The Summer Olympics are just around the corner! These Olympics in particular are even more anticipated as they were postponed, like so many other things, due to the pandemic. So, in anticipation of the games, I wanted to share with you some of the ways my family celebrates the Olympics!! I mean really, it is something to celebrate! The effort and dedication of these athletes is no less than astonishing and I am here for it!! And what better way to heal from a global pandemic than to join together as a world community and support our nations in competition! Check out these fun ideas!!
Hold an opening or closing ceremony party!! Invite some friends over, or just make it your own family. We usually make appetizers for dinner as we watch. We wear clothes that support the countries we are cheering for, and will have card games going to play during commercials or lulls if my littles are antsy we will also have coloring pages for them. It is fun to watch and get to know the country hosting the games.
Have your kids research the country hosting the games!! Assign older kids to learn 5 interesting facts about the country. Help younger kids look up pictures of the games that the kids play in that country, or animals and plants that are native there. Help them get to know a part of the world that they may not be familiar with. This helps broaden their view and helps prevent prejudice.
Learn about the athletes that are participating in the sports that you enjoy! Look up the lists of athletes that will compete and do a little research. Read their stories. Get to know them. Get excited about cheering for these men and women that have put themselves out there for the world to see, and cheer them on in your family!!
Talk about what it means to be an Olympian with your kids. Did you know research shows that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to master something? 10,000 hours is a LOT!!! This goes for a musical instrument, a sport, any talent you are looking to master takes dedication. In some countries potential Olympians are taken from their homes at the age of 4 to dedicate their lives to mastering their chosen event. It takes sacrifice, dedication, and grit to become an Olympian! help your kids set goals to become their own Olympian. An Olympian of kindness, of music, of cheering on others!!! Help them see that they can change the world in their own backyard, in their own way!
Make some little flags with your kids of the countries you’d like to cheer for. My kids love to pay attention to the various, beautiful flags that different countries have. Often we will look up to see what the colors and symbols represent and we will make our own flags to represent our family and values to wave as we watch different events!
Research an event that you are unfamiliar with or are curious about. Get your kids involved in finding our when that sport became a part of the Olympics and give it a try yourselves!! The best way to really appreciate what athletes have done to become an Olympian is to try to replicate what they’ve done, and be astonished at how well they do!! Be creative! I bet you don’t have a shotput on hand, but maybe you could use a 3 lb weight in the backyard instead!!
Make a dinner or dessert from the country hosting the Olympics!! This is one of our favorite things to do! Because the Olympics are in Japan this year we’ll be making a Japanese dish. We are excited to try something outside of our regular dining habits. So fun!!
And last, but certainly not least, we usually hold a mini Olympics with our kids and their friends. We’ll either have chocolate coins as prizes, or if I have time to stop by the dollar store we use medals that you can buy there. We do any events from long jump, a 20 meter dash (or 50 for my bigger kids), who can do the longest headstand, hopping on one foot, blowing the biggest bubble gum bubble, balancing on one foot, you get the idea! We celebrate each participant, but really cheer for the winners.
The Olympics are such a beautiful representation of possibilities. Not only do we celebrate what the body can do, but also the mind and the spirit. It takes real discipline and mental strength to continually go after a seemingly impossible goal. I am grateful that my kids get to watch humans that have conquered their goals and, hopefully, feel empowered to make and get after their own!!!
Enjoy the games!!!!
Kayleen
WE LOVE TO CELEBRATE THE OLYMICS WITH MY FAMILY