Primary
The Olympic and Paralympic Games
The children will:
- develop information management skills by researching the background of the Olympic and Paralympic Games;
- know a range of facts about both the Olympic and the Paralympic Games; and
- prepare an effective presentation/film clip about the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Statutory Requirements:
Personal Development and Mutual Understanding
Teachers should enable pupils to develop knowledge, understanding and skills in valuing and celebrating cultural difference and diversity.
The World Around Us
Teachers should enable pupils to develop knowledge, understanding and skills in:
- how they and others interact in the world; and
- how place influences the nature of life.
Cross-Curricular Skills:
Communication
Pupils should be enabled to:
- speak clearly and adapt ways of speaking to audience and situation;
- find, select and use information from a range of sources; and
- communicate information, meaning, feelings, imaginings and ideas in a clear and organised way.
Using ICT
Pupils should be enabled to:
- access, select, interpret and research information from safe and reliable sources;
- communicate safely and responsibly using a range of contemporary digital methods and tools, exchanging, sharing, collaborating and developing ideas digitally;
- talk about, review and make improvements to work, reflecting on the process and outcome and consider the sources and resources used, including safety, reliability and acceptability; and
- manage and present their stored work and showcase their learning across the curriculum, using ICT safely and responsibly.
Thinking Skills and Personal Capabilities:
Managing Information
Pupils will:
- select, classify, compare and evaluate information; and
- communicate with a sense of audience and purpose.
Working with Others
Pupils will:
- listen actively and share opinions; and
- take personal responsibility for work with others and evaluate their own contribution to the group.
Connected Learning Opportunities:
PE
Pupils make links with the practical aspects of their athletics, games, gymnastics and swimming programmes that are more fully outlined in the PE section of this resource.
Activity
Background
Introduce the topic to the class by showing and discussing images from the Olympic Movement official site www.olympic.org/photos on an interactive whiteboard (IWB). Play short video clips from the Beijing Olympic Games or the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games website to introduce the topic.
Ask the children to work in pairs or groups and write down all the facts they know about the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Each pair then shares three facts with the class. Record answers on the ‘Know’ section of a KWL grid. Ask for suggestions for the ‘Want to Know’ column.
Finding Out More
Give each pair or group of children one of the topics below to research, adding any new questions from the ‘Want to Know’ column. The children can use the internet, newspapers, books and information from friends or family to find out about their topic. There are a number of recommended websites in the ‘You will need’ column to help them conduct their research.
Ancient Olympic Games
- What were the Ancient Olympic Games?
- Where did the Ancient Olympic Games take place?
- What sports were played in the Ancient Olympic Games?
- What was the Olympic Truce? Does it still take place?
- Why was there a truce?
Modern Olympic Games Background
- Who created the modern Olympic Games?
- Why did he want to revive the Olympic Games?
- When and where did the first Modern Olympic Games take place?
- How often do the Olympic and Paralympic Games take place?
Events in the Olympic Games
- How many sports will be featured in the Rio 2016 Olympic Games?
- How many countries will take part in the Rio 2016 Olympic Games?
- What happens during the Opening Ceremony?
- What happens during the Closing Ceremony?
History of the Paralympic Games
- Who organised the first sporting competition for people with disabilities?
- Where and when did the first sporting competition for people with disabilities take place?
- Why were the games organised?
Events in the Paralympic Games
- How many sports will be featured in the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games?
- Are there any sports in the Paralympic Games that you hadn’t heard of? Describe these sports.
- What happens during the Opening and the Closing Ceremony?
Oaths and Mottoes
- What is the motto of the Olympic Games?
- What is the motto of the Paralympic Games?
- What is the Olympic and Paralympic oath?
- Who takes the oath and why?
Olympic and Paralympic Torch
- Where and how is the Olympic and Paralympic Torch lit?
- What is the Olympic and Paralympic Torch Relay?
- When does the Olympic Torch Relay take place?
- When does the Paralympic Torch Relay take place?
Help the children evaluate the reliability and accuracy of their information. Have they come up with any conflicting information?
Presenting the Information
When the class has had a chance to gather and evaluate the information, ask the pairs or groups to create a presentation about their topic using PowerPoint or Movie Maker about their topic. Agree criteria for the presentation for example the number of slides and images.
Each group or pair decide on a presenter for the presentation. A script is prepared and the presentation is rehearsed.
All of the presentations could be combined to create one longer presentation for an assembly on the day of an Olympic and Paralympic Games School Event.
Our Olympic and Paralympic Oath
Recap the information the children found about the Olympic and Paralympic Oath and discuss why the athletes must promise to follow the rules. Explain to the children that they will have their own Olympic and Paralympic Games School Event to celebrate the 2016 Games. As part of this they will have an opening ceremony.
Ask the children to create their own oath for participants in their school event.
You will need
Access to the internet
Books about the Olympic and Paralympic Games
An interactive whiteboard
Photo Gallerieswww.olympic.org
Beijing 2008www.olympic.org
Videoswww.rio2016.com
Research sites:
Rio 2016www.rio2016.com
Olympicswww.olympic.org
Ancient Greeks: The Olympic Gameswww.bbc.co.uk
Get Set's Road to Riowww.getset.co.uk
Further Information
Many of the activities in the Thematic Unit benefit from additional discussion with family and friends as home learning activities. Before the children begin, it may be useful to ensure that parents are aware of the topic, its activities, and an outline of how they can help.
You can find further activities and information on the topic in ‘Teaching Values: an Olympics Education Toolkit’