In the winter the 1st Grade Goats do a mini-unit on sled dog racing. This is a nice extension of the wolf unit that we do in the fall. We begin by learning about the Medicine Run of 1925. Sled dog teams were used in Alaska to bring medicine from Anchorage to Nome to treat a diphtheria outbreak there. We read many books about this historic event, learning about the importance of the lead sled dog in a team, and how the Iditarod was created in 1973 to bring sled dog racing back to Alaska as sled dogs had been replaced by snowmobiles.

We learned all about how to train a team, the equipment used, the dangers on the trail, how to care for the dogs, and the roles of the lead dog, the swing dogs, and the wheel dogs. We started training in teams using harnesses made with old neckties. The children had to learn to run as a team and follow the commands of the musher or driver. After training, we ran the 5th Annual Jr. Iditarod on the soccer field. The teams had to stop at each checkpoint and change positions. All of the teams not only completed the race once but ran it 2 or 3 times! They were all able to dodge some moose on the trail. “It felt really good to run in the race and was really fun, plus it was a lot of hard work!” shared 1st Grade Goat, Raleigh.

Several years ago we invited the Iditarod Teacher of the Year, Jen Reiter to visit the class and teach us all about what it is like to be in Alaska and see The Last Great Race. She showed us all of the layers of clothes that she had to wear, which was fascinating to see firsthand. A teacher is chosen each year to witness the Iditarod and to talk about his or her experiences in schools. As we speak, we are following this year’s Iditarod race of 2021 and routing for musher, Jeff Deter, who is the uncle of a former Burgundy student. He is currently in 12th place!