Subject: / Language Arts
Title: / What’s Happening at the WJC?
Grade Level: / 5
Purpose: / Students read and respond to factual information about the 2014-2015 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.
Curricular
Connections: / Extend understanding
  • Search for further ideas and information from others and from oral, print and other media texts to extend understanding
  • Comprehend new ideas and information by responding personally, taking notes and discussing ideas with others

Materials: /
  • Passage on “The IIHF World Junior Ice Hockey Championships”
  • Worksheet with reflective questioning
  • Chart paper/Smart Board/ Blackboard

Activity: /
  1. Talk to students about the World Junior Championships being in Canada this year.
  2. Have students tell what they already know about the championships. Chart their responses.
  3. Distribute the passage of information, and the question sheet.
  4. Students read the passage,“The IIHF World Junior Ice HockeyChampionships” independently.
  5. Reflective questions are answered in complete sentences.
  6. Demonstrate complete sentence answers. For example:
Question: What do the letters IIHF stand for?
Sentence Answer: The letters IIHF stand for International
Ice Hockey Federation.
  1. Students complete worksheet independently.

Extension: /
  • Students list the names and positions of the Team Canada players on the reverse side of their worksheet.
  • S.S. connection– map the birthplaces of the Team Canada players.

Assessment: / Evaluate students on their:
  • understanding of the information.
  • ability to respond in complete sentences.

The IIHF World Junior Ice Hockey Championships

The IIHF World Junior Championships first came to Canada in 1978. The tournament was in Montreal, at the Forum, and some of the players wereViacheslavFetsov (Soviet Union), Anton Stastny (Czechoslovakia), Mats Naslund (Sweden), and a 16-year-old Wayne Gretzky (CANADA) who all became future stars in the game. Canada last hosted the World Junior Championships in 2012 when they were in the cities of Calgary and Edmonton, Alberta. Sweden won Gold, Russia took Silver, and Canada got the Bronze at that tournament.

There will be ten countries competing at the 2015 World Junior Championships this year. They include Canada, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Russia, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, and the USA. Last year, in the host country of Sweden, the Finnish team brought home the Gold for the 3rd time, with Sweden taking Silver, and Russia the Bronze. Canada placed 4th in the Tournament.

This year will be the 39th World Junior Ice Hockey Championship and it will be co-hosted in Toronto, Ontario and Montreal, Quebec. The games will be played at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto and at the Bell Centre in Montreal. Tournament play begins on December 26, 2014 in both cities, and will end with the gold medal game on January 5, 2015 in Toronto.

In order to run an event of this magnitude, the host committee welcomes the assistance of volunteers. Some of the jobs these individuals do include: welcoming guests and providing game programs, assisting with the award ceremonies, receiving and counting merchandise, managing information desks, and escorting family of the players to and from the hotel. The volunteers also assist with the hospitality for VIPs. These include IIHF (International Ice Hockey Federation) members, Hockey Canada members, government dignitaries, and sponsors.

Team Canada will wear new jerseys at the World Junior Championships. The jerseys commemorate the 100th anniversary of Hockey Canada. All of Canada’s national teams will be sporting the new jersey in international competition during the 2014-15 season. This is to celebrate Hockey Canada’s heritage and history. Let’s support Team Canada in their quest for a Gold Medal!

The World Junior Ice Hockey Championships Name:

Answer each of the following questions in complete sentences.

  1. When did Canada last host the World Junior Championships?

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  1. What medal did Canada earn in that tournament?
  1. In which two Canadian cities will the 2014-2015 Championships be held?

______

  1. How many countries will be participating in the tournament this year?

______

  1. Where were the World Junior Championships last year, and who won Gold?

______

  1. When does the tournament begin, and when does it end?

______

  1. Why will the Canadian hockey team be wearing new jerseys?

______

  1. Name two jobs that volunteers do at the tournament.

______

  1. Which team will travel the furthest to compete in the World Junior Championships?

______

  1. At what two arenas will the games be played, and what is the capacity of each arena?

______

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