stonefoxpg

Introduction Task Process Evaluation Conclusion Sources and Credits Teacher Page

Introduction Willy lives with his grandfather on a small potatoe farm in Wyoming. One day Willy cannot wake his grandfather up from sleep. This 10 year old boy is determined to make grandfather want to live again. Willy finds out the problem and enters the National Dogsled Race to win five hundred dollars in order to pay taxes that grandfather owes. It will be your quest to learn facts about dogsled racing. You can go through a race like Willy on the Iditarod and follow the unexpected turn of events during the race.

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Task After reading the book, work with a partner to find out more information about the Iditarod. You will investigate:

With your partner choose one journalist and a tracker

Map the participants in the race

Gather information from the media

Give an oral presentation on group activity

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Process
Choose 3 of the following activities to report on, one from each section.
Click on pictures for informational websites.


Jounalist choose 1	Tracker choose 1	Group Activity choose 1
Complete a daily journal as a reporter and describe the events of the race for 5 days.	Report the weather each day and chart it.	Design a three dimensional (3-D) model of a dogsled or create a drawing of one. Be creative, possibilities are clay, papier-mache, wood, paper, etc.
Write a newspaper advertisement, encouraging people to enter the dogsled race. Show a brief sketch of the race itinerary, the application form to enter the race, and a listing of prizes to be earned.	Create a map for the Iditarod, with details of miles to be covered, checkpoints for stopping places or timing checks, obstacles, viewing stands, and the finish line. Create a key to the map, showing the distance scale and the icons you have used.	Design ribbons, medals, or cerytificates to give to the participants in a dogsled race. Besides the grand proze, there may be other awards for beauty, grace, generosity, helpfulness, stamina, enthusiasm, etc. Be creative with the variety of awards that might be possible with a dogsled race.
Write a newspaper article, giving at least three details of the final outcome of the race.	Choose one of the participants from the race and map his/her course from day to day.	Imagine that the dogsled races are coming to your town! Everyone who enters will receive a T-shirt and a hat for participating in this great race. Design a dogsled race T-shirt, using the pattern given by your teacher.

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Evaluation On this webquest, you and your partner will earn points according to the rubric below.

End Product	5 points	10 points	15 points
Journalist	Journaling less than 4 days without 3 details. Advertisement or article is not clear and less than 3 paragraphs.	Journaling 4 to 5 days with 3 details. Advertisement or article is clear and has 3 paragraphs.	Journaling 5 or more days with 3 or more details. Advertisement or article is clear and has more than 3 paragraphs.
Tracker	Tracks weather less than 4 days. Map is less than 3 details and unclear.	Tracks weather 4 to 5 days with 3 details. Map has 3 details and is clear.	Tracks weather 5 or more days with 3 or more details. Map has more than 3 details and is clear.
Group Activity	Oral presentation is unclear and less than 3 minutes.	Oral presentation is clear and 3 to 5 minutes.	Oral presentation is clear and over 5 minutes.
Scoring Rubric	15 to 20 points = C	20 to 25 points = B	30 points = A

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Conclusion Now that you have followed the Iditarod, you may want to learn more about Alaska and the Iditarod history. Here are some more websites for you to explore.

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Sources and Credits

Use of computer lab

Literature Unit "A Guide for Using Stone Fox in the Classroom by Pat Anell, Peg Isakson, Jeannine Myers, Donna Shay. Publisher: Teacher Created Materials.

Scholastic Iditarod and Mush!

Thank you to the following sites for use of pictures and background: Alaska Dog Mushers Association, Iditarod Sled Dog Race, Iditarod 2000, Dogsled.com., Iditarod Kid Links, and Alaskan Sled Dog and Racing Association

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Teacher Page After reading the book Stone Fox by John Reynolds Gardiner, you can follow this WebQuest. This WebQuest is best during the Iditarod race which takes place the first week in March.

Materials needed: The novel Stone Fox, journals, map of the Iditarod, group activity materials of your choice, computers with Internet access.

This WebQuest page is designed for students in grades three through five. This WebQuest is connected to Illinois State Standards and National Standards. Below are the individual standards listed:

Language Arts Reading State Goal 1: Read with understanding and fluency.
1A2a, 1A2b, 1B2a, 1B2c, 1B2d, 1C2a, 1C2b, 1C2c, 1C2d, 1 C2f

Language Arts Literature State Goal 2: Read and understand literature representative of various societies, eras, and ideas.
2A2a, 2A2b, 2A2c

Language Arts Writing State Goal 3: Write to communicate for a variety of purposes.
3A2, 3B2a, 3B2b, 3C2b

Language Arts Listen and Speak State Goal 4: Listening and speak effectively in a variety of situations.
4A2b, 4B2a, 4B2b

Language Arts Reasearch State Goal 5: Use the language arts to acquire, assess and communicate information.
5A2b, 5C2a, 5C2b

Math Estimation and Measurement State Goal 7: Estimate, make and use measurements of objects, quantities and relationships and determine acceptable levels of accuracy.
7A2a, 7B2a, 7C2a

Math Data, Analysis, and Probability State Goal 10: Collect organize and analyze data using stutistical methods; predict results; and interpret uncertainty using concepts of probability.
10A2a, 10A2c, 10B2a, 10B2b, 10B2d

Social Studies State Goal 17: Understand world geography and the effects of geography on society, with an emphasis on the U.S.
17 A2a, 17A2b, 17C2b

Science State Goal 12: Understand the fundamental concepts, principles, and interconnections of life, physical and earth/space sciences.
12E2a

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