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| 3/13/2010 |  | |||||
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The Olympics
This unit should take 2-3 hours, depending on time, interest, and extension activities. It is designed for intermediate level students age 14 and above. Objectives Students will: Materials to Print Activities Activity I: Quiz (10 minutes) Hand out copies of Printout I. Ask students to take the quiz in pairs or small groups. When they are finished, poll the class to find out how many students chose each answer. Then give the correct answer. Ask students if they have seen any of the events mentioned in the quiz. Ask students to name other Olympic events they have seen before. Create a list on the board. (Answers: 1a; 2b; 3a; 4b; 5c; 6b; 7c; 8c; 9d; 10a) Activity II: Talking about Sports (25 minutes) Hand out copies of Printout II. Explain to students that one uses different verbs to talk about different sports (play, do, wrestle, swim, etc.). Ask them to go through the list and underline any words they do not recognize. Then divide the class into groups of three and assign each group two or three of the words on the list. Ask them to prepare a presentation that gives a brief explanation or definition of each sport. They can use the dictionary, encyclopedia or Internet for this information. Have the groups present their definitions to the class. Once the presentations are finished, ask students to describe to the class their favorite sports to watch and play. This will help them to practice using different verbs. Activity III: Writing Assignment (40 minutes) Begin a discussion of why people exercise (health, appearance, competition, friendship, etc). Talk about why you like to exercise, and whether you prefer to do or to watch sports. Then, ask students to write a paragraph explaining what is their favorite sport and why. They can write this in class or as a homework assignment. Once they have finished, ask them to share what they have written in class, reading aloud to their classmates. Activity IV: Legendary Athletes (20 minutes) Hand out copies of Printout III. Ask students to read together in small groups, stopping to ask questions if they need to. Activity V: Discussion of Competition (15 minutes) Ask students why they think it is important to test athletes for drugs (using drugs is cheating, it is unfair to other competitors, it ruins the integrity of the Olympics, etc.). Have each student give an opinion about mandatory random drug testing. Then ask students how far they would go to win the Olympics or any other major competition. Possible questions are: "Would you take steroids? Would you change your physical appearance (gain weight, lose weight, add muscle, etc)? Would you give up time with your family to train? Would you give up school? Friends? Would you train 10 hours per day, seven days each week?") Write a list on the board of sacrifices the students think athletes make. Activity VI: An Athlete's Sacrifice (20 minutes) Hand out copies of printout IV. Ask students to read aloud in small groups, making a list of sacrifices. Make sure they ask questions about any vocabulary they do not know. Then, answer the questions in class. Activity VII: An Olympic Debate (20 minutes - 2 days) Divide the class into halves. Write one of the following statements on the board: The Olympics will never be drug-free; The Olympics have lots all integrity and have become a five-ring circus; Winning is everything, at whatever the price. Assign a position (for or against) to each group. Give them ten minutes to prepare their argument and then 10 minutes to have a debate. |