With the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics just around the corner, the games present many opportunities for parents and teachers to help kids find interesting ways to study traditional concepts. Some great online resources for integrating learning with the Olympics include:
- the Reading Rockets website, which includes a list of Olympic-themed children’s books divided by age group;
- Education World’s lesson plan for graphing present and past results in various sports;
- Perseus Digital Library Project’s information about the early games, stories of famous early Olympians, a tour of ancient Olympia, and more;
- AAAS Science NetLinks’ fascinating collection of lessons and links on how athletes make the best use of science, whether it be a diver’s flips or a sprinter’s starting block advantage;
- this cool WebQuest that asks students to imagine how they might convince the Olympic committee to allow Canada to host the games; and
- stories of success to inspire your students by reminding them that they can overcome their struggles, just like fan favorite Michael Phelps, who has been diagnosed with ADHD, or Oscar Pistorius, who is making Olympic history as the first double-amputee athlete to compete in both the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Key to any good lesson is tapping into kids’ interests, and you can do just that by sharing with them the magic of the Olympic games!