorite facts.  Calooloo shared that the Yentna River can be dangerous because the water slowly moves under the ice and can overflow onto the top of the ice.  Chunky Monkey was fascinated by Unalakleet, where the powerful winds off the sea can complicate the race.  

We used the mileage between the checkpoints to calculate our data landmarks.  Here is what we found.

Minimum:  11 miles

Maximum:  112 miles

Range:  101 miles

Mode:  48 miles

Median:  46.5 miles

Mean:  46 miles

We think the mushers have to be knowledgeable mathematicians in order to plan out their racing strategy. Math is everywhere, even the Iditarod!

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Investigating the Mushing World

Last week our park rangers helped us to investigate some background information about mushing.  We used it to create writing pieces.  We are still busy putting on finishing touches, but we thought you’d enjoy a few excerpts from our rough drafts.  Check out our individual blogs to read our full pieces in a few days.

Our Blogs

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“There was once a dog named Willow, with two different-colored eyes.  She was a Boston terrier who wanted to run in the Iditarod.  She always tried to sneak in the race.  One day . . . ” (Calooloo)

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“Dogs, come home with me!  

Go to the race with me!  

And we will win the race!” (Candy Corn)

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“What’s your favorite thing to do?  Dogsledding!  Dogsledding!

I know that you love dogsledding.

So why are you standing here?

You need to be riding up the mountain.” (Scout)

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“The lead dog is the first in the team. He is smart.  He is intelligent.  He knows what to do and listens to the musher.  They are all a great working team!” (Fried Chicken)

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Hot Rod:  “How did you guys like the Iditarod?”

Molly:  “I loved it when you guys made that smooth turn.  The wind felt good on my paws.”

Willow:  “Even though I sat in the sled, I could feel all the action.”  (Big Heart)

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“It’s time to get racing.

The mushers are ready to ride.

Put on the harnesses.

Pull the booties on your feet.

We’ll keep the dogs running

At a steady beat.” (Lightning Boy)

 

 

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Investigating the Junior Iditarod

 

This week’s integrated mushing activity was a literacy lesson focused on the Junior Iditarod.  We read Wind-Wild Dog by Barbara Joosse.  “The night Ziva was born, the wind held its breath.”  What amazing descriptive language!  We discussed mushing wonderings and vocabulary.  Then it was on to our inquiry of the day:  What is the Junior Iditarod?

 

We read about mushers close to our own age, and then chose one musher to zoom in on.  

Picking out important information about the musher gave us facts we needed to create a poster about the musher.

 

In just a few weeks, these young mushers will race on their own across 150 miles of Alaskan wilderness, and we’ll be cheering them on from New Hampshire.  The Iditarod countdown is on!

 

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Mushing Kickoff 2009!

 

Can it be Iditarod season already?  What an exciting day it was Thursday when our dear park rangers, Jen Rockett and Karen Hoey, arrived to begin our mushing unit.  We enjoyed the thrill of a night ride with the huskies in Dogteam by Gary Paulsen.  

Then we used our reading and research skills to explore Alaska using an Alaska Hunt, some great books, and Miss Blessing’s handout folder of websites.  

Do you know who Balto is?  Have you seen an Alaskan volcano?  What animals would a musher see while out on a training run?  We found out, and we can’t wait to find out more.  Stay tuned!

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Our Own NH Mushers: The Heckmans

 all-of-us.jpgjunior2.jpg

 

As we celebrated Lance Mackey’s victory in the 2008 Iditarod Wednesday, we got to experience a bit of the sport in our own room.  We welcomed Bob and Martha Heckman, retired mushers from right here in New Hampshire, and their sled dog, Junior. The Heckmans demonstrated the use of dogsledding equipment, fascinating their audience.  We were seeing in real life some of the things we had read about, like dog booties and ganglines! 

 junior.jpg

We got to pet a real sled dog, and they even hitched us to the sled to see if we had teamwork like the dogs do! How we thank our local park rangers, Jen Rockett and Karen Tryon, for introducing us to the Heckmans.  Also, many thanks to the Heckmans for giving to the community in this way.  Learning is truly exciting, and we won’t ever forget our Iditarod challenge. 

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Go, Mushers!

Have you heard cries of “Gee” or “Haw” coming from the fourth grade classroom?  Our Iditarod dogsledding unit is here again, full of tales of daring and courage, calculations of miles and rations, and characters both human and canine.  Our park rangers have returned to challenge us in our learning.  This week each student wrote a different writing prompt based on online research of an individual question.  Here are snippets from several of the pieces.

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Windy:  I am cozy in my straw bed, but I can’t wait for the race to start.  Can you, Running Dog? Running Dog:  I can’t wait!  I am fast and cold.   Windy:  You are very fast.  Are you the lead dog?  Running Dog:  Yes, Windy.  I lead the dogs and show them where to go.   Windy:  What is your favorite part of the Iditarod race? Running Dog:  I like the freezing wind and the frozen river and the mountains over Rainy Pass.  I can’t wait to start the race!

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kendall.jpgfrida.jpg

 Hi!  My name is Bunny.  I’m a sled dog veterinarian.  I check the dogs to make sure they are drinking enough water so they don’t get dehydrated.  I listen to their hearts and lungs to make sure they don’t have pneumonia. 

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The Last Great Race

written by all the fourth graders

On your mark, get set, sled! There they go, through blistering below-zero temperatures and wind chills, terrible frost, ice, snow, bare patches, sleepiness, and injuries. One of the challenges is Rainy Pass, the highest spot as the mushers race over the Alaska Range at 3,160 feet. They watch for dangers on the mountainsides and from the wildlife such as moose or bison. It’s the Iditarod, the last great race, and we’re chasing it down with our READING! The fourth grade is spending two weeks reading like crazy about the Iditarod to wrap up our dogsledding unit.

Every day we are going on the computers during silent reading to read on the Iditarod sites. We check in to see the posting of the results of the race so far. We are in book groups to read all kinds of cool Iditarod books such as Wood Song, Balto, Stone Fox, Iditarod Dream and many more. We read and discuss the books, almost feeling the wind on our faces as we go along. We’ve enjoyed the booming voice on the podcast, highlighting the exciting moments of the race. Also, we are running the magnificent Iditarod race trail in our room. We’re reading a mile a minute! We calculate our minutes so that we can tell which checkpoint we’ve passed on our trail map. Our excitement is contagious, for Miss Holloran has joined one team too.

As the Iditarod Fact Book says, “Danger, suspense, low temperatures, high hopes, and the love of the dogs . . . nonfiction doesn’t get any better than this.” And we love it!

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Our Hearts are on the Trail

The Glory
By Blushing Deer

“Wasilla, mush!” my musher calls.
I can feel the gold brown dog gain speed, and I how to let Kaltag, Nikoli, and Takona know that it is time to use all their strength and leg power. Together we pound snow in each other’s faces.
Before I realized what has happened, I am in deep pain, and my paw fails to hold me up.
“Yetna, easy now, girl,” and Lance is quickly at my side. A bootie is wrapped around my paw. I limp over to the sled and climb into the basket.
Takona takes my place, and we’re off in a flash. We trot through an arch of trees. Before ten minutes has passed, I can see the glistening streets of Nome and the glory that awaits all of us!

Snow
By Dancing Cloud

I wait in whirly, swirly silence.
I plop and pelt you while you rest.
I am cold.
I am white.
I am the powerful snow on the Iditarod trail.

Sled Dog
By Fast Runner

I pull; I tug with my powerful paws.
I run as fast as a great lion.
I run and I play.
I have two unknown ways of me.
I lead my team to victory.
I am the wind-wild dog.

Zing
By Snowstorm

I am Zing, the great lead dog that zooms, zips, and zings.
I am a retired dog, but I teach the young pups what the legend was.
They always say, “I want to be as great as you.”
I run in front of them to teach them the way.

Sled Dog
By Flarbnigle

I race.
I rush to cross the finish line.
I zoom.
I zap.
I speed.
I swoosh.
I bark.
I am the sled dog, and HERE I AM!

Rainy Pass
By Fast Runner

I am the strange and powerful–
My ferocious wind and I.
I stun.
I freeze.
I am Rainy Pass.

Musher
By Trickling Water

I am the musher.
I watch down on my rushing dogs.
I feel that out of all of the people that entered this race,
I am going to win!
My dogs rush through turns and the bumpy paths
And the blistering winds.
I am the musher.

Iditarod
By Chloe

I am running through the melting snow.
I am running track.
I am going through a tundra.
I am going to make it to the finish line and WIN.
I am a dog racing in the Iditarod.

Sled Dog
By Stinky Cheese

I run and run until I get tired.
I frolic in the snow until there is no more.
I’m quick, and
I’m slick.
I am the fast sled dog.

Extreme
By Snow Song

I lure you with the unbelievable adventure.
I tempt you with the love of the heroic dogs.
I toss you the howling wind, the dangerous predators.
I frost your toes, your fingers, and your eyebrows
With a blast of arctic air.
I trick you with the weary, sleepless nights.
Are you exhausted?
Can you beat me?
I thrill.
I throw down the gauntlet of extreme challenge.
I am the Last Great Race, the mighty Iditarod.

Wind-Wild Dog
By Singing Mermaid

I pull the other dogs and make them want to keep running.
I pull and tug at the gangline.
I hit the blistering snow, but I keep going.
I have a brown eye and a blue eye.
I won the race.
I am the wind-wild dog.

Skookum
By Cat

I help train the new dogs.
I even help some old dogs.
I am in the middle.
I run with speed.
I am a skookum.

Sled Dog
By Four Wheeler

I like to go fast on the trails.
My paws kick up clumps of snow.
I go as fast as a snowmobile speeding across the white snow.
I race.
I fly.
I am quiet on the snow.
I am the fast sled dog.

Wind-Wild Dog
By B2

I run like the wind.
I sound like swoosh on the sparkling snow.
I run as fast as an 18-wheeler zooming on the highway.
I love the race.
I am wind-wild dog.

Lead Dog
By Shnigellard

I run like the wind across the swirling snow.
I am first across the finish line.
I zoom.
I steamroll to victory.
I am the lead dog.