The Sports Shed
The Ridge |
Feat. Danny MacAskill
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'Skills from Brazil' by Dan FreedmanA great book by Dan Freedman to complement any World Cup themed lessons.
Download schemes of work here: Primary Scheme of work KS3 Scheme of work Provided by Susan Rickard at Hamworthy Park Junior School, See reviews and blurb on amazon here |
The Dreadful Menace - BBC Winter Olympics trailer
Football Adverts
What I enjoy about using these videos is that they are not necessarily just focusing on the sport but rather examples of characteristics sport encourages children to develop. These traits such as motivation, building character, overcoming adversity, dealing with failure are just a few life skills sports instill in children. The following videos are great examples of the ways sport can engage children but also inspire them to work and try harder.
This first example - is the Nike Advert from the 2010 World Cup and carries an inspiring theme of "Write the Future!" This video will have the boys hooked as it starts some of the biggest names in the footballing world - Rooney, Ronaldo and Drogba to name a few and I love the "Sliding Doors" effect it portrays. The film ponders the question of how specific decisions can alter the direction of our lives.
The "what if" aspect to the advert could inspire some fantastic contrasting writing. Take the Rooney section, where you see the moment his pass is cut out and he has flashes of what would happen to his life - becoming a villain, losing his fans etc. He makes the decision to tackle and this is completely contrasted with the hero status he recieves. This could be a powerful stimulus for a writing activity.
The advert also provides plenty of opportunities to create some wonderful suspenseful writing. The last 30 seconds where Ronaldo is fouled and lines up the free kick would be great to write as a build up to the climax. Children can also describe the atmosphere of the packed stadium, what could they see? hear? smell? touch?
Another of Nike's adverts which can inspire some great writing is the "Take it to the next level," advert. Another inspiring example which shows the journey of a non-league footballer rise to the top of the footballing world. There are however snippets that I would consider inappropriate for children (what do you expect with Guy Ritchie as director) - at 54 seconds the footballer signs his autograph onto a girls chest and at 1.23 mins he plays a prank on a team mate where he pulls his pants down. Despite this, there are excellent opportunities for children to be inspired by this message of following your dreams, working hard and being reward for that. The last 30 seconds would be great for some descriptive writing again leading up to building suspense similar to the previous video.
The "what if" aspect to the advert could inspire some fantastic contrasting writing. Take the Rooney section, where you see the moment his pass is cut out and he has flashes of what would happen to his life - becoming a villain, losing his fans etc. He makes the decision to tackle and this is completely contrasted with the hero status he recieves. This could be a powerful stimulus for a writing activity.
- First, you could ask the children to list all the different ways his life changes for the worse
- Then they could write all the positive effects from making the tackle.
- They could then write a contrasting story about that moment and the potential effect it could have.
- Children could even write their own example that doesn't even relate to sport - The day I missed the bus/the day I caught the bus.
The advert also provides plenty of opportunities to create some wonderful suspenseful writing. The last 30 seconds where Ronaldo is fouled and lines up the free kick would be great to write as a build up to the climax. Children can also describe the atmosphere of the packed stadium, what could they see? hear? smell? touch?
Another of Nike's adverts which can inspire some great writing is the "Take it to the next level," advert. Another inspiring example which shows the journey of a non-league footballer rise to the top of the footballing world. There are however snippets that I would consider inappropriate for children (what do you expect with Guy Ritchie as director) - at 54 seconds the footballer signs his autograph onto a girls chest and at 1.23 mins he plays a prank on a team mate where he pulls his pants down. Despite this, there are excellent opportunities for children to be inspired by this message of following your dreams, working hard and being reward for that. The last 30 seconds would be great for some descriptive writing again leading up to building suspense similar to the previous video.
- Write a diary of a footballer's career.
- Write a newspaper article of the winning goal at the end.
- Use hot seating to interview the character, almost like a press conference.
- Write a explanation text about what it takes to become a great player.
The next two examples are from Sky Sports and are great for asking the children to write using the show not tell writing technique. The show not tell technique encourages the children to describe through actions or speech how a character feels or what is happening in the story. Alan Peat explains it here. My challenge would be how could they tell me about the action from the pitch without writing about anything happening on the pitch?
- Describe the reactions of the crowd, managers, officials,
- Desctibe what you could see? hear? smell? taste? touch?
- A poem about the atmosphere.
- The ingredients for the perfect football match maybe?
- Or even a set of instructions for the perfect atmosphere.
- Or write a recount about walking out as a mascot?
Sports in the movies
The next few suggestions all come from some of Hollywood blockbuster sports films. Most of them have the climax beautifully shot, building up all the anxiety, tension and angst before the final resolution. These are great for children to watch and see how carefully the tension is built. This first clip from the Movie, Friday Night Light's, shows the dying seconds of the State Championship game.
- The way the scene is shot can be great for again encouraging the children to build suspense.
- They can use similes and metaphors to describe the tackles and movements of the players.
- It is also a great way for children to show their empathy for characters by writing recounts of those final moments and the agony of defeat as the game finishes.
- They could interview players about how they feel after the game.
- They could write a newspaper report about the defeat.
What I particularly like about the above clip is that it isn't a happy ending. The team lose, I like to see how well the children could empathise with that. How often do children really get to follow that pattern? Where there isn't a happy ending?
Alternatively, here are two clips similar for building tension however provide a happy ending. They also have links to real life events which could provide some rich learning opportunities in other curriculum areas. The first is from the film, Invictus, which tells the story of Nelson Mandela, newly elected as president, and how he used the South Africa national rugby team (the Springboks) to unite his country. This could lead perfectly into a unit of work looking at Nelson Mandela and the inspirational figure he has become. The other is from a film called "We are Marshall," which depicts the tragic events of 1970, where the team was involved in a plane crash which killed 37 players, rather than cancel the football programme they continued and despite only winning one game the following season they grew back to become of the strongest university teams in the country. You can read more about that story here.
Alternatively, here are two clips similar for building tension however provide a happy ending. They also have links to real life events which could provide some rich learning opportunities in other curriculum areas. The first is from the film, Invictus, which tells the story of Nelson Mandela, newly elected as president, and how he used the South Africa national rugby team (the Springboks) to unite his country. This could lead perfectly into a unit of work looking at Nelson Mandela and the inspirational figure he has become. The other is from a film called "We are Marshall," which depicts the tragic events of 1970, where the team was involved in a plane crash which killed 37 players, rather than cancel the football programme they continued and despite only winning one game the following season they grew back to become of the strongest university teams in the country. You can read more about that story here.
- Children could write a recount for these final minutes of the film.
- They could focus purely on building tension in this scene.
- They could interview players and write in role as one of the players.
- They could research the true life stories behind the movie and write reports.
- For the "We Are Marshall clip," they could write a discussion text about whether it was right to continue the programme.
Other sporting videos
I love the New Zealand Rugby Team's Haka, I think it is one of the most intimidating and intense rituals of any sport. This advert shows it in its purest form and could inspire some great poetry.
- Children maybe write the message they think the Haka is trying to portray
- Use it to make descriptions using similes and metaphors
- What you need to be a New Zealand player.
- Children could also research the history of the Haka and write a non-chronological report about it.
- They could learn the dance and write instructions or even make up their own dance.
- Is there still a place for the Haka in today's game? Children could discuss and write their findings.
I Know What You Did Last Summer - London 2012
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The 60 second olympic countdown timer from the Opening Ceremony
(Click here to download the timer for easy access and class use) |
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The Best of London 2012
This montage can be used to stimulate any discussion on the Olympics, the triumphs, the heroes, the highs and the lows.
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Mens 200m Final
Usain Bolt in full flow - many children will be inspired by the worlds most famous athlete.
- Children can commentate over the video, use a media merge program to record childrens commentaries over the film.
- Write a recount as if the children were there to witness it.
- Write an internal monologue for one or more of the athletes, how are they feeling, what are they thinking? Is this different for the different atheletes?
- Write a newspaper report of the event.
- Interview Bolt and Blake, how do their responses differ?
Maybe Blake is saying one thing and thinking another.
Paralympians - Inspirational to all of us!
The Paralympics in the summer were a huge success and have left a lasting legacy. For many of our children these games were the first time that they saw athletes competing in paralympic sports.
'They're here' is an advert for the games which shows many of the star athletes in training. It also show some scenes of how the athletes were injured which you might not want to show to younger children.
Children could research some of these athletes and write biographies.
They could write letters to athletes and write questions for mock interviews in which other children could answer in role.
Write news reports on the success of the games.
Write reports about individual events - many of them can be found easily on youtube.
There are a number of scenes in this film where two athletes are talking - children could write the dialogue for these scenes.
Children can also write dialogue for the film below. Perhaps one of the athletes are thinking about giving up - what would you tell them? What would the coach say to them?
'They're here' is an advert for the games which shows many of the star athletes in training. It also show some scenes of how the athletes were injured which you might not want to show to younger children.
Children could research some of these athletes and write biographies.
They could write letters to athletes and write questions for mock interviews in which other children could answer in role.
Write news reports on the success of the games.
Write reports about individual events - many of them can be found easily on youtube.
There are a number of scenes in this film where two athletes are talking - children could write the dialogue for these scenes.
Children can also write dialogue for the film below. Perhaps one of the athletes are thinking about giving up - what would you tell them? What would the coach say to them?
Sport doesn't care who you are
Men's 5000m Final - Mo Farah
Couldn't have a sports shed without Mighty Mo.
Children could write newspaper reports for this race including mock interviews with Mo, his wife and his old PE teachers. There are many great headlines to have fun with 'Not so slow Mo' etc
Children can use puppet pals to put themselves in the action as a presenter or commentator.
Show children the image of Mo crossing the line. What things would be going through his head? Can they imagine winning a gold medal? Who would they thank?
Children could write newspaper reports for this race including mock interviews with Mo, his wife and his old PE teachers. There are many great headlines to have fun with 'Not so slow Mo' etc
Children can use puppet pals to put themselves in the action as a presenter or commentator.
Show children the image of Mo crossing the line. What things would be going through his head? Can they imagine winning a gold medal? Who would they thank?