IMPORTANT!  Please read the FLEX + LIVE section at the bottom.  This is a FLEX (no live meetings) class, with one optional LIVE social class at the end.  Questions?  Please message me.

I love the Iditarod!  I live here in Alaska, and March is such an exciting time of year when the sled dogs are ready to set out on the trail across the vast state of Alaska.  The race start is full of energy as sled dogs bark and pull at their harnesses and mushers perform their last checks before heading down the trail.

I'm excited to offer this unit-style course that incorporates academic components such as reading, math, STEM, geography, and more!  When I have taught this unit previously, students can easily forget they are learning because it's so much fun and they are working towards goals alongside the dogs and mushers.

In this course, learners will:
- Learn about this history of the Iditarod trail, historic mail routes, and the incredible fight to save lives from a deadly disease
- Tour Iditarod Headquarters in Wasilla, Alaska through video & photos I will personally share
- Attend the pre-race Veterinarian Check and Kennel Tour where we get up close to sled dogs who will be on the Iditarod trail within a few days, and learn about these amazing athletes from race veterinarians (I have paid a $100 educator registration fee to attend this special event and bring it to your learners)
- Experience the race start in Anchorage, Alaska through video & photos I will share in the classroom on race start day 
- Participate in the IditaRead.  This is a fun and engaging reading competition.  Learners will set reading goals, then track their reading progress along the Iditarod trail map and reach their goal in Nome, Alaska.  A suggested reading list about sled dogs and Alaska will be provided as part of this course.  Many books might be available through your local library.  Reading these books is not required, all reading counts towards learner's reading competition goal.
- Choose a musher in the 2024 race and track their progress through the checkpoints in the Alaskan Wilderness on their way to Nome.  Will your musher win?

Learner Interaction (Optional):
- Each learner can post a book review of their favorite book from their weekly reading.  These can be written or short video.  Other learners can comment and ask questions about book recommendations.
- Learners will record and submit their weekly reading minutes.  The teacher will update a class chart showing each learner's progress along the trail to Nome, Alaska.  Learners can cheer each other along in the IditaRead!
- Learners will record and post their STEM data collection sheets to the classroom and compare with another learner's data.
- Learners will record and update their selected musher's progress along the trail. 
- Learners can work together as teams to locate and collect scavenger hunt items along the Alaska Iditarod trail, recording those in the classroom.

FLEX + LIVE - I have designed this course to maximize both these course types offered on Outschool. 

LIVE - This is optional, and I'm offering it for those learners who want interaction with the teacher and other learners after the race.   It will be a fun and relaxed class as we get the chance to meet each other, talk about the race, congratulate the winners, celebrate reading accomplishments, and enjoy all the wonderful aspects of a live class.  This will be scheduled on Sat, Mar 23rd, 2024 at a time convenient for most learners.

FLEX - This is where all the action happens!   I decided I can give learners the BEST experience through FLEX.  Why?  
(1) I can't teach a live class from the start line of the Iditarod Dog Sled Race.  The dogs are excited and LOUD!  I will take pictures and video and post the same day so students feel they are part of the action.
(2) I will be participating in a pre-race behind the scenes tour where veterinarians check the dogs before the race and we get a private tour of a sled dog kennel.  A live class with students during this time also wouldn't work, BUT I will be taking questions from learners ahead of time and will post photos and videos of this behind-the-scenes tour the same day so students get their questions answered before the race even starts.  I have paid a $100 fee to bring this experience to your learner.
(3) Because it's a live event with daily progress checks for a couple weeks, I will be in the classroom daily during the race interacting with learners, posting race updates, and answering questions.  FLEX is a better format for daily interaction during this time than a LIVE class.

Questions?  Feel free to ask.  See you at the start of the race!