Summer Olympics Resources from Annenberg

July 27 marks the opening ceremonies for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. While rooting for athletes and countries, also reflect on the rich historical and cultural significance of the games. Bridging World History, unit 25, “Global Popular Culture” (http://www.learner.org/redirect/junjul12/culture.html ), explains the history of the Olympic games, the influences of global events, and how the games reflect the social and political struggles of the 20th century.

Students make cultural comparisons between Germany and the United States and learn German sports vocabulary while talking about the Olympics in the series Teaching Foreign Languages K-12: A Library of Classroom Practices, unit 20, “Sports in Action” (http://www.learner.org/redirect/junjul12/sports.html )