Don't Just Watch the Winter Olympics

The Olympics always bring back sweet memories for me.  As a Los Angeles police officer, my mom worked the 1984 Summer Olympics and brought home many souvenirs.  My husband carried the Olympic torch through our town as a teenager. Most recently, our family had the pleasure of watching the last Summer Olympics with a former Olympic gymnast who taught our son to swim.  Of course there are countless memories of watching each year and rooting for our team.  This year our family will be watching the Sochi winter games and using some of these resources to add to our experience:

The official Sochi Olympic website - http://www.sochi2014.com/en

The official Olympic website - http://www.olympic.org/olympic-games

NBC's Olympics Page - http://www.nbcolympics.com/

Olympics Lapbook - http://www.ajourneythroughlearning.net/wiol20lawist1.html

Another Olympics Lapbook - http://www.currclick.com/product/89369/2014-Winter-Olympics-Lapbook

Oodles of worksheets - http://enchantedhomeschoolingmom.org/2014/01/winter-olympics-pack-2014-2/

Winter Olympics Bingo - http://www.star-telegram.com/2014/02/05/5539460/get-into-the-games-with-winter.html

Opening Ceremony Bingo - http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303942404579361362349406806?mg=reno64-wsj&url=http%3A%2F%2Fonline.wsj.com%2Farticle%2FSB10001424052702303942404579361362349406806.html

Movies about the Winter Olympics: Cool Runnings, The Cutting Edge, Miracle, and The Mighty Ducks.  *I strongly recommend that you screen or research any movie before showing it to your children.

What events are you looking forward to?

Five Events - Five Stories

When I was growing up, many adults would talk about where they were when the found out that President Kennedy had been assassinated.  I remember when the Challenger exploded, but I didn't appreciate how defining such a moment could be until September 11, 2001.  There are events that take place in our world that leave an impression as long as we live.  Whether they happen to us personally or we feel the impact from a distance, they define who we are and how we think.  How do we help the next generation feel these moments?  By telling our stories.

• Take a few minutes to make a list of five such events.  Again, they can be big or small events.  The point is that they left a big impression on you.
• Set aside a block of time to document one of those events.  The depth depends on what you want to invest. My husband buys the newspaper on those big days and saves the article.  With Google, you can download pictures and articles from just about anything.  Take a few minutes to get your thoughts down as well.  Share why this is significant to you.  My grandpa isn't a writer, so he would tell me the stories and I wrote them down.  This process has been just as meaningful as the stories themselves.
• Repeat the previous step until you have documented the events on your list.
• Put everything together in one place and let the people important to you know where it is.  Whether they are in a binder, journal, scrapbook, box or computer file, someone needs to know where to find them.  

So what are your five events?