Originally published June 2020

Y KIDS NEWS

Olympic TorchWhen school’s out, the Y is in! We hope you enjoy this edition of Y Kids News, a newsletter with games and activities you can do from home!

OUR THEME:

OLYMPIC GAMES

Earn your gold medal in FUN! Hit the ground RUNNING and DIVE into some fun and engaging activities. Let the GAMES begin!

healthy challenges

EARN YOUR GOLD MEDAL

Olympics Healthy ChallengeBACKYARD PENTATHLON

The Pentathlon is an Olympic contest that consists of five different events that take place over the course of a day. The events of the Modern Pentathlon are fencing, swimming, Equestrian show jumping, and a final event of a cross country race and pistol shooting. Join us in our own version of the Pentathlon!

Materials Needed: Water balloons and a broom

  • Fencing: Fill up three water balloons and see how fast you can pop them using the broom handle.
  • Swimming: See how fast you can do a 20-yard bear crawl!
  • Equestrian Show Jump: Use the broom to pretend you are riding a horse. Run and jump 15 times.
  • Cross Country and Pistol Shooting: Set up 3-5 stations with targets. Starting with station one, throw the water balloon at the target, then run to the next station.

Time yourself with each activity and see if you can beat your own times by doing each one multiple times.

EDIBLE MEDALS

edible olympic medalsIngredients:

  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 4 tbsp. butter
  • 2 tbsp. superfine sugar
  • Sprinkles, icing or frosting, or other ingredients for decoration

Other Items Needed:

  • String or ribbon
  • Straw
  • Round Cookie Cutter

Instructions:

  • Preheat oven to 325° F
  • Beat the butter and the sugar together until fluffy. Add half the flour and mix well.
  • Add the remaining flour and mix to a dough consistency, then knead until smooth on a lightly floured surface.
  • Roll out the dough and using a round cookie cutter cut out your medals.
  • Use a straw to make a small hole in each cookies to enable you to thread the ribbon or string through later.
  • Transfer to a greased baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes at 325° F (170° C)
  • Let cool before decorating.
  • Decorate your medals using sprinkles and icing/frosting!

craft

CARDBOARD TUBE OLYMPIC RINGS

olympic ringsCreate your own Olympic Rings with a few craft items around the house.

Items needed:

  • Five cardboard tubes (from paper towel rolls, toilet paper rolls, etc.)
  • Paint or markers (blue, black, green, yellow, red)
  • Glue
  • Scissors

Instructions:

  • Using your markers or paint, color the cardboard tubes (each one a different color). If using paint, let dry.
  • Glue the cardboard rings together to look like the Olympic rings. (Olympic ring colors left to right, top to bottom: Blue, Black, Red, Yellow, Green)
  • Note: You can use the cardboard tubes from paper towels and into five same-sized cylinders, or you can use a couple tubes from toilet paper rolls to cut into five same-sized cylinders.

jokes and trivia

BE THE ENTERTAINER

JOKES

A. Why did the cat get disqualified from the Olympics?
B.Why can't tomatoes ever win a race?

See answers below

TRIVIA

A. The flag of the Olympic Games has five colored rings joined together. What do the rings represent?
B. The Olympic Flame is a symbol of the Olympic Games. Before the Games start it is carried around the world to where the Games will take place. Where does it's journey begin?
C. What was the first Olympic event?
D. When was the first Paralympic Games for Summer? For Winter?
E. What are the official languages of the Olympics?

See answers below

more to explore

OLYMPIC WORD SEARCH

See if you can find all of the Olympic words in this Summer Olympics Word Search. Download the word search here to play.

  • Archery
  • Badminton
  • Baseball
  • Basketball
  • Boxing
  • Diving
  • Football

FAMILY WORD WORKOUTS

word gameOur Y families are staying active and having fun with Family Word Workouts. Each letter of the alphabet represents a different exercise! This week, we are challenging you to a olympic workout every day:

  • Monday: VELODRONE
  • Tuesday: GYMNASTICS
  • Wednesday: MEDAL
  • Thursday: TEAMMATE
  • Friday: ATHLETE

Download your alphabet workout sheet.

JOKE AND TRIVIA ANSWERS

JOKE ANSWERS:

  • A. It was a cheetah
  • B. They're always trying to ketchup

TRIVIA ANSWERS:

  • A. The union of the five continents of the world
  • B. Olympia, Greece
  • C. A 185-meter race called a Stade
  • D. Summer, 1960 and Winter, 1976
  • E. English, French and the official language of the host nation