Practicing Good Sportspersonship

Unit	World Olympics, p. 22
Lesson Name	Practicing Good Sportspersonship
Grade Band	Elementary (Grades 3-5) Middle School (Grades 6-8)

Unit

World Olympics, p. 22

Lesson Name

Practicing Good Sportspersonship

Grade Band

Elementary (Grades 3-5)

Middle School (Grades 6-8)

Required Materials	Quotations for Small Group Discussion on index cards Large envelope for index cards Newsprint with pre-printed quotations Markers Tape
Standards / Competencies	CASEL Core Competencies Self-Awareness Self-Management Social Awareness Relationship Skills Common Core ELA-Literacy Standards Listening and Speaking Writing NCSS Social Studies Themes Individual Development and Identity
Recommended Time	50 mins

Required Materials

Quotations for Small Group Discussion on index cards
Large envelope for index cards
Newsprint with pre-printed quotations
Markers
Tape

Standards / Competencies

CASEL Core Competencies

Self-Awareness
Self-Management
Social Awareness
Relationship Skills

Common Core ELA-Literacy Standards

Listening and Speaking
Writing

NCSS Social Studies Themes

Individual Development and Identity

Recommended Time

50 mins

Essential Question	How do we practice good sportspersonship?
Learning Objectives	Define good sportspersonship. Identify behaviors associated with good sportspersonship. Explain why practicing good sportspersonship is important when people work together as a group or on a team.

Activating Prior Knowledge	Divide the class into random or pre-selected groups of five students per group and provide each group with a piece of newsprint and markers. Ask by a show of hands how many students have watched some kind of sport either in person or on TV. Ask for three or four volunteers to name the sport they have watched. State to the students that a sport is defined as “an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment.” Ask, based on this definition, by a show of hands, how many have themselves played or know someone who has played some kind of sport either in school, at home, or in their community with friends. Ask for three or four volunteers to name the sport they played. Ask the group to think about what they know about sports and decide for themselves how confident they feel that they know enough to make some good judgments about how people should act when they play a sport. Tell students you are going to ask a question and if it fits what they think to raise their hand. Say: Raise your hand if you are very confident that you can make good judgments about how people should act when they play a sport. Observe whose hands are raised. Tell group to put their hands down Say: Raise your hand if you are mostly confident. Observe whose hands are raised. Tell group to put their hands down. If some students have not raised their hands, say: So even if some of us are not as confident as others, in our groups we have a good mix of people who can help each other in the activity we are about to do.
Core Instruction	Ask each group to select one person to come to the front and pick a quotation from the bag or envelope to bring back to their group. When all groups have their quotation, ask one person from each group to stand and read the quotation and who said it. As the quotations are read, give each group their pre-printed chart paper and at least two different colored markers. When all groups have read and received their chart paper and markers, write the word sportspersonship on a piece of chart paper at the front of the room. Tell the class that the job of each small group is to use their quotation to help them decide how the group would define good sportspersonship. Tell the class they will have about 10-15 minutes to discuss the message in their quotation and to write down words they think should be used in a definition of good sportspersonship. Finally, the group needs to write their definition on their chart paper under the quotation and be able to explain how the quotation helped them create their definition. Tell the class that you will periodically tell them how much time they have left. Tell the class that if any group has a question, one person should raise her/his hand and you will come over for a consultation. Be sure to move around the room to listen to, and observe, each group and offer assistance or guidance as needed. If all groups are working and need longer than 15 minutes to complete the assignment, give them an additional three to five minutes. When you tell the class time is up, give each group a minute or two to finish writing and then ask them to choose a spokesperson or a team of two representatives who will post the group’s chart paper and read the list of words the team came up with and then read the group’s definition of sportspersonship. As each group reports to the whole class, at the front of the room make a list of all the words each group associated with good sportspersonship. When all the groups have shared their words and definitions, thank them and ask the class to look at the list of words they have created. Read aloud the definitions of sportspersonship each group wrote, then ask: How can we use the ideas in each of these definitions and the words you listed to come up with a class description of what good sportspersonship looks like? Work with students to create the class description. As students offer words or suggestions, ask them why they think a word or statement should be used. When the class agrees that the description is complete, thank them for their efforts and say that the group description will be posted in the room as the class’s agreement for how they will treat one another.
Wrap-up	Ask: Why do you think we need to understand what we mean by good sportspersonship if we are going to work together as a class or team? Read some of the behaviors the students have included (words like respect, being fair, being honest, thinking of others, etc.) and ask: Why are these behaviors important to you? Encourage students to give the reasons they think the way they do. Go around the room. Ask each student to state one word that describes how they feel about the agreement they have made together. The teacher should begin by saying “I feel…”
Learning Beyond Classroom Walls	Extension Activity: Ask students to look up the person who said the quotation their small group worked on. Tell students to write 3 or more paragraphs (depending on grade level) describing who the person was in the world of sports. This activity may be assigned to the group as a whole or may be offered as an extra credit assignment.

Activating Prior Knowledge

Divide the class into random or pre-selected groups of five students per group and provide each group with a piece of newsprint and markers.

Ask by a show of hands how many students have watched some kind of sport either in person or on TV. Ask for three or four volunteers to name the sport they have watched.

State to the students that a sport is defined as “an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment.”

Ask, based on this definition, by a show of hands, how many have themselves played or know someone who has played some kind of sport either in school, at home, or in their community with friends. Ask for three or four volunteers to name the sport they played.

Ask the group to think about what they know about sports and decide for themselves how confident they feel that they know enough to make some good judgments about how people should act when they play a sport.

Tell students you are going to ask a question and if it fits what they think to raise their hand. Say: Raise your hand if you are very confident that you can make good judgments about how people should act when they play a sport. Observe whose hands are raised.

Tell group to put their hands down Say: Raise your hand if you are mostly confident. Observe whose hands are raised. Tell group to put their hands down.

If some students have not raised their hands, say: So even if some of us are not as confident as others, in our groups we have a good mix of people who can help each other in the activity we are about to do.

Core Instruction

Ask each group to select one person to come to the front and pick a quotation from the bag or envelope to bring back to their group.

When all groups have their quotation, ask one person from each group to stand and read the quotation and who said it. As the quotations are read, give each group their pre-printed chart paper and at least two different colored markers.

When all groups have read and received their chart paper and markers, write the word sportspersonship on a piece of chart paper at the front of the room.

Tell the class that the job of each small group is to use their quotation to help them decide how the group would define good sportspersonship.

Tell the class they will have about 10-15 minutes to discuss the message in their quotation and to write down words they think should be used in a definition of good sportspersonship. Finally, the group needs to write their definition on their chart paper under the quotation and be able to explain how the quotation helped them create their definition.

Tell the class that you will periodically tell them how much time they have left.

Tell the class that if any group has a question, one person should raise her/his hand and you will come over for a consultation.

Be sure to move around the room to listen to, and observe, each group and offer assistance or guidance as needed.

If all groups are working and need longer than 15 minutes to complete the assignment, give them an additional three to five minutes.

When you tell the class time is up, give each group a minute or two to finish writing and then ask them to choose a spokesperson or a team of two representatives who will post the group’s chart paper and read the list of words the team came up with and then read the group’s definition of sportspersonship.

As each group reports to the whole class, at the front of the room make a list of all the words each group associated with good sportspersonship.

When all the groups have shared their words and definitions, thank them and ask the class to look at the list of words they have created.

Read aloud the definitions of sportspersonship each group wrote, then ask: How can we use the ideas in each of these definitions and the words you listed to come up with a class description of what good sportspersonship looks like?

Work with students to create the class description. As students offer words or suggestions, ask them why they think a word or statement should be used.

When the class agrees that the description is complete, thank them for their efforts and say that the group description will be posted in the room as the class’s agreement for how they will treat one another.

Wrap-up

Ask: Why do you think we need to understand what we mean by good sportspersonship if we are going to work together as a class or team?

Read some of the behaviors the students have included (words like respect, being fair, being honest, thinking of others, etc.) and ask: Why are these behaviors important to you? Encourage students to give the reasons they think the way they do.

Go around the room. Ask each student to state one word that describes how they feel about the agreement they have made together. The teacher should begin by saying “I feel…”

Learning Beyond Classroom Walls

Extension Activity:
Ask students to look up the person who said the quotation their small group worked on. Tell students to write 3 or more paragraphs (depending on grade level) describing who the person was in the world of sports. This activity may be assigned to the group as a whole or may be offered as an extra credit assignment.

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