Grade by Grade
A–B. Active Living and Movement Competence · Active Living and Movement: Move Well, Train Smart, Stay Safe

Know the Game: Components, Rules and Etiquette

B2.1 1.4About 65 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can describe the components of an activity: movement skills, game structures, basic rules and guidelines, and etiquette and fair play.
  • I can sort activities into categories (individual, target, net/wall, striking/fielding, territory) and explain their structures.
  • I can apply rules and etiquette in different settings, such as a gym, rink, pool, park or trail.
  • I can cooperate with a partner or group to complete tasks.

Words to know

game structure
How an activity is organized: the playing area, number of players, how you score and how you win.
etiquette
The expected polite behaviour in an activity, often unwritten, such as staying quiet while others putt or re-racking weights.
target activity
Sending an object to a target, such as curling, bowling, archery, bocce or disc golf.
net/wall activity
Sending an object over a net or against a wall so the opponent can't return it, such as badminton, volleyball, pickleball or squash.
striking/fielding activity
One team strikes an object and runs to score while the other fields it, such as softball, cricket, rounders or kickball.
territory activity
Teams invade the other team's space to score in a goal or zone, such as soccer, basketball, hockey, ultimate or lacrosse.

Remember from Grade 8

In Grade 8 you described the parts of an activity (purpose, rules, equipment, skills, etiquette, safety) in orienteering, and compared game categories and their tactics. In Grade 9, B2.1 asks you to understand the components of many activities and to apply them in many settings: gym, fitness room, ice rink, pool, park, recreational facilities, hiking and snowshoeing trails.

Hook: the new kid at the rink

You join a pick-up shinny game for the first time. Nobody explains anything. Yet within five minutes you notice the unwritten rules: no slapshots, no lifting the puck, sticks on the ice, teams change when someone leaves, everyone taps sticks at the end. Every activity has these components, written and unwritten. Learning them fast is a skill that lets you join almost any activity, anywhere.

The components of an activity

  1. Movement skills: the locomotor, stability and manipulation skills it uses.
  2. Game structures: the area, number of players, equipment, how you score and win.
  3. Basic rules and guidelines: what's allowed and what isn't, often adapted for safety and fun (for example, no slapshots in shinny).
  4. Etiquette and fair play: the expected behaviour: shaking hands, calling your own lines, waiting your turn, respecting the space.
Disc golf(target activity)Movement skillsbackhand and forehandthrows, puttingGame structurefewest throws toreach each basketRules and guidelinesthrow from whereyour disc landedEtiquette and fair playquiet while others throw,farthest away throws first
The four components of an activity, using disc golf as an example. You can analyse any activity this way before you try it.
CategoryStructureExamples
IndividualPerform alone, often against time, distance or a standardYoga, running, dance, skating, swimming, cross-country skiing
TargetSend an object toward a target; accuracy mattersCurling, bowling, bocce, disc golf, archery, snow snake (a Haudenosaunee winter game)
Net/wallSend an object over a net or against a wall into space the opponent can't coverBadminton, volleyball, pickleball, tennis, sepak takraw, squash
Striking/fieldingTeams take turns striking and fielding; score by running bases or wicketsSoftball, cricket, rounders, kickball
TerritoryInvade the opponent's space to score in a goal or end zoneSoccer, basketball, hockey, ultimate, lacrosse
Activities in the same category share structures, so skills and strategies transfer between them. Lacrosse, which originated with Indigenous peoples of North America, is Canada's national summer sport.
SettingRules and etiquette examples
GymnasiumReturn equipment; don't kick balls when others are teaching; respect other groups' space
Fitness roomWipe equipment after use; re-rack weights; share stations; ask before using a spotter
Ice rinkFollow the rink's posted rules and direction of skating; help someone up if they fall; leave the ice when told
PoolShower before swimming; walk, don't run; follow lifeguard instructions; stay in your lane
Park or fieldShare the space; pick up litter; keep balls away from people and roads
Hiking or snowshoe trailStay on the trail; yield properly; keep noise low; pack out what you pack in; respect wildlife and the land
Etiquette changes with the setting, but the idea is always the same: respect people, places and equipment.
YIELDtrail signWho yields to whom?horseshikers and walkerscyclistsyields toyields toeveryone yields to horsesyield to horsesyield to hikers and horses
A common trail-etiquette rule shown on yield signs: cyclists yield to hikers, and everyone yields to horses. On snowshoe trails, avoid walking in cross-country ski tracks.
Worked example

Let's analyse pickleball before we play

Your cousin invites you to play doubles pickleball at a community centre. Analyse the four components so you can join confidently.

  1. Movement skills: ready position, quick side steps, underhand serve, soft "dink" shots, volleys.
  2. Game structure: net/wall game; 2 v 2 on a badminton-sized court; score points by making shots the other team can't return.
  3. Basic rules: serve underhand and diagonally; the ball must bounce once on each side before anyone volleys; you can't volley while standing in the zone right next to the net (the "kitchen").
  4. Etiquette and fair play: call the score before each serve, call your own lines honestly, return stray balls to the right court, tap paddles at the end.

Knowing the skills, structure, rules and etiquette lets you join a new activity confidently and fairly.

Hands-on activity

Activity analysis and partner challenge

You need: a notebook, a frisbee or a paper plate, a soft ball, 3 or 4 markers, a partner, and a park, yard or open room.

  1. Analyse (10 min): pick an activity you've never played (for example, disc golf, bocce, sepak takraw or snowshoeing). Look it up with a grown-up and fill in a card: skills, structure, basic rules, etiquette, category, and a safety rule.
  2. Backyard disc golf (15 min): choose 4 targets (a tree trunk, a post, a bucket). Play with your partner using real disc golf etiquette: the person farthest from the target throws first, stay quiet and out of the way while others throw, count throws honestly.
  3. Partner challenge (10 min, living skill 1.4): make a mini orienteering course: one partner hides 4 objects and draws a simple map; the other finds them. Switch roles. Agree on rules first and help each other if stuck.
  4. Reflect: which component was hardest to learn? How did cooperating with your partner help?

Safety: Throw only when the area in front of you is clear. Choose targets away from windows, cars and other people. Stay in sight of a grown-up in the park.

Just for fun

Funny but true: Canada has two national sports, lacrosse in summer and hockey in winter. That means Canadians can debate rules and etiquette all year round.

Your turn

1

Name the four components of an activity from this lesson.

2

Name the five activity categories and give one example of each.

3

Give two examples of fitness-room etiquette.

4

On a shared trail, who yields to whom?

5

What is the difference between a rule and etiquette?

6

Why do skills and strategies transfer between activities in the same category?

More practice: warm-up

1

What category is volleyball?

2

What category is bocce?

3

What category is cricket?

4

What is Canada's national summer sport?

5

Give one pool etiquette rule.

More practice: on your own

1

Analyse snowshoeing with the four components.

2

Why are rules often adapted in pick-up games (like no slapshots in shinny)?

3

Explain how disc golf etiquette supports both safety and fair play.

4

Compare the game structure of softball and ultimate.

5

How does cooperating with a partner (living skill 1.4) help in orienteering?

Challenge

1

Invent a new target game for a park using only household items. Describe its four components.

2

Choose two activities from different categories and explain one skill and one strategy that transfer between them and one that doesn't.

3

A new student keeps breaking fitness-room etiquette (leaving weights on the floor). As a peer leader, how would you handle it respectfully?

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

Which is an example of etiquette?

2.

Which activity is a net/wall activity?

3.

On a shared trail, everyone yields to:

4.

A game's structure includes:

5.

Why do skills transfer between activities in the same category?

6.

Canada's national summer sport is:

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Expectation B2.1 asks students to understand the components of physical activities (movement skills, game structures, basic rules and guidelines, etiquette and fair play) and apply that understanding in many settings, from gyms and rinks to pools, parks and trails. Living skill 1.4 (relationships and cooperation) is practised in partner tasks.

How to help at home:

  • Try a new activity together (disc golf, pickleball, snowshoeing) and talk through its rules and etiquette.
  • On trail walks, point out yield signs and leave-no-trace habits.

Common difficulties:

  • Confusing rules with etiquette. Rules have penalties; etiquette is expected behaviour.
  • Mixing up categories. Ask: Is there a net? Do teams invade each other's space? Do teams take turns batting?

Safety: Throwing games need a clear area away from roads, windows and people.