“Mush! Mush!” was the cry heard as third grade students at Cross Creek Elementary experienced the Iditarod, a yearly dog sled race in Alaska held to commemorate The Great Serum Run of 1925 that brought medicine to the village of Nome during a diphtheria outbreak. 

Named the “I-Kid-Arod,” the experience teaches the students about the characteristics of good sled dogs, the history of the race, including some of the famous mushers and their lead dogs, and also about Alaskan history and geography.

Third grade teacher Morgan Taylor used this exciting race as a platform for energetic and engaging learning that students would hopefully remember.  

“The I-Kid-Arod is such an amazing race and has an inspiring spirit of teamwork and determination,” said Taylor. “I think it is so special and something students could really get excited about. I wanted to share this awesome event with them in a way that allowed them to really get carried away with it.”

Racing across the Cross Creek campus, students had to race as teams through a series of checkpoints while completing tasks such as word problems, using map skills, and answering questions to show their knowledge and learn the history of the Iditarod. 

This is the sixth year students participated in this fun learning experience.