Welcome to the Grades 7-9 Section of the Canada Games Catch the Spirit (CTS) Program!
In this section, you will find a diverse range of engaging activities designed to help learners achieve key educational outcomes. The activities are thoughtfully developed to provide a relevant and impactful learning experience. You have the opportunity to tailor your lessons to align with your students' interests and needs by choosing from the categories below.
You can activate each pillar by playing the National Anthem O Canada to encourage unity.
Be sure to complete at least one activity in each of the five pillars to maximize your students' learning experience.
Watch this 2025 Canada Games video and have a general discussion of what the learners observe in action. Individually complete the senses sheet, explore class findings and discuss what may have inspired the athlete(s) to compete.
Develop a four minute (maximum) class video invitation for a 2025 Canada Games athlete to facetime with your learners. Use this worksheet to brainstorm your top 10 questions for the athlete.
Submit Your Video
Use this blank venn diagram sheet to record examples where the sports represent art, culture or both in the 2025 Canada Games. Upon completion and discussion of the venn diagrams, play a game of ‘The Paper Project’.
Create a pal for Gusty the Mascot, include a 2025 Canada Games sport, and sketch them both in action. Once complete, have the learner share their image with the class and discuss their artwork.
Audition to be Gusty’s sidekick! Learners can create a script and perform their audition for the class.
These videos can then be uploaded using this form
Be sure to complete at least one activity in each of the five pillars to maximize your students' learning experience.
Choose a pictogram from the 2025 Canada Games website and research that sport. Use a printout of one of the pictograms and on the back list a minimum of five facts about the sport to share with the class for discussion.
Write a persuasive/motivational letter (four paragraphs maximum) to a 2025 Canada Games Provincial or Territorial Team team of choice encouraging the players to have their best and most fun Games ever!
These letters can then be uploaded using this form
Provide the class with the positive peeps sheet, so both the teacher and learner can share a better understanding of their baselines in sports. Share some of the goal setting and leadership tips of your students.
Model a timeline that a 2025 Canada Games athlete could use for a full day of fitness, school, eating, workouts, etc. Use: The Ball is in Your Court
Play ‘Jersey Jam’ and see which group can get the fastest time and keep track of records of which team wins.
Be sure to complete at least one activity in each of the five pillars to maximize your students' learning experience.
Complete a 2025 Canada Games class sports trivia contest using the information found here. Use Kahoot to make a trivia game.
Lead your class, via words, images, text or video, through a 10 step sequence of sharing a healthy recipe, or of preparing to go to a 2025 Canada Games event. Your goal is to do so in under three minutes. Challenge your class to create their own 10 step video.
Watch this video of an historic Canada Games event. (Create/dub over/write a two minute maximum commentator play by play and display it in your classroom.
Create a podcast style interview with fellow athletes in your class asking at least five Canada Games related questions and record the answers.
Design a bilingual poster that could be placed in any of the 2025 Canada Games venues. Think of the 17 pictograms, the venues, and the Canada Food Guide to help create your poster. Use 2025 Canada Games colours as your background poster theme.
Be sure to complete at least one activity in each of the five pillars to maximize your students' learning experience.
Record a one minute maximum bilingual video inviting Gusty the Mascot to come to your class and share 2025 Canada Games activities and information.
Submit Your Video
Create a bilingual visitor map of your school including 10 key places around it (Ex. Playground, gymnasium, cafeteria, library) so that an athlete visiting from another province would be able to tour the school with ease.
Make and narrate a video in french/english promoting why the learners favourite team or athletes might visit their school and home town.
Submit Your Video
Develop a set of instructions on how to play a Canada Games sport in a sequence of ten steps Share and demonstrate the game with the class. Be sure to have it in both official languages.
Watch as a motivational tool for a class fitness challenge. Discuss exercises that can be done as a group in one, two or three minutes. Create a bilingual video of the class doing the exercise. You can do this weekly or monthly if you want to do a class improvement challenge!
Be sure to complete at least one activity in each of the five pillars to maximize your students' learning experience.
Play Hot Spot Debates. The educator or students will provide topics to be debated in rapid fire succession. Topics will be directly related to the 2025 Canada Games and can include: the sports included, age limits, length of game, best months to host summer or winter Games. Use a one minute timer for each topic. The students will raise hands and support or oppose a view adding their opinion each time until a topic is maxed out.
Ask students to create a funny jingle, cheer, or commercial for any aspect of the 2025 Canada Games including: Gusty, a sport, food, location, piece of equipment or an athlete. The target audience would be tourists, athletes and other prospective visitors. The video must be one minute maximum with three people and written to be performed/read for TV or radio.
Submit Your Video
Listen to the Ode to Newfoundland anthem and review the lyrics. Discuss and debate with the class, things that could be added, taken away, changed, etc.
Watch 2023 Winter Sports Meet to learn about Labrador winter sports. Upon completion of the video, list as a class, the eight main sports as well as the six Native Games events. Design a poster or create a video lobbying the addition of any of the Native Games events that could be added to the Canada Games.
Learn an Indigenous game at school. Find Indigenous games to learn with your class at: Indigenous games list and instructions.
Be sure to complete at least one activity in each of the five pillars to maximize your students' learning experience.
By completing the suggested above activities, you complete the curriculum
outcomes described in this document.