By Katie Gould, PBS NewsHour Extra Teacher Resource Producer

Introduction

Use this dual science lesson plan to learn about the Olympics through the lens of the mind (psychology) and the body (physiology).

Subjects

Biology, neuroscience, psychology, mental health, physiology

Estimated Time

Two 45 minute class periods

Grade Level

Middle and high school

Materials

• “Hypothesis and Conclusion” short answer page
• “Are Olympic athletes really mutants?" informational text
• “Are Olympic athletes geniuses?” short answer page
• “Introduction to Psychology and Depression” informational text
• “Teen Suicide” informational text ( page 1 and page 2 )
• “How sport psychology helps athletes” informational text

Warm Up Activity

The mind body connection

1. Explain to students that they are going to be studying the Olympics through the lens of the body and the mind.
2. To get them in the spirit, have students watch the top 10 moments from the 2024 Paris Olympics.

2. Ask students if they consider Olympic athletes to be geniuses by a show of hands.
3. Then pass out the short answer page “Are Olympic athletes geniuses?” and read them the definition
   1. ge·nius noun \ˈjēn-yəs, ˈjē-nē-əs\
      a very smart or talented person : a person who has a level of talent or intelligence that is very rare or remarkable
4. Then watch the PBS Digital Media Studios video “Are the Olympics a Model for Creating Geniuses?”
5. Now pose this question to the students: Which is more important for an Olympic athlete to be successful- the body or the mind? Or is it some combination of both? Give students time to discuss as a class.
   

Main activity - Body + Mind

1. Hormones and neurochemicals effect how our body responds to things like stress.  Our body and mind are well equipped to handle small periods of stress, but not long term. The results of long term stress to the body can have harmful effects. In the following video clip, Dr. Robert Sapolsky explains.

2. Ask students what kinds of emotions do they think the athletes at the Olympics feel and go through? Write their answers on the board.
3. Then, ask students to watch the following “Re-live Vancouver 2010!” video and imagine they are a psychologist/psychiatrist who is interested in analyzing the behaviors and mental states of the athletes.
   1. Play the video through, but stop around 1:52 seconds and ask students to pay particular attention to the skier wearing the #10 on his chest.
   2. Ask students if they saw any behavior that they feel is different from normal circumstances and try to identify what may have caused it.
   3. Two examples:
      1. Most people would be terrified and couldn’t function if they were asked to perform in front of millions of people and yet the athletes are able to perform nearly perfectly.
      2. People often cry when they are sad, but some of the winners were also crying.
4. Then read the article “The Price of Being Strong: Risks to the Mental Health of Athletes” by Lisa Firestone.
5. Mention to students that they are going to learn more about the skier with the #10 from earlier and either watch or read the story “The Last Flight of Speedy Peterson”.
   1. *Trigger Warning: Speedy Peterson committed suicide and that is what the story is about.  This might be difficult for students to hear, but it is also an important message about getting people help.
6. After watching/reading the story, give students time to debrief and reflect on what they have heard before having them read "What You Need to Know About Youth Suicide" from the National Alliance on Mental Illness.
7. For students who are interested in sport psychology, hand out the “How sport psychology helps athletes” informational text.

This lesson was published on January 25, 2014 and updated on July 30, 2026.