The Japan Society

Undokai - Japanese Sports Day

Subject: Physical Education / Other Topics
Level: Key Stage 1 / Key Stage 2 / Key Stage 3
Age: 5-7 years / 7-11 years / 11-15 years
Resource Type: Activities / Presentations / Lesson Plans / Other

Undokai-Main

The Japanese Sports Day (undokai in Japanese) is a popular event in the school calendar; it’s a fun-filled day with an emphasis on teamwork and collaboration. 

The Japanese Sports Day Games Pack contains illustrations and instructions of 14 typical games that are played at a Japanese sports day, allowing you to organise an authentic undokai event of your own. The games in the pack can be used as standalone activities, introduced via the scheme of work (below), or to plan your own event. 


Japanese Sports Day Full Pack - PDF (22 MB)

Field Set-up Instructions - PDF (1.5 MB)

Sample Questions for the Maru Batsu Quiz Game - PDF (481 KB)


At Home Edition

Why not hold your own Sports Day? The At Home Edition Pack contains 8 games adapted from the main pack which allow you to recreate your very own undokai in the garden or in the park with minimal equipment and small team sizes. You can add your own variations and ideas too! 

Don’t forget to start with a Radio Taiso warm up and have a picnic together when you’re finished. For the Maru/Batsu Quiz Game, you can use the same list of sample questions as above.

Japanese Sports Day Pack: At Home Edition - PDF (2.9 MB)


Additional Resources for Schools & Teachers

The scheme of work introduces the different aspects of a Japanese sports day through 6 lessons. 

Sports Day Background Notes - PDF (764 KB)

Japanese Sports Day Scheme of Work - PDF (237 KB)


See the individual lesson pages for more information: 

Lesson 1: Radio Taiso Warm-up

Lesson 2: Pair Work

Lesson 3: Fun and Physical Activity

Lesson 4: Team Work

Lesson 5: Evaluating Self-Performance

Lesson 6: The Sports Day