Olympic Museum
The Olympic Symbols
Get into the Olympic spirit with a resource about the values and symbols of the Olympic Games. With sections about prominent images of the Olympics, including the flame and the interlocked rings, the packet supplies engaging information...
ProCon
Olympics
Are the Olympic Games a benefit for their host countries and cities? Scholars decide for themselves in preparation for a class debate or discussion. After reading a brief background and overview of the topic, pupils read the top three...
Museum of Disability History
Adaptive Sports and Recreational Games
It's truly amazing how people with physical disabilities are able to find ways to overcome their impairments. Their tremendous perseverance is evident in this handout that describes the ways different sports, ranging from...
ProCon
Drug Use in Sports
The ancient Greeks used performance enhancing drugs, such as opium juice, when they participated in the original Olympic Games. Pupils research a website with debate topics to decide if athletes' use of such drugs in modern sports is...
Penn Museum
Maya Ball
Sure the ancient Mayan civilization had an advanced calendar and mathematical system, but did you know that they also played a great team sport like basketball? Invite your learners to discover the great ballcourt at Chichen Itza and...
The History Cat
The History Cat: The Greek Olympic Games
Read about how the Olympic games started in ancient Greece. In 394 A.D., Emperor Theodosius I abolished the Olympics and they were not revived until the late 1800s.
Greek Gods
Greek Gods: Ancient Greece: Ancient Olympia
This site focuses on Ancient Olympia, an archaeological site of Peloponnese, in southern Greece known as the Cradle of the Olympic Games. The Games were played in Zeus's honor; they dated back to 776 BC and were held every four years.
Wikimedia
Wikipedia: 2008 Summer Olympics
This page provides an amazingly detailed set of information on the 2008 Summer Olympics covering every topic imaginable from the selection process to when each event will be held. Almost 100 references are provided at the bottom of the...
Tufts University
Perseus: The Greek City States and Religious Festivals
Discusses the difference between modern and ancient Greek Olympic games, and goes into depth about the religious festivals that took place. Additional links to related material.
Stephen Byrne
History for Kids: The Ancient Greek Olympics
Teaches about the origins of the Greek Olympic games and their evolution to become a significant cultural phenomenon in ancient Greece.
Stephen Byrne
History for Kids: Greek Games
History for Kids presents information on the history of children's games in ancient Greece. Site contains examples, activities, worksheets and quizzes.
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Australian Broadcasting Corporation: Winged Sandals: Olympics
A short essay that describes what the ancient Olympic games were like.
Wikimedia
Wikipedia: 1988 Winter Olympics
Presents the 1988 Olympic Winter Games that were held in Calgary. Discusses the games, why Calgary was chosen and what occurred at the games.
Danuta Bois
Distinguished Women of Past and Present: Florence Griffith Joyner
This entry profiles the late Florence Griffith Joyner (1959-1998), affectionately known simply as FloJo, the track athlete who won gold and silver medals at the 1988 Summer Olympic Games.
Wikimedia
Wikipedia: Pair Skating
Do you know the elements in the pair skating competition? Do you know which elements are illegal in the Olympic games? Read this article and find out.
Wikimedia
Wikipedia: Snowboarding at the 2006 Winter Olympics
See results for each of the snowboarding events at the 2006 Torino Games. Follow links to more information on the specific events: halfpipe, snowboard cross, and parallel giant slalom.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Centers for Disease Control: Body and Mind: Don't Let Asthma Keep You Out of the Game
Learn about athletes who didn't let their asthma get in the way of going to the Olympics and about the types of sports best for asthma patients. This website includes links to information on "Famous people who have asthma," as well as...
Lin and Don Donn
Lin and Don Donn: Sparta
This site by Lin and Don Donn describes what life in Sparta was like and how it differed from other Greek city-states. This page helps you imagine yourself as a Spartan going to the Olympian games to cheer on your team.
Greek Gods
Greek Gods: Greek Heroes: Pelops
Will Pelops win the chariot race to wed his love? Read to learn Pelops's story.
Wikimedia
Wikipedia: Curling
This article on curling provides a history of the sport, as well as "basics of the game," information on the playing surface, players and equipment. Includes a "graphical depiction of a curling sheet," photographs of equipment and a lot...
Other
Volleyball: General Information
This volleyball site provides information on the characteristics of volleyball, its history, its rules, and the finer points of playing the game.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Barney Ewell
This entry features Barney Ewell, an American athlete, one of the world's leading sprinters of the 1940s. Although he was believed to be past his prime when the Olympic Games were resumed after World War II, he won three medals at the...
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Marion Jones
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Marion Jones, an American athlete, who, at the 2000 Olympic Games, became the first woman to win five track-and-field medals at a single Olympics. In 2007, however, she admitted to using...
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Ralph Metcalfe
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Ralph Metcalfe, an American sprinter and member of the American 4 x 100-meter relay team that won a gold medal at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin. At his peak, in 1934-35, he was called...