Plan the Mini Olympics: Committees and Schedule

A classroom session where the class organizes a track and field meet for another group at school, split into committees: records, judges and timing, logistics, communications and safety. Each committee finishes with a document ready to use on meet day.

How to play

1. Present the challenge: a four-event mini Olympics for a middle school class in a 55-minute period (3 min).
2. Form five committees and assign roles within each one (2 min).
3. Committee work: heat schedule, scoresheet templates, equipment list and layout, instruction poster, and a safety plan with a first aid kit (15 min).
4. Each committee presents its document in two minutes and gets one question or improvement from another committee (8 min).
5. Final adjustments and assignment of who is in charge of what on meet day (2 min).

Rules

• Each committee has a coordinator who makes sure everyone contributes.
• Any criticism of another committee comes with a suggestion for improvement.
• Documents are saved in a shared folder the whole class can access.
• The safety plan must state what to do if someone gets hurt and who alerts the teacher.

Variations

Adaptations

• Autism: picks a committee based on their interests and gets a specific task list.
• Hearing impairment: presentations are supported on screen with text and diagrams.
• Limited mobility: joins the logistics committee and checks the accessibility of each area.

Learning goals

• Plan a sports event cooperatively.
• Take on leadership and responsibility within a team.
• Anticipate risks and safety measures when organizing a competition.

Equipment for a class of 25

• worksheets: 30
• tablets or phones: 7

Teacher tip

Talk with the visiting class's teacher beforehand to lock in the date. Provide model scoresheet and schedule templates so time goes into deciding, not formatting.

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