Iditarod Amy Spilker, Tall., Florida Grade Level: 4th

This board serves as the tracking headquarters for the Iditarod, an Alaskan dogsled race, held annually starting the 1st week in March. Students search for information about their favorite mushers online and print off articles and photos from the websites they visit. We add to the board daily as the 3-14 day race progresses. The racers come from all over the world to participate in this race.

To prepare for the race we read Balto, a story about the great serum race, which is what the Iditarod commemorates. We compare the original trail to the current race trail. We watch clips from the previous year�s race. Students select their mushers the week before the race starts. Then they track their mushers daily via the internet and we watch news-clips online from the Anchorage news station, KTUU Channel 2. Last year we were able to watch the leaders finish the race live online. At the conclusion of the race we write to our favorite mushers and add their responses as well as souvenirs they send us to the board.

The center of the board contains the official race patch, trail map, & calendar purchased through www.iditarod.com. The right side features racer bios, signed postcards, signed musher cards, racer�s kennel brochures, signed racing posters, team patches, and even a signed doggie bootie. Most of the color photos are printed and displayed with permission from www.adn.com (Anchorage Daily News� website) & www. iditatord.com. The left side features our top musher picks and a key of their symbol on the map. A few other items such as the plush husky dog, mini racing sled, postcards, and placemats were acquired on during a trip I took to Alaska.