Sled Dog Ed

Dear Teaching Companions,

The Junior Iditarod is a dog sled race for young mushers ages 14-17 that takes place the Saturday before the Iditarod Sled Dog Race. This year it will be on Saturday, February 27, 2016, starting in Knik Lake. Much information about this race is found on the Junior Iditarod Home Page. I thought you might want some research activities your students can do to investigate this race, learn about the Junior Mushers as well as work on mathematical problems relating to the race. The math problems could become a “Problem of the Day” or be put on task cards in stations for students to solve with others. The musher trivia items could be done the same way. All questions involve students using and navigating the Junior Iditarod website. Have fun exploring and learning about the Juniors!

Math Problems (Junior Iditarod>2016 Mushers>View Musher Roster as a List)

1. How many total entries are there for the Junior Iditarod 2016 Race? (12)
2. How many of the entries are veterans? How many are rookies? (Veterans: 7, Rookies: 5)
3. Using those numbers, what fraction of the total entries are veterans? What fraction are rookies? (Veterans: 7/12, Rookies: 5/12)
4. Using those fractions, what percent are veterans? What percent are rookies? (Veterans: 58%, Rookies: 42%)
5. How many males versus females are entered in this year’s race? Can you write that number as a percent of the total entries? (Males: 6, 50%, Females: 6, 50%)
6. What is the average age of the mushers for the 2016 Junior Iditarod? (16)

Junior Iditarod Research Items

1. What are the mandatory items that a Junior Iditarod musher needs to carry on his/her sled? What are some optional items that the musher may carry on the sled?

(Junior Iditarod>Rules & Entry Forms>Information Items>Sled Check Sheet with Sign In Info) or

(Junior Iditarod>Rules & Entry Forms>2016 Race Rules)

2. How many mandatory stops do the Junior Iditarod mushers have to make? (One 10-hour stop)

(Junior Iditarod>Rules & Entry Forms>2016 Race Rules)

3. What is the minimum and maximum number of dogs that a Junior Iditarod Musher can begin the race with? What is the minimum number of dogs that must be on the team at the finish? (Minimum at start: 7, Maximum at start: 10/Minimum at finish: 5)

(Junior Iditarod>Rules & Entry Forms>2016 Race Rules)

Junior Iditarod Musher Trivia

Use the following website link to read about each of the 2016 Junior Iditarod Mushers and then answer the trivia questions. (Junior Iditarod>2016 Mushers)

1. Which Junior musher is using Iditarod finisher, Christine Roalofs’ dogs? (Ksenia Deits)
2. Which Junior musher participates in ballet and also enjoys reading, gardening, and crafting? (Rose Capistrant)
3. Which Junior musher plans to attend college at Brigham Young University? (Chandler Wappett)
4. This Junior musher is on the swim team in high school and won the Humanitarian Award for the 2015 Junior Iditarod. Who is it? (Marianna Mallory)
5. Which Junior musher enjoys building hot rods and dog sleds? (Dakota Schlosser)
6. Which Junior musher comes from a family in which five of the seven children have run the Junior Iditarod? (Joan Klejka)
7. This Junior musher is in the National Honor Society at high school and plans to study engineering in college this fall. Who is it? (Kyle Jones)
8. Which Junior musher is Inupiaq and living outside of Kotzebue in a primarily subsistence lifestyle? (Bailey Schaeffer)
9. This Junior musher plays in band and plans to attend the University of Alaska to major in geology. Who is it? (Jessi Downey)
10. This Junior musher had a sled dog pet that was the topic of an article published in “Mushing” magazine? Who is it? (Denver Kay Evans)
11. Which Junior musher was last year’s champion? (Kevin Harper)
12. Which Junior musher is homeschooled and enjoys hunting, trapping, fishing, and running? (Andrew Nolan)

Even though I have retired as a sled dog, I am always ready to learn new things from the pups at the kennel. They are so eager to be trained and ready to experience so much. Those new puppies are the future of our dog sled teams. Teachers, encourage your students to get to know the upcoming and future Iditarod mushers. Who knows, maybe one of your students will someday be a part of the Junior Iditarod!

Time for me to trot on down to the puppy yard as it is storytelling time! The young dogs will be anxiously awaiting my visit and ready to gather around to hear my tales from the trail.

~Sled Dog Ed