Olympic Summer Games

Paris 2024

Paris will host the XXXIII Olympic Summer Games from 26 July to 11 August 2024.

For more information visit the Olympic Games website - Paris 2024.

The Olympic games is a global event that provides unique and vast learning opportunities for ākonga.

Here is a collection of teaching ideas and resources to help you share the Olympic spirit with your school and community.

About the Olympics

The Olympic Games are held every four years, with the Summer and Winter Games alternating two years apart. Thousands of athletes from around the world will participate in a variety of competitions. 

Originally, the ancient Olympic Games were held in Greece at Olympia. The first games were in 776 BC and they were held up until the 5th century AD. The first modern Olympics happened in 1896 in Athens, Greece. 

Curriculum connections

By focusing on the Tokyo Olympics in your local curriculum you can explore the values of excellence, diversity, integrity, and community and participation with your students. Students can make use of key competencies and develop understandings in a range of learning areas, especially the social sciences and health and physical education. 

Social sciences
Students can meet achievement objectives in the social sciences by:

• learning about the history of the Olympics
• exploring the ways that host countries represent themselves to the world
• examining the customs and traditions of Japan
• considering the economic and social impact on host cities.

Links to health and physical education
Students can meet achievement objectives in health and physical education by:

• exploring the attitudes and values relating to Olympism
• recognising the benefits of physical movement
• following the journeys of famous sportspeople
• learning about and participating in Olympic sports.

How can you get involved?

Here is a selection of ideas to help you incorporate the Olympics into your teaching programme. Adapt the suggestions to suit the needs and interests of your students. 

Opening ceremonies
Students could view opening ceremonies from previous Olympic Games and discuss how each host country represents their cultures, values, and national identity. Students may consider how New Zealand might represent itself in an opening ceremony. What aspects of our culture, values, and national identity could we highlight?

Useful links

• Scene from the London 2012 Olympic Games
• Highlights of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games opening ceremony
• Highlights of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games opening ceremony
• Olympic opening ceremonies – A journey through time 

Research the history of the Olympics
The Olympics has a rich history encompassing the Ancient Games and the Modern Games. Students could investigate the origins and traditions of the Olympics and explore how the event has changed over time.

Useful links

• Ancient Olympic Games
• Ancient Greece: The Games at Olympia
• BBC: Primary History, Ancient Greeks

Olympic mascots
Mascots are popular ambassadors of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Students could investigate the mascots of the 2021 Olympics and Paralympics and look at mascots from previous Games. They could explore ways that mascots spread the Olympic spirit, communicate the Olympics values, and promote the cultural identity of the host countries.

Useful links

Mascots for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games
Olympic Games mascots

Hold your own Olympic Games
One way of engaging students in the Olympic Games is to host your own Olympic Games event. Classes could represent different countries and take part in a range of sports. Olympic traditions such as opening and closing ceremonies, the lighting of the torch, Olympic values, and medal ceremonies could be included. Let's Go Tokyo (log in required) has been designed to grow student leadership skills for Year 5 - 8 students as they work towards running a simple mini-Olympics event for a younger class. 

Follow famous sportspeople
Olympic athletes are inspirational with their fierce discipline and natural talent. Students could research famous Olympians from the past and present day and send their best wishes to our New Zealand team.  

Useful links

• Olympic athletes
• Paralympians profiles 
• Facebook – Paralympics New Zealand  
• Share your support for the New Zealand team

Explore the Olympic values
The Olympic values are respect, excellence, and friendship. The Paralympic values are determination, courage, equality, and inspiration. Students could explore how these values are demonstrated by athletes during the Games and the importance of these values in their own lives. 

Useful links

• Video – Olympic values
• Video – The Olympic and Paralympic values

Instructional series

Another great way to get your students involved in the Olympic Games is to incorporate a sports theme into your reading and writing programme. The Instructional Series on Tāhūrangi offers a range of texts about sports and sporting events. Here are our top picks for you: 

Sports Day for Monster, Ready to Read, Yellow, 2017
Monster and his friend Jack are excited about all the events they can try at the school sports day. Monster tries several events, but things don’t go well until at last he finds a sports day activity that is just right for him.

Tom's Tryathlon, Ready to Read, Purple, 2004
In this recount, Tom talks about his first experience of participating in the Weet-Bix™ Kiwi Kids Tryathlon. 

Our First Olympians, School Journal Level 2 May 2020
“Faster, higher, stronger ...” The Olympic Games have been a source of international interest and entertainment since the late nineteenth century. This article provides information on some of our earliest Olympians. 

Iron Tamariki, School Journal Level 2, June 2014
Mana hates running, but he’s training to compete in the Iron-Māori Tamariki. His dad is sure he can do it. On the day, his whānau is there in support, and Mana is very happy with the result.

Training for Success, Connected 2014, Level 4 – What’s the Evidence?
Top athlete Phoebe Edwards and her coach, Mike Ritchie, constantly observe and measure her performance and work on improving technique, to help her train for success.

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