1.
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August
This month of August will be even more fun than usual thanks to the Olympics. Our activities
give students the opportunity to find out more about this sports event, learn English and have
fun. B2 First and C1 Advanced students can find out more about an Olympic champion while
they practise their listening and speaking. Our A2 Key and B1 Preliminary learners can read
some testimonials of sportspeople’s memories of the Olympics. Finally, young learners can
get to know some of the most recent Olympic mascots and make the most of their creativity.
Happy teaching!
1. Aim high ............................................................................................................................................2
2. Olympic memories...........................................................................................................................5
3. Olympic mascot..............................................................................................................................10
4. References......................................................................................................................................12

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2
1. Aim high
Level: B2 First / C1 Advanced
Skills: listening and speaking
Interaction: whole class, in groups, individual activity
Time: 45 minutes
Warm up (15’) – whole class activity
1. Are you into sports? Why (not)?
2. Are you planning to watch the Olympic Games? Why (not)?
3. What is your favourite sport? Why?
4. Who is Simone Biles?
5. What is she famous for?
6. What do you think being a top sportsperson is like?
7. What do you think their main qualities are? Why?
Listening (15’) – individual activity
You will watch an interview with Simone Biles. For questions 1-8 write a short answer. You
will watch the interview twice.
1. How does Simone Biles feel about the last Olympics?
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2. How does Simone describe the last 18 months?
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3. How long does she expect she may need before being able to compete again?
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4. How did she start working with her new coaches?
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5. What is the key for success according to her coach?
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6. What aspect does her coach think she needs more training on?
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7. What does her coach say about goal-setting with Simone?
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Follow up (10’) – whole class activity
• What message would you get out of the interview? Why?
• Some sportspeople make a lot of money - do you think this is reasonable? Why (not)?
• Some sportspeople become role models for younger generations. Do you think this is
a good idea? Why (not)?

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4
KEY
1. How does Simone Biles feel about the last Olympics?
She does not think about it too much because she has the impression that a lot has
happened since then and she finds it hard to keep up. Also, she tends to look to what
is coming next, to the future.
2. How does Simone describe the last 18 months?
She describes them as a rollercoaster, she has travelled a lot and she hasn’t been in
the gym because she decided to take some time off. She has been working for
sponsors, going to events but she has also been on holiday with her family.
3. How long does she expect she may need before being able to compete again?
It might take a year to get back into competition.
4. How did she start working with her new coaches?
Simone was on a coach hunt and her new coaches had just left their gym in Dallas.
They had a meeting and checked with Simone’s own coaches before making the
decision to start working together.
5. What is the key for success according to her coach?
It is very important to be consistent, to go to the gym every day to try to accomplish
something.
6. What aspect does her coach think she needs more training on?
She needs to train her mind, to build her confidence.
7. What does her coach say about goal-setting with Simone?
They need to set goals that are attainable for her even if for other gymnasts they sound
insane. He thinks it is very important that Simone thinks she can achieve these goals
because otherwise she can mentally break down.

5.
5
2. Olympic memories
Level: A2 Key / B1 Preliminary
Skills: speaking, reading
Interaction: whole class, in teams and individual
activity
Time: 30 minutes
Warm up! (10’) – whole class
• Are you into sports? Why (not)?
• Are you planning to watch the Olympic Games? Why (not)?
• What is your favourite sport? Why?
• How much do you know about the Olympic Games?
Listening and speaking (10’) – in teams
How much do you know about the Olympic Games? Listen and answer the questions.
1. Where did the Olympic games happen in ancient times?
2. In which year was the first Winter Olympics held?
3. How many rings are there on the Olympic flag?
4. What do these rings on the Olympic flag represent?
5. Which country has bagged the most Olympic medals?
7. How often do the Olympics happen?
8. Which athlete holds the record for winning the most Olympic medals?
9. Which country's group of athletes take up the first position during the parade of nations at
the opening ceremony?
10. Which organisation is the governing body of the Olympic Games?
Source: Kidadl (2021).

6.
6
Reading (10’) – individual activity
For each question, choose the correct answer:
1. Which sportsperson felt lucky for being
able to watch sport at any time of the
day?
A B C D
2. Which sportsperson knew they wanted to
win medals in the Olympic Games from
an early age?
A B C D
3. Which sportsperson was lucky enough to
compete when the Olympic Games were
held in their country?
A B C D
4. Which sportsperson remembered the
music but nothing else from the first
Olympic Games they watched?
A B C D
5. Which sportsperson had their own
Olympic Games when they were young?
A B C D
6. Which sportsperson felt that becoming an
Olympic champion was a real possibility
after watching a competition?
A B C D

7.
7
A. "My earliest Olympic memory was probably
watching the Beijing Opening Ceremony. I think I
was probably like six or seven. That's the first
memory of the Olympics I have, seeing all the
drums and drummers, that’s my kind of overriding
memory. I must have watched Usain Bolt but I
don’t necessarily remember it. So my first proper
experience was London 2012 when I was in Year
5 at school, probably 10 years old. And that was
insane, watching Jess Ennis. Obviously, she was such a huge inspiration for me as a
young girl. I massively used to look up to her. I reckon I definitely had a poster of her
at one point on my wall. She was such an inspiration for me and such an idol.”
B. "My first memory of the Olympic Games is
from Atlanta 96. As a sports fan, it seemed
like a gift to turn on the television at any time
and be able to watch the competition live.
The following year, I have the memory of the
candidacy of Rio 2004. Although I saw 2004
as the distant future at seven years old, I was
very excited by that possibility.
Unfortunately, Rio did not manage to host
the Games that year. But by chance they
tried again for 2016 and this time it was a success. Life's coincidences: the boy who
regretted that there were no Games in his country in 2004, was able to compete in the
Games in 2016 on home soil. That was a unique experience and sensation in my life."
C. "My first Olympic memory was Laure Manaudou in
Athens 2004 when she became Olympic champion
in the 400m freestyle. I was in front of my TV... 15-
years-old. I wanted to become Olympic champion
at a very young age but seeing Laure Manaudou
winning in front of me, I was 15 and a swimmer at
that time, about to join the sport study program,
made me cry and realised that I really wanted to
become Olympic champion. It became concrete.
'This is possible'. She made me dream when she won in Athens. I remember the race,
I remember the time by heart: 4:05:34. I can see myself sitting on this couch at my
parents watching the final. This is my best Olympic memory. The one that made me
realise that becoming Olympic champion was possible."
D. "I'm a dreamer, I'm an artist and I continue to be a
child. The same child that was eight years old and
dreamed about the Olympics after seeing the Games
in Sydney on the TV. The eight-year-old child
watching the Games in Sydney didn't imagine that he
could compete in one, not one little bit. I only wanted
to be the fastest child in my class, in Toronto. Those
were my Olympic Games."
Adapted from: The Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (2020).

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Follow up (10’) – in pairs
Work with a partner and compare your answers. Then, look at the KEY text and correct the
reading activity.
• For the questions you got wrong, what was the problem?
• Which words / parts of the text were difficult?
• Did you find any words you don’t know? Were they necessary to answer the questions
correctly?
• What did you do about these unknown words?
KEY
1. Where did the Olympic games happen in ancient times?
Answer: Olympia, Greece.
2. In which year was the first Winter Olympics held?
Answer: 1924.
3. How many rings are there on the Olympic flag?
Answer: Five.
4. What do these rings on the Olympic flag represent?
Answer: Five continents - Africa, Asia, The Americas, Europe, and Oceania.
5. Which country has bagged the most Olympic medals?
Answer: The United States.
7. How often do the Olympics happen?
Answer: Once every four years.
8. Which athlete holds the record for winning the most Olympic medals?
Answer: Michael Phelps.
9. Which country's group of athletes take up the first position during the parade of nations at
the opening ceremony?
Answer: Greece.
10. Which organisation is the governing body of the Olympic Games?
Answer: International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Reading
1. B
2. C
3. B

9.
9
4. A
5. D
6. C
A. "My earliest Olympic memory was probably watching the Beijing Opening Ceremony.
I think I was probably like six or seven. (4) That's the first memory of the Olympics I
have, seeing all the drums and drummers, that’s my kind of overriding memory. I must
have watched Usain Bolt but I don’t necessarily remember it. So my first proper
experience was London 2012 when I was in Year 5 at school, probably 10 years old.
And that was insane, watching Jess Ennis. Obviously, she was such a huge inspiration
for me as a young girl. I massively used to look up to her. I reckon I definitely had a
poster of her at one point on my wall. She was such an inspiration for me and such an
idol.”
B. "My first memory of the Olympic Games is from Atlanta 96. (1) As a sports fan, it
seemed like a gift to turn on the television at any time and be able to watch the
competition live. The following year, I have the memory of the candidacy of Rio 2004.
Although I saw 2004 as the distant future at seven years old, I was very excited by that
possibility. Unfortunately, Rio did not manage to host the Games that year. But by
chance they tried again for 2016 and this time it was a success. (3) Life's coincidences:
the boy who regretted that there were no Games in his country in 2004, was able to
compete in the Games in 2016 on home soil. That was a unique experience and
sensation in my life."
C. "My first Olympic memory was Laure Manaudou in Athens 2004 when she became
Olympic champion in the 400m freestyle.I was in front of my TV... 15-years-old. (2) I
wanted to become Olympic champion at a very young age but seeing Laure Manaudou
winning in front of me, I was 15 and a swimmer at that time, about to join the sport
study program, made me cry and realised that I really wanted to become Olympic
champion. (6) It became concrete. 'This is possible'. She made me dream when she
won in Athens. I remember the race, I remember the time by heart: 4:05:34. I can see
myself sitting on this couch at my parents watching the final. This is my best Olympic
memory. The one that made me realise that becoming Olympic champion was
possible."
D. "I'm a dreamer, I'm an artist and I continue to be a child. The same child that was eight
years old and dreamed about the Olympics after seeing the Games in Sydney on the
TV. The eight-year-old child watching the Games in Sydney didn't imagine that he
could compete in one, not one little bit. (5) I only wanted to be the fastest child in my
class, in Toronto. Those were my Olympic Games."

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10
3. Olympic mascot
Level: Pre-A1 Starters / A1 Movers / A2 Flyers
Skills: reading, writing, speaking and listening
Interaction: in groups and whole class activity
Time: 25-35 minutes
Warm up! (5’) – whole class activity
• Do you like sport? Why (not)?
• What is your favourite sport? Why?
• Do you like the Olympic Games? Why (not)?
• What colours are the Olympic rings?
• Each round of the Olympic Games has a mascot. What’s a mascot?
Listening and speaking (10’) – whole class activity (Pre-A1 Starters)
Look at these Olympic mascots.
• Which one is your favourite?
• Which ones are wearing a hat?
• Which one is wearing pink boots?
• Which one is black and red?
• Which ones are walking?
Listening and speaking (10’) – whole class activity (A1 Movers / A2 Flyers)
Look at the Olympic mascots.
• Which one is your favourite?
• Which one do you like the least?
• What does the mascot from Barcelona 1992 look like? And the mascot from London
2012?
Now choose a mascot and describe it. The rest of the class will try to guess.

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Source: Olympic Channel Services (2021).
Writing (20’) – in groups of three (A1 Movers and A2 Flyers)
Imagine there's a competition to design a mascot for your school. Draw your mascot, write a
short description (20 words or more) and enter the competition to win a 100 euro-voucher to
buy sports clothes.

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12
4. References
Balye, S. (2019). Ladies running with Olympic torches. [image/jpeg] Available at:
https://unsplash.com/photos/tmy7FIFkXRM [Accessed 14th July 2021].
Caio (2016). No title [image/jpeg] Available at: https://www.pexels.com/es-es/foto/gente-
multitud-deporte-estadio-58461/ [Accessed 14th July 2021].
Dias K. (2019). No title. [image/jpeg] Available at: https://unsplash.com/photos/ZIoi-47zV88
[Accessed 14th July 2021].
Fleischer, R. (2020). No title [image/jpeg] Available at:
https://unsplash.com/photos/B4OTiru9Rw8 [Accessed 14th July 2021].
Kidadl. (2021). 40 Olympics Trivia Questions (And Answers) Fit For A Champion. [online]
Available at: https://kidadl.com/articles/olympics-trivia-questions-and-answers-fit-for-
a-champion [Accessed 7th July 2021].
Ledesma, A. (2020). Hurdles. [image/jpeg] Available at:
https://unsplash.com/photos/eK5QIVbBE6c [Accessed 14th July 2021].
Olympic Channel Services (2021). Olympic Mascots. [online] Olympic Games. Available at:
https://olympics.com/en/olympic-games/olympic-mascots [Accessed 7th July 2021].
Piacquadio, A. (2020). Colocar atleta durante el entrenamiento en pista de atletismo.
[image/jpeg] Available at: https://www.pexels.com/es-es/foto/colocar-atleta-durante-
el-entrenamiento-en-pista-de-atletismo-3756042/ [Accessed 14th July 2021].
Piacquadio, A. (2020). Deportistas Fuertes listos para correr en el estadio. [image/jpeg]
Available at: https://www.pexels.com/es-es/foto/deportistas-fuertes-listos-para-correr-
en-el-estadio-3764011/ [Accessed 14th July 2021].
The Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (2020). First Olympic
memories: Athletes share the stories that ignited their love for the Games. [online]
News. Available at: https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/en/news/athletes-share-the-
stories-that-sparked-their-love-for-their-love-for-the-games [Accessed 7th July 2021].
Turner, B. (2019). Olympic Rings at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, Georgia. [image/jpeg]
Available at: https://unsplash.com/photos/mF9m6BRHCtg [Accessed 14th July 2021].
Youtube (n.d.). Biles.Is.Back. [online] USA Gymnastics. Available at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C54cHGCwBdk [Accessed 7th July 2021].