Activities
Here are some Olympic activities for students!
1. Create an Olympic Ring Logo
Have students watch Sarah Hyndman's Olympic Logo-A-Day video on on the Video/Audio/Images page, then using the resources on this website, have them research the Olympic rings logo to learn about its history and background.
Activity
Using a digital camera, have students create three Olympic ring logo pictures (or for fun, model your pictures after the Olympic ring failure at the Opening Ceremonies!), and upload them to a slideshow software like Slideshare or Microsoft Photo Story. Be sure to list materials used in your logo. Post the final product on My Big Campus.
Here's mine, using my favorite cinnamon candy.
Have students watch Sarah Hyndman's Olympic Logo-A-Day video on on the Video/Audio/Images page, then using the resources on this website, have them research the Olympic rings logo to learn about its history and background.
Activity
Using a digital camera, have students create three Olympic ring logo pictures (or for fun, model your pictures after the Olympic ring failure at the Opening Ceremonies!), and upload them to a slideshow software like Slideshare or Microsoft Photo Story. Be sure to list materials used in your logo. Post the final product on My Big Campus.
Here's mine, using my favorite cinnamon candy.
ISTE Standards:
1. Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and
processes using technology.
2. Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including
at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others.
1. Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and
processes using technology.
2. Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including
at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others.
2. Write a letter to Jesse Owens (Olympics and Black History Month)
Objectives
Procedures
Objectives
- Student will learn about the accomplishments of Jesse Owens.
- Students will learn about the views of the Nazi Party and the state of the Civil Rights movement in America in 1936.
- Students will practice their letter writing skills.
Procedures
- Explain to students that they will be learning about runner Jesse Owens and what his accomplishments symbolized to the world.
- Have students watch this video clip and read the biographical infomation on him.
- Have students research the 1936 Summer Olympics.
- Discuss world events and the state of the Civil Rights Movement in 1936.
- Ask students to generate a list of different types of people who may have been watching the 1936 Olympics. (Nazi supporters, Hitler, members of various ethnic groups, a black American, other athletes, etc.). Write the roles Nazi Supporter, Fellow Athlete, and African American as headings at the top of the board.
- Ask students to generate a list of emotions each group of people may have felt watching Jesse Owens' victories during the track and field events.
- Direct students to select one of the roles on the board, disregarding their personal feelings. Explain that they will be pretending to be a Nazi, an athlete, or an African American.
- Give students time to research the Nazi Party's views and the state of the Civil Rights Movement in America in 1936.
- From the point of view of their selected role, instruct students to write a letter using Google Docs to Jesse Owens describing their political beliefs and their feelings about his accomplishments in specific detail.
- Have students share their Google Doc with a classmate to peer edit, then share with the teacher.
3. Learning from the Past: Origin of the Modern Summer Games
Objective:
Introduction
Explain that societies value traditions and pass them down to each generation, but that we can also learn from and improve on the past.
Activity
Using the resources on this website, have students compare and contrast the modern and ancient Olympic games by creating and filling out a Venn Diagram. Then have students create a timeline using Dipity that traces an Olympic event from ancient times to the present, and then predict the changes that might occur in the sport in the future.
Objective:
- Students will compare and contrast the modern and ancient Olympic Games.
- Students will consider how people use ideas from the past to enrich the present.
Introduction
Explain that societies value traditions and pass them down to each generation, but that we can also learn from and improve on the past.
- Name products at the grocery store that say "New and Improved."
- Ask students to list the things that they wish could be continually improved and those things that they wish would stay the same.
Activity
Using the resources on this website, have students compare and contrast the modern and ancient Olympic games by creating and filling out a Venn Diagram. Then have students create a timeline using Dipity that traces an Olympic event from ancient times to the present, and then predict the changes that might occur in the sport in the future.
4. Can you predict the results?
In this lesson students will use the resources on this website (articles, video clips, images) to explore the events that comprise the 2014 Winter Olympics. Students will conduct research on how a selected event works, its history, related vocabulary terms, and the top athletes in the event. They will make a prediction on who will medal (support with evidence!), then track and report on the outcome of a selected event. Students will make a PowerPoint, Prezi, or Google Presentation (or another presentation software) of their findings, along with a Works Cited page. Presentations should include at least one video clip.
Standards
Grade: 07
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.7.1
Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
Grade: 07
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.7.7
Compare and contrast a text to an audio, video, or multimedia version of the text, analyzing each medium’s portrayal of the subject (e.g., how the delivery of a speech affects the impact of the words).
In this lesson students will use the resources on this website (articles, video clips, images) to explore the events that comprise the 2014 Winter Olympics. Students will conduct research on how a selected event works, its history, related vocabulary terms, and the top athletes in the event. They will make a prediction on who will medal (support with evidence!), then track and report on the outcome of a selected event. Students will make a PowerPoint, Prezi, or Google Presentation (or another presentation software) of their findings, along with a Works Cited page. Presentations should include at least one video clip.
Standards
Grade: 07
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.7.1
Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
Grade: 07
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.7.7
Compare and contrast a text to an audio, video, or multimedia version of the text, analyzing each medium’s portrayal of the subject (e.g., how the delivery of a speech affects the impact of the words).
5. Let's Expand the Olympic Events!
Description:
In this lesson, students will learn about the process that it takes to become a Winter Olympic sport. Students will first focus on the history of snowboarding, which is one of the more recent Winter Olympic events and one of the more popular venues for the younger viewing crowd.
Students will use their knowledge of snowboarding to create arguments for the addition of various other winter sports to the Olympics. The arguments will be crafted to form a persuasive written letter to convince the Association of National Olympic Committees to include additional winter sports in the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Additionally, students will individually craft a plan to draw attention to the Olympic goal of promoting women athletes around the world, a position that the Snowboarding Association holds in high regard.
Learning Objective: Students will evaluate the necessary criteria of adding a sport to the Winter Olympics.
Activity 1 Snowboarding in the Winter Games
Begin by having students watch Sage Kotsenburg land a “cab double-cork 1440” for the first time ever.
Discuss the appeal of snowboarding as an Olympic sport for the younger crowd. Have students research the history of snowboarding in the Olympics by reading this article, and come up with a list of reasons why they believe it was added as a Winter Olympic sport in 1998.
Activity 2 Olympic Committee Requirements
Begin by having students read the article “Twelve New Events Added to the Olympic Winter Games
Program for Sochi.” Have students pick out the considerations as why the IOC might add an
event to the Olympic games. These requirements should include:
• Universality
• Gender equality
• Youth appeal
• Economic cost of infrastructure
• Positive impact on the overall quota and the number of events
• Add value to the Olympic games
Have students discuss how they believe snowboarding, added in 1998, met the requirements by the IOC and was added as an Olympic event. Next, have students conduct research on the newest events added to the 2014 Winter Olympics. Research may be done individually or in small groups for sharing with the class.
Activity 3 Olympic Games Event Rubric
Have small groups of students conduct research on the current snowboarding events included
in the Olympics. The events are:
• Men’s and Women’s Halfpipe
• Men’s and Women’s Parallel Giant Slalom
• Men’s and Women’s Snowboard Cross
Using the snowboarding events as a guide, have students work individually to create a rubric for what they determine to be the requirements for what makes a winter sport a worthy Olympic event. Have students work in groups of four to compare their rubrics and compile the best descriptors.
Once the groups have completed their rubrics, have each group choose one additional winter Olympic sport (not related to snowboarding) for comparison of their rubric. Teams of students should make adjustments to their rubric as needed. Finally, come together as a class to develop one collaborative rubric.
*Lesson adapted from Ole Community
Description:
In this lesson, students will learn about the process that it takes to become a Winter Olympic sport. Students will first focus on the history of snowboarding, which is one of the more recent Winter Olympic events and one of the more popular venues for the younger viewing crowd.
Students will use their knowledge of snowboarding to create arguments for the addition of various other winter sports to the Olympics. The arguments will be crafted to form a persuasive written letter to convince the Association of National Olympic Committees to include additional winter sports in the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Additionally, students will individually craft a plan to draw attention to the Olympic goal of promoting women athletes around the world, a position that the Snowboarding Association holds in high regard.
Learning Objective: Students will evaluate the necessary criteria of adding a sport to the Winter Olympics.
Activity 1 Snowboarding in the Winter Games
Begin by having students watch Sage Kotsenburg land a “cab double-cork 1440” for the first time ever.
Discuss the appeal of snowboarding as an Olympic sport for the younger crowd. Have students research the history of snowboarding in the Olympics by reading this article, and come up with a list of reasons why they believe it was added as a Winter Olympic sport in 1998.
Activity 2 Olympic Committee Requirements
Begin by having students read the article “Twelve New Events Added to the Olympic Winter Games
Program for Sochi.” Have students pick out the considerations as why the IOC might add an
event to the Olympic games. These requirements should include:
• Universality
• Gender equality
• Youth appeal
• Economic cost of infrastructure
• Positive impact on the overall quota and the number of events
• Add value to the Olympic games
Have students discuss how they believe snowboarding, added in 1998, met the requirements by the IOC and was added as an Olympic event. Next, have students conduct research on the newest events added to the 2014 Winter Olympics. Research may be done individually or in small groups for sharing with the class.
Activity 3 Olympic Games Event Rubric
Have small groups of students conduct research on the current snowboarding events included
in the Olympics. The events are:
• Men’s and Women’s Halfpipe
• Men’s and Women’s Parallel Giant Slalom
• Men’s and Women’s Snowboard Cross
Using the snowboarding events as a guide, have students work individually to create a rubric for what they determine to be the requirements for what makes a winter sport a worthy Olympic event. Have students work in groups of four to compare their rubrics and compile the best descriptors.
Once the groups have completed their rubrics, have each group choose one additional winter Olympic sport (not related to snowboarding) for comparison of their rubric. Teams of students should make adjustments to their rubric as needed. Finally, come together as a class to develop one collaborative rubric.
*Lesson adapted from Ole Community
6. Create an Olympic Poster
Look at the Olympic posters link on the Video/Audio/Images page; now create your own poster! Ask students about the type of information and other features they would need to include on a poster advertising an Olympic Games. Discuss the use of text, logos, color, photographs and other images. Brainstorm these features, as well as any other ideas as shown below:
Look at the Olympic posters link on the Video/Audio/Images page; now create your own poster! Ask students about the type of information and other features they would need to include on a poster advertising an Olympic Games. Discuss the use of text, logos, color, photographs and other images. Brainstorm these features, as well as any other ideas as shown below:
Show students the Sochi 2014 poster and discuss the following questions with the class:
• What information is given?
• Are any photographs or other graphics used in the poster? Describe them.
• Where is the Olympic logo positioned? Why?
• What colours are used in the poster? Why?
• What font and style is used for the text? Why?
• Are there additional elements included, such as symbols or a national flag? Why?
• Are there different versions of the poster? Why?
Then using the Paint program or another free digital drawing program like inkscape, have students create their own Olympic themed poster. Then instruct them to upload their poster onto My Big Campus.
ISTE Standards:
1. Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and
processes using technology.
2. Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including
at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others.
*Some ideas from this lesson plan were adapted from the Australian Olympic Education Resource.
ISTE Standards:
1. Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and
processes using technology.
2. Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including
at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others.
*Some ideas from this lesson plan were adapted from the Australian Olympic Education Resource.
7. Bring the Winter Olympics Home
Description:
In this lesson, students will learn about the process that it takes to become a Winter Olympic venue. Students will use Google Maps to study the terrain of the upcoming Sochi site and compare it to various previous Olympic sites.
Learning Objectives
Activity 1: Mapping the Winter Games (Engage)
Begin by using a world map to locate Sochi and Vancouver. Use these two maps to ask students if they notice any common characteristics between the two locations. Then have students complete an equal comparison of Lake Placid, NY and Salt Lake City, UT. Finally, use all four locations to make comparisons.
Activity 2: Economic Impacts of the Winter Games
Introduce students to the article “10 Cities Interested in Hosting 2024 Summer Olympics.” This discusses Chicago’s failed bid attempt for the 2016 Winter Olympics, in which they spent $90 million only to be knocked out in the first round of voting. Discuss the potential positive and negative economic impact of hosting the Olympics.
Activity 3: The 2022 Olympic Alpine Venue (Apply)
Have students work in small groups to research the current list of candidates for the 2022 Winter Olympics (Almaty, Kazakhstan; Beijing, China; Krakow, Poland; Lviv, Ukraine; Oslo, Norway; Stockholm, Sweden). Using the class-generated rubric, determine which city is the most likely to win the bid, and make a presentation using PowerPoint, Prezi, or Google Presentation.
Activity 4: Olympic Alpine Venue Evaluation (Share)
Students present their presentations to the rest of the class, who will simulate members of the USOC. At the end of the presentations, the students will use the rubric that they’ve created, based on the criteria of an Olympic alpine venue. Students will then select the site they believe has the most potential to be the host for the 2026 Winter Olympic games.
*Lesson adapted from Ole Community
Description:
In this lesson, students will learn about the process that it takes to become a Winter Olympic venue. Students will use Google Maps to study the terrain of the upcoming Sochi site and compare it to various previous Olympic sites.
Learning Objectives
- Students will analyze the process by which the USOC selects a potential host city for a bid submission to the International Olympic Committee.
- Students will evaluate the necessary criteria of a potential site for the Winter Olympics, including geography and economics.
Activity 1: Mapping the Winter Games (Engage)
Begin by using a world map to locate Sochi and Vancouver. Use these two maps to ask students if they notice any common characteristics between the two locations. Then have students complete an equal comparison of Lake Placid, NY and Salt Lake City, UT. Finally, use all four locations to make comparisons.
Activity 2: Economic Impacts of the Winter Games
Introduce students to the article “10 Cities Interested in Hosting 2024 Summer Olympics.” This discusses Chicago’s failed bid attempt for the 2016 Winter Olympics, in which they spent $90 million only to be knocked out in the first round of voting. Discuss the potential positive and negative economic impact of hosting the Olympics.
Activity 3: The 2022 Olympic Alpine Venue (Apply)
Have students work in small groups to research the current list of candidates for the 2022 Winter Olympics (Almaty, Kazakhstan; Beijing, China; Krakow, Poland; Lviv, Ukraine; Oslo, Norway; Stockholm, Sweden). Using the class-generated rubric, determine which city is the most likely to win the bid, and make a presentation using PowerPoint, Prezi, or Google Presentation.
Activity 4: Olympic Alpine Venue Evaluation (Share)
Students present their presentations to the rest of the class, who will simulate members of the USOC. At the end of the presentations, the students will use the rubric that they’ve created, based on the criteria of an Olympic alpine venue. Students will then select the site they believe has the most potential to be the host for the 2026 Winter Olympic games.
*Lesson adapted from Ole Community
8. Create an Olympic Infographic
Discuss with students what infographics are and why they are used: An infographic is a way of organizing large amounts of information and transforming it into a visual diagram. They are "visual presentations intended to communicate complex information, data or knowledge quickly and clearly. By presenting information in a compact and creative format, infographics are able to quickly convey knowledge and engage its viewers." (piktochart.com) Show students examples: Olympic Torch Relay, Olympic Mascots, 2020 Olympics Host City, 50 Crazy facts about the Winter Olympics, Winter Olympics Facts and Figures. Discuss qualities of a good infographic, and have them vote on their favorite from the examples.
Activity
Divide students into small groups. Have one person from each group create a free account on Piktochart.com. Have them watch the tutorials. Using the resources on this website, come up with a theme for an Olympic infographic, then create one using Piktochart. Have groups upload their completed infographic onto My Big Campus to share with others.
ISTE Standards:
1. Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and
processes using technology.
2. Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including
at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others.
Discuss with students what infographics are and why they are used: An infographic is a way of organizing large amounts of information and transforming it into a visual diagram. They are "visual presentations intended to communicate complex information, data or knowledge quickly and clearly. By presenting information in a compact and creative format, infographics are able to quickly convey knowledge and engage its viewers." (piktochart.com) Show students examples: Olympic Torch Relay, Olympic Mascots, 2020 Olympics Host City, 50 Crazy facts about the Winter Olympics, Winter Olympics Facts and Figures. Discuss qualities of a good infographic, and have them vote on their favorite from the examples.
Activity
Divide students into small groups. Have one person from each group create a free account on Piktochart.com. Have them watch the tutorials. Using the resources on this website, come up with a theme for an Olympic infographic, then create one using Piktochart. Have groups upload their completed infographic onto My Big Campus to share with others.
ISTE Standards:
1. Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and
processes using technology.
2. Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including
at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others.