Unit 4

How Do Games Influence People?

Lesson 11

Reader's Notebook

The First Olympic Games

Pages 52 to 59 in Literacy in Action 5B.


Traditional stories, such as legends, folk tales, and myths, are told to teach people an important lesson or explain something mysterious. There are many examples of these types of stories, including Aesop's Fables and Aboriginal stories.

Click each coloured row for information about the activity.

Think About It


Think about the legends, folk tales, and myths that you have read or heard about. Choose one of these stories that you already know, and answer the following question:

  • What do you think people were supposed to learn from this story?

Go to pages 52 to 59 in Literacy in Action 5B and preview the selection.


The story for this lesson is a myth about the first Olympic Games. It tells about how Pelops travels to the kingdom of Elis to marry the king's daughter, Hippodamia. The king says Pelops can only marry his daughter if Pelops beats him in a chariot race. The result of this race led to the creation of the Olympic Games.
This story is longer than other stories you have read in this unit. You might wish to read it in sections and take little breaks. If you choose to do this, review what you read previously before starting to read a new section.

As you are reading or listening to the story, pay attention to the different parts or elements of the story:

  • Characters
  • Setting
  • Problem
  • Events
  • Solution




Document: Reader’s Notebook: The First Olympic Games
Click here to download

Download PDF


  1. Download the document Reader’s Notebook: The First Olympic Games.
  2. IMPORTANT NOTE: When the download screen opens: 
      • Click the "Open with" button.
      • Select "Adobe Reader".
      • Click "OK".
      • You will then be able to view the document Reader’s Notebook: The First Olympic Games.

  3. Print the document.
Click each coloured tab for information about the activity.

When you have finished reading the story, answer the After Reading questions on the Reader’s Notebook: The First Olympic Games.
Be sure to add any information from this lesson to your Games Graphic Organizer.
Add any new words you found in this selection to your Vocabulary Chart.


Save

How to save a file:

  1. Scan the document to your computer.
  2. Have the file open and select Save As from the File menu.
  3. Name your Reader’s Notebook: The First Olympic Games file in this format: jsmith_rnolympicgames and save the file to your Documents folder.
Compare your responses with those in the Key by clicking here.