Before the Event

Divide the Children into Teams

Allow the children to choose their own teams and team names based on the countries competing in the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Refer them to the activities carried out in All Around the World. It might be preferable to allocate teams and names in advance.

Specify a colour for each team to wear on the day. The children may also design team badges, flags and banners, and other promotional material to advertise the event and support their team. (See classroom based activities All Around the World and Flags and Symbols for more information and related activities.)

Preparing the Children

Ensure the children have practised the practical events and are familiar with how the scoring system will work. Create a display with the lists of participants, teams, events and rules to help both spectators and participants understand what is going on and the order of events. Display work that the children created throughout the classroom activities to show what they have learned about the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Organising the Event

Ensure that children and adults are assigned roles and are clear about them before the event. There are a number of non-athletic roles that the children could fill, enabling them to make a different sort of contribution to the success of the event. This could perhaps lead to future involvement in sport, in a non-playing capacity, in roles such as:

• manager (to organise team);
• steward (to organise spectators);
• equipment organiser;
• timekeeper;
• measurer;
• scorer; or
• reporter.

Publicising the Event

Display posters in school, on the school website and in local shops. Advertise the event in local media. Send letters to parents inviting them to the event.