Olympics

Welcome to the J at School Olympic Games!

Over the next two weeks the students will be competing in Olympic
themed activities while embracing the core values of Olympism:
excellence, respect, and friendship.

Divide the students into 3 teams that are balanced in age and ability.
Each team should be assigned a staff member that will act as their team
captain.

Teams captains will meet with their teams to pick a country to represent.
Captains will explain to the group that they will be trying to collect the
most medals for their team by participating in activities throughout the
next two weeks. Each gold medal your team earns is worth 300 points,
silver is worth 200 points and bronze worth 100 points. Students will
also be able to earn spirit points for their team.

Spirit points will be awarded during the week at the discretion of the site
lead to students and teams that are cheering on their fellow athletes,
dressing up in team colors, showing good sportsmanship, etc.
Each team’s medals and spirit points will be recorded by the team
captain throughout the unit.

At the end of the unit the site lead will take into consideration the total
medals and spirit points earned, and award each team gold, silver, or
bronze. Team captains can also award certificates to students on their
team that embodied each of the Olympic core values.
 Art Activity #1
Olympic Wreath Headband
Materials:
 Green construction paper (preferably two different
shades)
 Scissors
 Tape
 Glue stick
 Pencil

In Ancient Greece, wreaths of laurel leaves were used to crown

winners of athletic competitions in the ancient Olympic Games

Activity steps:
1: Cut 2 or 3 strips of green construction paper about 2" wide and as long as you can make them.

2: Tape the pieces end to end to make a really long piece.

3: Wrap around the child's head to measure how long you need and trim off the excess, leaving a
bit of overlap (don't tape into a circle yet).

4: Cut a half leaf shape out along the fold, so that when you open your leaf it's symmetrical (the
same on both sides) with a fold down the centre.

5: Repeat this process until you have a lot of leaves in both shades

6: Glue leaves (preferably two different shades of green) all along the strip of construction paper
(encourage the children to glue the leaves on firmly and to use a fair amount of glue so the leaves
don’t fall off) and let dry completely.

7: Tape the construction paper ends together to form a crown!

https://www.dltk-kids.com/sports/mleaf-crown.htm

Art Activity #2
Team Flag
Materials:
 Large sheet of paper
 Coloring utensils

Pre activity set-up:

- Inform students that the flags will be awarded spirit points for creativity

Activity steps:
1: Each team will have the opportunity to design a flag for their country. It can look like your
country’s flag or it can be an original design.
2: Use a pencil to draw out a design on large sheet of paper
3: Color and decorate the flag
4: Team captain will look up interesting facts about your country. Write a few of your favourite
facts on the back of your flag to receive bonus points for your team.

Art Activity #3
Medal decorating
Materials:
 Color utensils
 Printed color pages
 Ribbon or string
Pre activity set-up:
- Print out the medals

Activity:
 Have the students color in their medal
 Cut ribbon or string to correct length and help the students tie

Art Activity
#4
Olympic
Ring Circle
Painting
Materials:
  Five Cardboard Tubes (paper towel and toilet paper
rolls.)
 Acrylic Paint – Blue, Green, Yellow, Blue, and Red
 Paper Plate
 Paper or Canvas

Pre activity set-up:

- Squirt paint onto plate (two colors per plate)
- Set out enough tubes

Activity steps:
 Have the students dip the end of the tubes into the paint and place onto the paper which
will leave a ring shape
 Make sure they rotate ends of the tubes per color to avoid mixing the paint

https://www.glitteronadime.com/olympic-ring-circle-painting/

Team Building activity #1

Key Punch
Materials:
 chalk
 Number cards

Activity description:
 - The goal is to see how quickly each member can touch all 30 numbers in
order
- Each student doesn’t have to touch each number, but one group member
must touch each number in order
- The group may not change the boundaries and may not change where the
numbers are placed

Rules:
 Only one group member may be in the circle at a time
 Every time more than one person is in the circle, a five second penalty is
given
 If a number is touched out of order, a five second penalty is given
 The entire group must start behind the cone, 20 feet away. On “GO”, they
may all come around the circle in any position they like
 When the last number is touched, all group members must be back behind
the cone for time to stop
 They get three attempts to achieve best time
 The group can have five minutes to observe the board, plan and practice
between each attempt
https://www.pgsd.org/cms/lib/PA01916597/Centricity/Domain/122/Orientation/KEY
%20PUNCH.pdf

Team Building Activity #2

Hoop Relay Race
Materials:
 Three Hola hoops
 Cones

Pre activity set-up:

- Set up two cones per team (one at each end of

the first zone)
- Lay one hoop per team in between the cones

Activity steps:
1: Get the children to line up in their teams
(depending on how many children you have) behind cones
2: The first in line runs up and picks up the hoop that is in front of their line
3: The other team members run up and go through the hoop one at a time and then
go stand behind the cone on the other side of the zone
4: When all are through, the leader runs the hoop back to the group and hands it to
the next person in line
5: Everyone then runs through again
6: Continue until everyone gets a chance to be the leader

https://kidactivities.net/races-relays-balloons-bean-bag-games/

Team Building Activity #3

Hola Hoop Pass
Materials:
 3 Hola hoops

Pre activity set-up:

- Explain the objective of the game is to pass the hula
hoop completely around the circle as quickly as they
can without breaking their handhold

Activity steps:
1: Have the students make a circle and hold hands
2: The staff member will place the hoop over the held hands of two group members
3: The staff member will start the timer
4: Have the group pass the hoop around by wiggling their body through the hoop without letting
go of the hand of the student next to them
5: The challenge is to get the hoop back to the first person before the other teams
 Team Building Activity #4
Make a Shape
Materials:
 A piece of rope about 2 metres long

Description:
- Communication game that shows the
importance of goal setting and
articulating your goal to your team

Rules:
1: Tie the rope into a ring large enough for
everyone to hold a section of the rope with both hands.
2: Everyone stands in a circle facing each other.
3: Everyone holds a section of the ring of rope with both hands while standing up.
4: The instructor gives instructions to form the rope into a particular shape. For example, a circle.
5: The group attempts to coordinate their movements and then lay the rope down on the floor
with the shape as instructed.
6: They are asked by the instructor if the shape is to their satisfaction.
7: Repeat steps 1 – 6 with a more complex shape (a dog, flower or what not), but this time round
without speaking and only using hand gestures.
8: Repeat steps 1- 6, this time round without even hand gestures.
9: After the game is over, the instructor can ask the participants about their experience of trying
to communicate to make the shapes.
10: The instructor can then explain the analogy that he is trying to make during the game. The
explanation is below.
http://www.leadershipgeeks.com/leadership-games/
 Creative Movement Activity #1
Discuss Throw
Materials:
 Frisbee
 Cones

Pre activity set-up:

- Have one cone for each team so the children can
line up behind it
- Teach the children the correct way to hold and
throw the frisbee (from the waist)

Activity steps:
1: Students will pair off and practice throwing the frisbee to each other
2: If the other student catches it, they have to step back and continue this
3: After they have practiced throwing the frisbee to each other, each pair will get a
turn at throwing the frisbee to see who can throw it the furthest
4: The team with the longest distance wins

Creative Movement Activity #2

Obstacle Course
Materials:
 Obstacle course equipment (e.g. cones, hoops, use
the playground)
 Timer

Pre activity set-up:

- Set up an obstacle course using what you have
- Staff member to explain and demonstrate how
each obstacle is done to students and that it is one
at a time
- Inform students they are earning points for their team individually rather than it being a
team activity

Activity steps:
1: The first student will begin course and timer will begin
2: Once first student has completed, their name will be added to a chart with their time
3: While this is happening, the next student will begin the course and the timer will be started
again
4: This will continue until the final student has had their turn and their time is recorded
5: The fastest time is the winning student and their will earn medal for their team

Creative Movement Activity #3

Wall Ball
Materials:
 Any bouncy ball
 chalk

Pre activity set-up:

- Draw boundaries with chalk
Rules:
 The game begins when one player serves the ball by hitting the ball towards the wall.
 The ball must bounce one time on the ground before it reaches the wall.
 The receiving player must let the ball hit the wall and bounce once before returning it.
 The player can then return the ball by hitting it and reaching the wall in one bounce off
the ground.

Play continues until the ball:

- Bounces on a line or outside the boundaries.
- Hits the wall without bouncing off the ground.
- Bounces twice before it is returned.
- Is not allowed to bounce.

 When a player stops the play, s/he goes to the end of the line and a new player comes into
the game.
 The remaining player is the server and begins the next game.

https://www.playworks.org/resource/game-of-the-week-wall-ball/

Creative Movement Activity #4

Three stick long jump
Materials:
 3 sticks – 4 to 5 feet long (branches, broom
handles, or make your own African Jumping
Sticks)

Pre activity set-up:

- Position the 3 sticks parallel to one another on
grass or sand. The sticks should be 1 yard
apart.
- Teams stand on opposite sides of the line of
sticks.

Rules:
  A person from Team A goes first. She takes a running start and takes 1 step between the
1st and 2nd stick, 1 step between the 2nd and 3rd stick, then jumps as far as she can after
crossing stick 3.
 A player cannot take more than 1 step between the sticks and cannot touch a stick with
any part of their body. If they do, they are disqualified and must sit out the rest of the
game.
 When Team A’s first player is done, stick 3 gets moved to the position of the jumper’s
body part that is the closest to the stick 3. In other words, if a player runs, jumps, and
falls backwards on her landing, the stick would be moved to her hand’s position. It’s
always best to try to fall forward!
 A player from Team B goes next. He takes a running start and takes 1 step between the
3rd and 2nd stick, 1 step between the 2nd and 1st stick, then jumps as far as he can after
crossing stick 1.
 When Team B’s first player is done, stick 1 gets moved to the position of the jumper’s
body part that is closest to stick 1.
 Stick 2 always remains in the same position. Sticks 1 and 3 continue to move outwards,
making the game more difficult. (Sticks are never moved inward.)
 If a person cannot clear the last stick when jumping, they are out of the game.
 The person/team that jumps the farthest wins
https://weefolkart.com/homeschool/south-africa-drie-stokkies-game/

Science Activity #1
Static electric Olympian Flame Experiment
Materials:
 Carboard from a box
 Colored tissue paper (red, yellow and orange)
 Glue stick
 Black marker
 Scissors
 Balloon

Pre activity set-up:

- Blow up a three balloons and tie them off

Activity steps:
1: Fold a piece of paper in half and cut the torch shape out
2: Trace the shape onto the cardboard and cut it out
3: Outline the torch with black marker
4: Cut out a number of flame shapes out of the tissue paper
5: Glue flames (using the varied of colors) onto the torch and let dry
6: Allow it to gather electricity (rubbing it on hair, piece of wool or on carpet)
7: rub it on the flames on the torch
8: the negativity charged surface of the balloon attracts the positively charged
flames which causes the tissue flames to look like they are flickering

http://jdaniel4smom.com/2016/07/static-electricity-olympic-flame-experiment.html

Science Activity #2
Sink or float?
Materials:
 Clear container
 Assortment of items to test buoyancy
 3 sheets of paper
Pre activity set-up:
 Fill the bucket with water
 Have ready an assortment of items to test
 Have each team sitting together
Activity steps:

1: Each team will have a piece of paper with sink written on one side and float
written on the other.
2: Before testing each item, the staff will ask each team for their guess. Teams will
have to decide what their guess will be as a group
3: Drop the item in the water and see what happens.
4: For every item, your team correctly guesses you will receive 1 point.
5: Medals will be awarded based on most correct guesses.
 Science Activity #3
Reaction time test
Materials:

 30 cm ruler
 Pen
 Paper

Activity steps:
1: hold the top of the ruler with your arm outstretched
(your fingers should be on the highest measurement
2: another team member is to put their thumb and
index finger slightly open at the bottom the ruler, with
the ruler between their fingers
3: when the first person drops the ruler, their team
member has to try to catch ruler at the lowest
measurement, as the sooner the ruler is caught the less time it has had to fall

https://www.science-sparks.com/test-your-reaction-time/

Science Activity #4
Stack them Up
Materials:
 Plastic cups
 String
 Rubber bands

Description:
- The students are to create a
tool using a string and a
rubber band that could be
used to stack a group of
cups into a pyramid.
- Team members must work cooperatively to:
 Pull their strings to expand the rubber band
 Lower the rubber band around the cup
 Release the string so that the rubber band grabs the cup
 Pick up the cup to stack it
- Allow ten minutes for the students to make their tools and practice stacking
the cups

Rules:
 Teams will have two timed rounds to stack their cups (once with the ability
to verbally communication, once without verbal communication)

https://ngcproject.org/sites/default/files/9.6_stack_em_up_activity.pdf

Story Time Activity #1

Olympian – Jesse Owens
Materials:
 A picture book of Jesse Owens by David
A. Adler (https://youtu.be/If0PViD7NRI
 - read aloud video)

Pre activity set-up:

- Have a group of students that wants to hear the story sitting in a group
- If using the audiobook have it set up on iPad or Chromebook

Activity steps:
1: Either read the story book or play the YouTube read aloud to the children
2: Ask the students follow up questions about the story, discussing the theme and
lessons learned.

Story time Activity #2

G is for Gold Medal
Materials:
 G is for Gold Medal an Olympic alphabet

Pre activity set-up:
- Have a group of students that wants to
hear the story sitting in a group
- If using the audiobook have it set up on
iPad or Chromebook

Activity steps:
1: Either read the story book to the children
2: Ask the students follow up questions about the story, discussing the theme and
lessons learned.

Story time Activity #3

How to Train with A T. Rex and Win 8
Gold Medals' by Michael Phelps
Materials:
 How to Train with A T. Rex and
Win 8 Gold Medals' by Michael
Phelps

Pre activity set-up:

- Have a group of students that wants
to hear the story sitting in a group
- If using the audiobook have it set
up on iPad or Chromebook

Activity steps:
1: Either read the story book to the
children
2: Ask the students follow up questions about the story, discussing the theme and
lessons learned.

Story time Activity #4

Olympig! by Victoria Jamieson
Materials:
 Olympig! by Victoria Jamieson

Pre activity set-up:

- Have a group of students that wants to hear the
story sitting in a group
- If using the audiobook have it set up on iPad or
Chromebook

Activity steps:
1: Either read the story book to the children
2: Ask the students follow up questions about the story,
discussing the theme and lessons learned.
 Maths Activity #1
Medal Graph Scoreboard
Materials:
 Large paper
 Markers

Activity steps:
1: Write the name of your country on the top of the large paper
2: Decide what kind of graph you would like to use to chart your medals.
3: Write the team countries along with either their total points or their medal
standings (3 Gold, 2 Silver, 7 Bronze). Fill in the graph to reflect your current
medal count.
4: Post your scoreboard graph up in a visible spot and update it daily.
 Maths Activity #2
Under Over Basketball
Materials:
 Three basketballs
 Three cones

Pre activity set-up:

- Explain the game under over and get the students to practise to make
sure they get the game

Activity Steps:
1: The students will line up behind the cones in a straight line with their
backs to the basketball ring
2: The person at the back will have the ball and pass the ball over the head to
the person behind them and say the first number in the skip count (e.g. 2 if counting by 2s)
3: The next student will pass the ball between their legs to the student behind them and say the
next number in the skip count (e.g. 4 if counting by 2s)
4: continue alternating either over their heads or between their legs until the last student
5: The last student will turn around and shoot for goal (continuing until they get a goal)
6: They will then join the back of the line (at the cone) and start the process again
7: continue until everyone in the team has had a turn at shooting for hoops

Maths Activity #3
 Beanbag Toss
Materials:
 Chalk or tape to make game board
 2 sets of 2 same color Bean bags

Pre activity set-up:

- Draw a triangle in chalk outside or with tape inside. It should have
three sections labelled 1,2 and 3 based on the points they are
worth. 3 is the smallest section at the top, 2 in the middle, and 1 is
the largest section at the bottom.

Activity steps:

1: Teams of 2 vs 2 play take turns throwing a bean bag from about 10 ft away onto
the triangle, trying to get the most points.
2: Points are added up only after all 4 bags are thrown.
3: First team to add up to 20 points is the winner.

2
1

Maths Activity #4
Flashcard Race
Materials:
 Flash cards with addition equations on them

Pre activity set-up:

- Lay the cards in a row on the floor (one row for each group)

Rules:
 The challenge is to see who can correctly make their way from start to finish
fastest
 The students will call out the answers
 They must get it right before they can move on

https://www.weareteachers.com/active-math-games/