I love how numbers can tell stories of the world around us. One of my challenges as a 2024 finalist was to write a post with lesson ideas using math. This was the night of the Anchorage Musher Banquet, and I found myself poring over the 2023 Musher Stats page in the Iditarod program. I …
On the surface, it may seem that there aren’t a lot of commonalities between dog sleds and spacecraft. After all, a sled is a structure designed for teams of dogs to pull loads across ice and snow. Spacecraft have many components including rocket engines, service modules housing life-support mechanisms, and astronaut living quarters. But there’s …
There is still time to join the postcard challenge!!! We are looking for classes or homeschool families from several states to round out our fifth annual Iditarod Postcard Challenge! If you join the project, you are committing to sending postcards to each class on the list between the start of school and when the …
Have you ever experienced a desire to accomplish something tremendous? It’s a feeling I can relate to! To continue the September theme of “What are they Pulling?” I want to talk about goal setting and tracking. 2024 Iditarod mushers have varied goals about the upcoming race. Canadian musher Rob Cooke says, “The goal is to …
By now teachers are back in the swing of the school year. We are diving into curriculum, analyzing data, working with coaches and mentors, and planning with our teams. We have our routines established. Our lives have returned to the rhythm of the school year. One thing we do here in Texas is a silent …
Fall brings images of football and many folks are drafting their fantasy football teams. But kids would much rather have a fantasy Iditarod team – 16 team members, 8 positions, 64 paws on the ground!! Use this updated Fantasy Dog Draft Lesson from Jen Reiter, 2014 Teacher on the Trail now – or wait until …
Welcome back to school! We are looking for classes or homeschool families from several states to round out our fifth annual Iditarod Postcard Challenge! If you join the project, you are committing to sending postcards to each class on the list between the start of school and when the first musher leaves the Iditarod starting …
A roaring noise rumbles overhead. Suddenly a jet screams through the sky, followed right behind by another one! This is a common sight and sound in my area of Houston—it is the excitement of astronauts in flight training with T-38 Talons. You may not exactly be training your students using high-powered aircraft, but teachers everywhere …
NOTE: This lesson plan was updated August 2023 to reflect active links and current race information. One more idea for room set up as the summer starts to wind down…. I am calling my classroom the 3A Dog Yard these days…. for reasons that I am sure you can understand! To get my students in …
Due to warm weather, 2003 was the first year the Iditarod Race started in Fairbanks, Alaska. My memorable checkpoint was Manley Hot Springs. My pilot dropped me off and I went exploring, talking to mushers and vets. I met Raymie, Barbara Redington and their young son, Ryan. They gave me a lift to the Manley …
