Students from a Lemoyne Middle School’s sixth grade reading class completed their Iditarod unit by reading and writing about stories like: Balto, by Standiford, TOGO, by Blake, Where’s the Boss? by Harter for background knowledge of the Iditarod and sled dog experiences. We then read Gary Paulsen’s Woodsong.

One of the writing pieces they completed was the diamante poem format to reinforce identity of cause/effect relationships.

Line 1: Poem topic (the cause)

Line 2: Two adjectives about the cause/topic

Line 3: Three -ing words about the cause/topic

Line 4: Four nouns or a short phrase linking the cause/topic with its effect

Line 5: Three -ing words about the effect

Line 6: Two adjectives about the effect

Line 7: The effect

Diphtheria

 

bad, terrible

 

spreading, killing, dying

 

Disease kills; dog’s relay

 

sledding, mushing, delivering

 

fast, cold

 

dog race

 

Diphtheria broke out in Nome, killing many people,

so they held a dog sled relay race to get the serum for diphtheria there.

Leah S

 

Serum

 

for Diphtheria is needed

 

scary, deadly

 

killing, terrifying, spreading

 

Mushers must have a relay.

 

willing, helping, needing

 

important, life-saving

 

The serum is delivered!

 

Diphtheria breaks out in Nome and serum is delivered from 800 miles.

Dakota P

 

The ice breaks

 

and Balto’s feet get wet

 

worried, threatening

 

fracturing, freezing, frightening

 

Balto’s paws; Gunnar’s hands

 

rushing, rubbing, reacting

 

relieved, encouraging

 

Gunnar rubs Balto’s paws in

 

the powdery snow

 

to keep them from

 

freezing.

 

Balto’s feet got wet from the ice breaking and were in danger of freezing,

so Gunnar rubbed Balto’s feet in the powdery snow.

 

Jessica T

 

The sled slipped

 

and slid on the ice.

 

slick, slippery

 

worrying, falling, wobbling

 

Gunnar, medicine, snow, sled

 

panicing, devastating, terrifying

 

scary, breathtaking

 

Gunnar lost the

 

medicine.

 

The sled slipped and slid on the ice, so Gunnar lost the medicine.

 

Ellis W

 

The ice cracks.

 

freezing, unlucky

 

frustrating, exhausting, pacing

 

team stops to warm feet.

 

rubbing, tiring, saving

 

friendly, moral

 

Gunnar stopped to warm

 

Balto’s paws.

 

Brett L

Students used “TOGO” by Robert Blake, and then “Balto” by Natalie Standiford to further identify and describe characters and understand the history of the Iditarod. The students’ narrative poems were written to the following given defined characterization descriptions:

1. Character’s name
2. Two words describing the character
3. Three words phrase describing the setting
4. Four-word phrase stating the problem
5. Five-word phrase describing one event
6. Six-word phrase describing another event
7. Seven-word phrase describing a third event
8. Eight-word phrase describing a solution to the problem.

Balto

Energetic, determined

Nome, Alaska-1925

People have diphtheria disease.

Townspeople discuss the diphtheria problem.

Announcement gets put on the radio.

Sled dogs get sent out for Serum.

Gunnar gets the serum to everybody in time!

Leah S

Balto

Courageous, skilled

In Nome, Alaska

Get serum to Nome.

The Safety Point was deserted.

Balto and Gunnar saved the town.

The serum was given to the sick.

The serum cured the disease gotten there.

Rosalia L

Balto

Perservering, malamute

Harsh Alaska, 1925

Two children have diphtheria.

Twenty-one dog teams including Balto’s

A big blizzard came but mushers proceeded.

He slipped, fell, and lost the serum.

Balto was a hero when he delivered serum.

Jordan E

Balto

Trustworthy, strong

January 1925, Nome

Diphtheria outbreak in Nome

Balto is Gunnar’s lead dog.

Hand-off driver wasn’t at the checkpoint.

Diphtheria outbreak requires serum; stuck in Anchorage.

Balto gets to Nome and people are cured.

Mark K