Table Tennis: Spin, Serves, and Stars
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Introduction
Table Tennis: Spin, Serves, and Stars
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Text to type: Table tennis is fast, but small actions can change the ball. Explore spin, a legal serve, the sport’s early days, and two Olympic stars. Watch how simple movements create exciting play.
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Before you begin
Before the First Serve
Think about table tennis and share a short answer.
Have you played or watched table tennis? What did you notice?
Can a small ball move in a surprising way? How?
Spin Changes the BallReading
Spin Changes the Ball
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Text to type: Players brush the ball with the racket to make spin. The three basic kinds are topspin, backspin, and sidespin. Topspin makes the ball dip and move forward quickly after the bounce. Backspin can make it stay low and slow. Sidespin can make it curve left or right. Spin is often hard to see before the bounce. Its effect is easier to see after the ball hits the table. A player watches the bounce and changes the next shot.
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Check your understanding
Check: Read the Bounce
1. Which spin can make the ball curve left or right?
Sample answer
Sidespin changes the ball’s path to the left or right.
Think one step further
Which kind of spin would be fun for you to try, and why?
Every Point Starts with a ServeReading
Every Point Starts with a Serve
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Text to type: Every point starts with a serve. In an official serve, the ball begins on an open palm. The server tosses it nearly straight up at least 16 centimetres. The server hits the ball as it falls. The ball first bounces on the server’s side of the table. Then it bounces on the other side. A server can change the speed, place, and spin. These changes can make the next shot difficult. A short backspin serve and a fast topspin serve can start two very different points.
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Check your understanding
Check: Start the Point
1. Where does the ball begin in an official serve?
Sample answer
The server holds the ball on an open palm before tossing it.
Think one step further
Would you choose a fast serve or a slow, spinning serve? Why?
From a Dining Table to a World SportReading
From a Dining Table to a World Sport
Typing practice
Type the text exactly. Timer starts with your first key.
Text to type: Table tennis began in England in the 1880s. People played it as an indoor form of lawn tennis. They used a dining table and simple equipment they had around them. The sport later became more organised. The International Table Tennis Federation, or ITTF, began in 1926. The first World Championships also took place in 1926, in London. A game for indoor tables had become an international sport. Today, the table is still small, but players compete around the world.
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Check: Then and Now
1. How did table tennis begin in England?
Sample answer
People played an indoor version of lawn tennis on a dining table.
Think one step further
Why do you think an indoor table game became popular?
Reading
Two Olympic Stars
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Text to type: Ma Long represents China. He won the Olympic men’s singles title in 2016 and again at Tokyo 2020. He became the first man to win this Olympic singles title twice. Mima Ito represents Japan. At Tokyo 2020, she and Jun Mizutani won the first Olympic mixed doubles table tennis title. It was also Japan’s first Olympic gold medal in table tennis. Ma Long’s result shows success across two Olympic Games. Mima Ito’s result marks two important firsts in one event.
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Check your understanding
Check: Olympic Firsts
1. What was special about Ma Long’s second Olympic men’s singles title?
Sample answer
His wins came in 2016 and at Tokyo 2020.
Think one step further
Which result interests you more: Ma Long’s two singles titles or Mima Ito’s two historic firsts? Why?
What you can do now
Final Reflection
Use the facts and your own ideas.
What makes table tennis exciting for you: spin, serving, history, or great players? Explain your choice with one fact.
Need a starting line?
Start with: Table tennis is exciting because…
Helpful clue: Model: Table tennis is exciting because sidespin can make the ball curve left or right.
- Which fact would you tell a friend?
- What would you like to see or try in a real match?
Learning cards
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Table Tennis: Spin, Serves, and Stars
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Spin Changes the Ball
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Every Point Starts with a Serve
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From a Dining Table to a World Sport
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Two Olympic Stars
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