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| 3/15/2010 |  | |||||
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American Sports
This unit should take 3-6 hours, depending on time, interest, and extension activities. It is designed for intermediate level students age 12 and above. Objectives Students will: Materials to Print
Activities Activity I: Vocabulary (10 minutes) Ask students if they play any sports regularly. Encourage the ones that do to discuss which ones they do and why (to stay fit, as a social activity, because they're a good stress reliever, and so on). Then ask students to guess what the three biggest sports in U.S. are (American football, baseball, basketball). Discuss other sports students might be familiar with such as soccer, tennis, golf, hockey, and gymnastics. Have students provide you with vocabulary words related to sports (students will most likely be familiar with some words, such as ball, team, stadium,, etc.) Create a list of the words the students come up with on the board. Activity II: More Sports Vocabulary (15 minutes) Have students think about how various sports are alike and different (for example, soccer and baseball are alike in that they are both team sports; they are different in that in soccer you kick a ball while in baseball you hit and throw a ball). Hand out copies of Printout I and go through the words on the list. Have students organize the vocabulary by sport (keep in mind that some apply to both). When a word refers to two sports, make sure to point it out using the word both. If it refers to all of the sports mentioned, use the word all. Activity III: Trivia: American Sports (15 minutes) Ask students general sports questions, such as "During a basketball game, how many players are on the court for each team?" (5) and "In American football, how many points is a touchdown worth?" (6) to prepare them for the activity to follow. Encourage students to ask each other their own sports questions. Then hand out Printout II. (Answers for the teacher: 1C. Whoever scores the golden goal wins the game; 2A. By earning a walk, the batter gets to go to first base; 3B. Players who shoot an air ball are usually taunted by fans of the opposing team; 4B. Fenway Park's Green Monster is the tallest wall in all of baseball; 5C. He played for the Chicago White Sox, though he spent most of his baseball career in the minor leagues; 6C. They often dress up as dogs, too; 7A. A slap shot sends the puck at very high speeds towards the net; 8B. A hole-in-one is a rare occurrence and cause for much celebration) Activity IV: Reading: Sports in the United States (20 minutes) Introduce word and phrases from Printout II that students may be unfamiliar with, such as, role, participate, attention, devotion, imagination, national pastime, and rival. Hand out copies of Printout II and have students read the article. After students have read the text, encourage them to discuss why they think these sports are so popular in the United States. Then divide the class into groups. Activity V: Grammar: all, both, a few, most, several, every (20 minutes) Explain the uses of all, both, a few, most, several, every and each with examples such as "Baseball, basketball and American football - are all sports that are popular in the States. Basketball and American football - both sports are very exciting." Then, explain to students that every sport has rules which differ from other sports. Provide students with a few examples (in baseball, each team gets three outs when at bat; when them the team on offense lines up in football, all players must be behind the ball; if a player in basketball is fouled while shooting the ball, he or she is awarded one or more free throws). If some students are familiar with other rules, ask them to share them with the class. Then hand out copies of Printout IV and have students circle true or false next to each statement. (Answers for teacher: 1. false: All football fields are 100 yards long; 2. true; 3. false: There are 2 teams, five players each; 4. false: Some baskets are worth 3 points; free throws are worth one; 5. true; 6. true; 7. false: The player must touch every base; 8. false: Every player must wear a helmet) Activity VI: Reading (20 minutes) Ask students what they think professional athletes earn in the United States. Give an example: In the New York Yankees (baseball), the highest paid player in 2000 is Bernie Williams with $12,357,143 and the lowest paid player is Nick Johnson with $200,000. In the Los Angeles Lakers (basketball), Shaquille O'Neal has a seven year contract for $120 million. Some players receive the minimum wage, which is $316,969. (For more information on NBA players salaries, visit Sportstalk/Basketball and for baseball players visit Sportstalk/Baseball). Then ask, "Why do you think some players get paid more than others? In your opinion, is the difference justified?" Then, hand out copies of printout and read the text in class. Make sure that students understand some of the most difficult words and expressions, such as on the rise, in sight, and merchandising. Activity VI: Debate (20-30 minutes) Have students debate whether or not professional athletes are paid too much. Provide them with questions to consider to help get them started, such as: 1. Should professional athletes earn more/less? 2. Should a limit be placed on an athlete's salary? 3. Should women and men earn the same? 4. Does fan demand cause salaries to be so high? 5. Is it the industry's fault? 6. Do sport salaries show what society truly values? 7. The president of the United States earns $250,000 a year. Kevin Garnet, an NBA player has a six-year contract with the Minnessotta Timberwolves for $125 million. Discuss. Have students form groups and prepare a debate on pro athlete's salaries. They may use one of the questions you provided or they may consider a new one. Have a spokesperson from the group present their stance to the class. Include background information (or link for teacher to check) on related issues such as "attendance" (see Sportsbusiness), sponsors, etc. |