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We’re looking forward to the Vancouver 2010 Olympics starting tonight and have been thinking of ways we can get our kids excited about the games. Here’s a list of some of our favorites… we hope you’ll add some of your own ideas in the comments!

1. Learn all about the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Mascots and print off foldable cutouts to create your own cute little creatures.
2. Keep track of the medal standings on your own medals chart.  This is a fun way to keep kids involved daily as they check for new medals awarded and update the chart.
3.  The Olympic Rings flag has been the universal symbol for the Olympics since it was first flown at the Antwerp games in 1920. The white background symbolizes peace. The five interlocking rings represent the continents of Africa, Australia, Europe, The Americas, and Asia. The five colors of the rings are blue, yellow, black, green, and red. At least one of these colors appears in the flag of every nation. Teach the kids the importance of this historic flag by working with them to create their own Olympic Rings.
4.  The torch relay may be over, but kids will love recreating the fun with their own Olympic Torch.
5.  Watching the Olympics together as a family is great – but participating is even better!  Get the whole family involved and hold your own silly olympics.  These ideas for games to play are a great place to start.  Then get creative and make up your own.
6.  A great addition to your silly olympics (or just to burn some energy) is indoor skating right at home.  All you need is paper plates! See how it’s done.
7.  If you’re holding your own silly olympics, you’ll need medals to award.  Creating your own olympic medals is a great craft for kids of all ages.  If you’re not holding your own olympics, you can use these as rewards for doing extra jobs around the house, finishing homework or doing nice things for others.
8.  For older children, have them set their creativity loose on Olympic window clings. The theme can be to choose your favorite sport or recreate a favorite olympics moment.

9. Have a favorite event? Here are great crafts for the major Olympic events:

• Luge - Younger children will love creating their own luge course and sending an athelete down. Older children can create a popsicle stick luge keepsake.

• Skating - Decorating their own ice skate is a great craft for little ones. Or they’ll love working with mom or dad to create their own little critter who really skates.

• Curling – Create a 3D curling rink complete with curlers.

• Skiing - We love this craft for a pinecone skiier. So cute!

• Ski Jumping – The techniques used to create this 3D ski jumper would work well for other sports too.

• Snow Boarding – This fun chenille snowboarder lets kids be as creative as they want when decorating him.

• Hockey – Creating your own table top hockey game is definitely a very involved creaft, but could be a great project to work on as a family.