Students at Sunset Elementary School in Moultrie, Ga., celebrated Where The Red Fern Grows Week with a unique experience. The book by Wilson Rawls revolves around two Coonhounds, “Little Ann” and “Old Dan” in the Ozarks and their owner, a boy named Billy Coleman.

A Redbone Coonhound.

AKC Coonhounds Executive Field Rep Jimmy Phillips visited the school and spoke about showing and hunting with Coonhounds…and he brought a surprise guest – a Redbone Coonhound named “Dixie.”

“The kids were really surprised to have a dog at school. They’d never had a dog at school before,” Phillips said. “They all wanted to pet her, and Dixie loved it.”

“I stressed the importance of how to care for a dog and how to treat a dog,” Phillips said. “I explained to the students that a dog needs attention, medical care and food and water everyday.”

To add to the excitement of Phillip’s visit, CNS Television, using their Interactive Distance Learning (IDL) network, linked via a live videoconference with students in Baconton, GA, Shelby Co., AL and Kenosha, WI. The students at the three remote locations interacted real-time with Mr. Phillips and the students at Sunset Elementary School. They asked questions and heard the program presented by Phillips.

The most memorable question from the students was: How fast can Dixie run?, Phillips said. “Usually they ask how many puppies she’s had and how old she is. But the answer is that at her fastest, she could run 15-20 miles-per-hour for a short distance.”

Later that month, the same group of students got to hear “Coon tales” from the Liar’s Club. The club consists of local and out-of-state experienced coon hunters and storytellers. They spun their tales from Sunset Elementary School to Baconton, GA, Shelby Co., AL and Kenosha, WI, via a live videoconference. Besides all the fun, the students in all four locations are working on class-to-class collaborations with writing and social studies lessons.