Whether you’re a team captain or just a fan, kids’ sports are a blast!
This article was originally published in the December 2019/January 2020 issue.
Can't-Miss Teaching Extras
Make a connection between sports . . . and art! Have your students take this quiz from the Tate Modern museum in London to learn which “arty sport” they should play. Or they can test their sports knowledge with this quiz from DKfindout.
Marjorie Gestring—the youngest Olympic gold medalist—is mentioned in this infographic. Watch this short vintage TV clip to see her winning dive!
Kids get involved in sports in all kinds of ways, but are travel sports out of control? Open up the conversation with your class using this debate from the May/June 2019 issue.
In the book Kid Athletes: True Tales of Childhood from Sports Legends by David Stabler, students can learn about the everyday challenges of all-star athletes—like Gabby Douglas and Lionel Messi—faced as kids.
More About the Story
Skills
reading for information, evaluating
Complexity Factors
Purpose
The infographic provides a range of facts about kids’ sports.
Structure
Information is presented using text, text boxes, images, numbers, and a bar graph.
Language
The language is mainly conversational.
Knowledge Demands
The text uses “average” as a mathematical term and mentions the Harry Potter books.
1. Reading and Discussing
Project the infographic as students follow along in their magazines.
Prompt students to use the headline, subhead, and central image to identify the topic of the infographic.
Ask: Is the purpose of the infographic to
Have students look over the labels and images surrounding the central image. Ask:
Break students into groups to read each section of the infographic and discuss what they find interesting, surprising, or convincing.
Come back together as a class and ask volunteers to summarize the main idea and supporting details from the infographic.
2. Writing
Preview the writing prompt in the “Write to Win” box.
Download and distribute the guided-writing activity that goes along with the infographic.
Have students respond to the writing prompt. If you wish, send their responses to our infographic contest.
Ideas to Engage and Inspire
Have students create their own infographics! Download our “Make Your Own Infographic” activity from Storyworks Digital.
