Plainville resident and dog sled runner, Joan Kaczmarczyk, visited MSP on March 25th to speak with sixth graders about the care and training of sled dogs and the sport of sled racing. Students recently completed a unit of study in Reading/LA classes where they investigated wolf behaviors and read Gary Paulsen’s Woodsong. They also learned of his experiences running dogs in the Iditarod.
Each student chose a musher to follow in this year's Iditarod race and searched daily to see their musher's position. They read daily blogs and viewed photos and videos which were sent from the race, and they were able to track their musher's progress by GPS through the Iditarod's website. Ms. Kaczmarczyk was a primary source for students to further their research. Her presentation included an explanation of the features of the dog sled, a 'meet and greet' with her six Alaskan Huskies by the sixth graders.
Even with blue skies, and no snow, a few teachers and administrators were treated to rides on the ‘wheeled sled’ in the MSP field. The day ended with a question and answer session in the auditorium with Joan in order to further students' understanding of the care and treatment of sled dogs. In addition, MSP raised and donated $1000 to the “Second Chance” kennel where Ms. Kaczmarczyk has been a contributor.