Community Connections
Understand historical overlaps between NASCAR and general historical events.
Student Objectives
Community Connections
- Understand historical overlaps between NASCAR and general historical events such as the expansion of suburbs, the civil rights era and 1970s gas shortage
- Examine NASCAR race series for community connection and impact at the local, regional, national and international levels
- Identify four different business units within racing, how they connect to each other and serve the larger community
- Fill out a community asset map for NASCAR and its associated racing series
Download a PDF of this lesson plan
Materials List
1. Timelines of U.S. History - Suggested resources:
a. https://www.infoplease.com/history/us/us-history-progressive-era-and-world-wars-1900-1949
b. https://americasbesthistory.com/abhtimeline1900.html or https://www.apstudynotes.org/us-history/timelines/
2. NASCAR History - Suggested Resources:
a. https://www.nascar.com/nascar-history
b. https://www.britannica.com/sports/NASCAR
3. Worksheet
4. NASCAR World of Racing (PDF)
5. Home Track website: https://hometracks.nascar.com/
6. NASCAR schedule: https://www.nascar.com/nascar-cup-series/2020/schedule/
7. U.S. Map
8. Map of Europe
9. Map of North and Central America
10. Community Connection (PDF)
11. Pencil or pen
Lesson Plan and Procedures
1. Review the World of Racing slideshow. Identify the different series of racing. Use the information you learn to think about the role of racing in a community and the connections to the sport.
2. Consider the impact of events (both historical and current) and how they affect different aspects of our lives. How has today’s events impacted your community, businesses, sports and people? Using the Timeline of U.S. History and NASCAR History, create a timeline plotting both events from NASCAR’s history and historical events. Look at each decade from 1940 to the present day. Which events overlap? Was the impact local, regional, national or international? How did it change the community and NASCAR?
3. Review the Home Tracks website, looking at local tracks, Whelen, ARCA, international and the NASCAR National Touring series. Look at the schedules and where the races are held. Identify similarities and differences. Determine how each series is connected by defining stock car racing.
4. Select two different series to learn more about. Complete the worksheet section on the series. Download the map that coordinates to the series you selected and identify where the tracks are located – city, state and/or country. Identify the locations of other major cities within 50 and 100 miles of the track.
5. Research the city and/or town where the tracks are located online. What is a major business for the community? What is the hospitality or visitor services that are provided? Are there any other events and activities associated with the town/city that occur annually when the race is scheduled? What are the services are provided to fans, and does the town provide these services?
6. Review the Community Connection PDF. Racing as a sport is not a single business, but multiple industries working together to support auto racing. Think about each of the parts, and answer the following questions using the PDF.
a. Who builds the car?
b. Who creates the parts for the car?
c. Who builds the track?
d. Who connects fans to the races and sport?
e. Who meets the needs of a fan?
f. Who pays for the sport?
g. Who sets the rules?
h. Who enforces the rules?
i. Who pays the winning team?
For High School:
7. Using the community asset map activity, develop a map outlining the information gathered above. Community asset maps provide an opportunity to identify needs and assets available for a project or business. This helps to identify the audience and impact.
8. Review your discoveries. What have you learned about the NASCAR community connection and its history?
NASCAR, as a sport, is more than a single race. It involves many different businesses and organizations, collaborating to provide resources and talents and working to achieve a single outcome. It’s fans who travel to support racing. It’s media and social media elevating and celebrating the achievement of teams. It’s track owners and operators providing a one-of-a-kind experience for race teams and fans alike. By honoring and celebrating a history that has influenced the larger community through innovation, NASCAR is a community working together.