THE OLYMPIC GAMES

OF ANCIENT GREECE

Discover the Olympic Games for yourself. You are about to go back in time to the first Olympiad in the year 776 B.C.

Tighten your togas, and lets GO!

The Task

Your task is to discover as much as you can about the
Olympic Games in Ancient Greece. Try to find as many
new and unique facts as possible. Your task is to:

• Answer the following questions
• Briefly describe one of the Olympic events
• Find a map of Ancient Greece and label where the first Games were held
• Create 3 new questions for your class to answer
• If you were an athlete, which game would you participate in and why?

Here are the questions to begin your Adventure into Ancient Greece.

1. 1. Where did the Olympic Games come from?
2. 2. Why were they held at Olympia?
3. 3. Were there other contests like the Olympics?
4. 4. Who could compete in the Olympics?
5. 5. Were women allowed at the Olympics?
6. 6. How were the athletes trained?
7. 7. What prizes did Olympic victors get?
8. 8. Who were the Olympic judges?
9. 9. What was the penalty for cheating?
10. 10. Where did the marathon come from?
11. 11. Why do think women were not allowed to participate in the Games? How do you feel about that?

Resources

• Olympic Games Virtual Museum
• Ancient Olympic Games
• The Perseus Project digital Library of Ancient Greece
• The Olympic Games (ministry of culture
• Ancient Greece
• Ancient Greece (BBC schools)
• History and Geography of the Olympic Games in Ancient Greece
• Homework Help - The Ancient Olympic Games
• Text References
• Search Emgines
  

Let's Begin
To begin your Olympic Quest, you must read the material at the top of this page, and then
answer the questions that will begin your adventure into Ancient Greece.Be sure you answer each question completely.

It is now time to choose an Olympic event that you are interested in. Write a one page report about this event and include at least one visual demonstration of this event. The visual demonstration can be an illustration, a model, a photograph of yourself dressed as the athlete, etc., in other words, use your creative imagination.

Now, find a map of ancient Greece, and label where the first games were held. You might have to do a little research to figure this one out. You can use all of the available resources to complete this part of your Olympic Quest because you certainly don't want to get lost on your way to the Olympic Games.

Next, you get to be the teacher. Create three new questions that will test tease your friend's brains.

Your final task is to create a new game for the Olympics. Name the game and describe how the game is played. If this is to be entered into the Olympic games, all of the athletes must fully understand the objectives of the game, how it is played, and how the winner of the game is determined. You also need to recruit athletes to this new Olympic game so therefore you must write an advertisement that entices their participation. Remember, you have to be very persuasive if you want to sign up the most qualified athletes.

Learning Advice

• To adequately complete your quest of the Olympic Games in Ancient Greece use all of the available resources. This means that you can use your textbook, library references, on-line resources, etc. You may also use any outside resources that you find.
• If you are working with a partner or in a group, you must include a task chart. The task chart shows the name of each person who was responsible for completing the various parts of the project.

Conclusion

"You have traveled the stone-paved roads and followed the courses of ancient Marathon runners and hurled the javelin like Milo of old. The Gods of Ancient Greece like Hera, Zeus, Hermes, and Athena are now with you in your travels. What have you learned from your quest this day?"

This page written by Mary Baker, Steven Doubrava, and Brian McDuffie