As we’ve been hinting at over the past week (hinting at… obsessing about… whatever), the Olympics offer countless opportunities for your kids to learn about different cultures, sports, all sorts of life lessons, and even math and science. And who can forget geography – possibly the easiest subject area to work on with your kids while you and your family are actually watching the games. A simple way to do this with littler ones is to ask them to point to athletes’ countries as you watch them compete. You can do this with whatever globe, atlas, or map you have at home, or print out a straightforward world map you find online – like this one. (If you have a computer in the room where you’re watching the Olympics, you can view the same map here and zoom in as much as you like.)

Over at Kids Educational Activities, Catherine Fortin detailed a number of other great ways to “Learn, Practice, and Sharpen Skills during the Beijing 2008 Games” in this article.

Make sure you don’t miss any of the Beijing Olympics fun – there are barely 11 days left! Check your local listings to out when your family’s favorite events are on.

The STA’s Summer Tips are ideas for projects and activities inspired by your kids’ favorite shows, to help them learn while the TV is on and after it’s off. Look for more tips all summer long, to OutSmart the 150% Summer Spike in childrens’ television viewing.

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STA reader Kimberly Keith, a professional family counselor and About.com Guide to Parenting blogger, sent us an Olympics-inspired Summer Tip – a double-tip, actually. She wrote, “Our family is watching hours of Olympic competitions and the kids are really getting into it. We wanted to learn how to play some of the sports such as water polo and handball; so of course, I had to go online to get the scoop…” Kimberly did just that, and detailed her findings on her blog:

Watching Olympic water polo made us think, ‘That looks fun; wonder how you play?’ The Beijing 2008 Summer Olympic Games might get the kids excited to try some new sports. But, how DO you play water polo?

(For the answer, plus info on team handball, see Kimberly’s post.)

Kimberly also shared her realization that “with just a few modifications,” the Beijing Olympics dinner party she’d recently hosted would make “a great kids’ party too.” She shared a number of ideas for making a Beijing Olympics family or kid party on her blog as well:

We were inspired for a birthday dinner party by the square red plates we purchased at a discount store. My daughter and I added a bamboo plant for the centerpiece and she printed Olympic medals for the placecards.

(check out Kimberly’s blog post for the rest of her Beijing Olympics party tips.)

Share your Tips with us too, and don’t forget to find out when your family’s favorite events are on and follow the excitement of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing!

The STA’s Summer Tips are ideas for projects and activities inspired by your kids’ favorite shows, to help them learn while the TV is on and after it’s off. Look for more tips all summer long, to OutSmart the 150% Summer Spike in childrens’ television viewing.

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For every Olympic games since 1994, Visa has sponsored the Olympics of the Imagination children’s art program “to encourage children to think creatively and explore the history and values of the Olympic Games.” For the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games art contest, kids around the world created pieces of art based on a theme of global unity: “Show how the Olympic Games connect different cultures and capture the Beijing theme – One World, One Dream.” Check out the winning artwork with your child, discuss what they see and what they think about the ideas in the artwork, and then encourage them to create their own piece of art expressing this theme or their feelings about the Olympics in general.

And don’t forget to find out when your family’s favorite events are on and enjoy the excitement of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

The STA’s Summer Tips are ideas for projects and activities inspired by your kids’ favorite shows, to help them learn while the TV is on and after it’s off. Look for more tips all summer long, to OutSmart the 150% Summer Spike in childrens’ television viewing.

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Everyone is excited about the ongoing 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing – as they should be. Assuming your kids are part of “everyone,” take advantage of this enthusiasm and spur them to learn about the history of the Olympic Games tradition. Check out Go for the Gold!, an Olympic Games student activity at Scholastic.com. As you learn and discuss the origin of the ancient and modern games with your children, don’t miss the vocabulary boxes featured on the right side of each page. Then, Get in the Game and try out the fun “It’s Greek to Me!” word game, which highlights English words with Greek origins.

If you haven’t been watching the games with your family, what are you waiting for?? The Olympics is always one of the rare instances for which all the hype and build-up is completely justified, and the 2008 games are no exception. So find out when your family’s favorite events are on and make sure you don’t miss the Beijing Summer Olympics excitement!

The STA’s Summer Tips are ideas for projects and activities inspired by your kids’ favorite shows, to help them learn while the TV is on and after it’s off. Look for more tips all summer long, to OutSmart the 150% Summer Spike in childrens’ television viewing.

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The 2008 Summer Olympics are underway in Beijing, and hopefully, you and your family have enjoyed the games together this weekend. To learn more about the games and about China, visit the You Are Here: Beijing blog at National Geographic Kids. The blogger, David, is a 12-year-old American kid who has lived in China since he was two, and in Beijing for about a year. He has been writing a “Kids-Eye View of Beijing” and the Olympics for a couple of weeks, and will continue throughout the games. And while you’re at the National Geographic Kids site, check out the Olympics-inspired GeoGames!

The STA’s Summer Tips are ideas for projects and activities inspired by your kids’ favorite shows, to help them learn while the TV is on and after it’s off. Look for more tips all summer long, to OutSmart the 150% Summer Spike in childrens’ television viewing.

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The 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing have begun! Be sure to tune in to (or set your Tivo for) the opening ceremonies tonight, and then this weekend, host your own backyard Olympics! From “Shot Put and Discus” (water balloons and Frisbee) to a torch scavenger hunt to printable award certificates, the activities in this Scholastic Parents article are great ways for you, your kids, and their friends to spend a summer afternoon. And it will definitely get them excited about the games going on in Beijing. Don’t forget to find out when your family’s favorite events are on!

The STA’s Summer Tips are ideas for projects and activities inspired by your kids’ favorite shows, to help them learn while the TV is on and after it’s off. Look for more tips all summer long, to OutSmart the 150% Summer Spike in childrens’ television viewing.

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Sesame Street has been on, like, forever… and for a reason! It’s a classic because kids (and parents too) love it so, and learn life’s basics while having fun. For entertaining little brains when the show’s over, take a look at their website. You’ll find games like Zoe’s Great Shape Scavenger Hunt, which (of course) teaches children to identify their shapes. Just like the show, it’s simple but effective!

The STA’s Summer Tips are ideas for projects and activities inspired by your kids’ favorite shows, to help them learn while the TV is on and after it’s off. Look for more tips all summer long, to OutSmart the 150% Summer Spike in childrens’ television viewing.

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Have a youngster who loves music AND art? The Let’s Go Show (PBS KIDS Sprout) has the activity for you. On their website, you can learn how to make your own instruments from everyday materials, like a xylophone constructed from wrapping paper tubes. (Surely you weren’t going to throw those OUT, were you?) There are lots of other activity ideas for kids (and parents) who crave creativity…check it out next time you feel crafty.

The STA’s Summer Tips are ideas for projects and activities inspired by your kids’ favorite shows, to help them learn while the TV is on and after it’s off. Look for more tips all summer long, to OutSmart the 150% Summer Spike in childrens’ television viewing.

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David and Shane, co-hosts of the hugely popular Nick Jr. program the Upside Down Show, are a match made in heaven for little ones learning about the world. With each great episode, the show also offers helpful tips for reinforcing that day’s lessons. For example, following the episode “Marching Band” – in which the dynamic duo give imaginary instruments to kids – they recommend encouraging your tots to invent and “play” their own instruments. The result is music to our ears, and so are the rest of their great tips for imaginative learning.

The STA’s Summer Tips are ideas for projects and activities inspired by your kids’ favorite shows, to help them learn while the TV is on and after it’s off. Look for more tips all summer long, to OutSmart the 150% Summer Spike in childrens’ television viewing.

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Birthday coming up for any of your kids, or just have an afternoon with some friends coming over to monkey around? Put on an  “Ooh & Aah” jungle-themed party with the great party planning resources at the Playhouse Disney Celebration Center. Your kids can help decorate with their stuffed animals, and there are easy printable placemats you can download. Also, be sure to see the creative printable games and activities for party entertainment, as well as the great suggestions and recipes for fun, healthy snacks that all the little animals will enjoy.

Check out all the party themes in the Celebration Center. Do an entire theme to the letter or just pick out whatever parts you like best. And remember, just because a theme says “Birthday” doesn’t mean it can’t be the inspiration for any un-birthday gathering!

The STA’s Summer Tips are ideas for projects and activities inspired by your kids’ favorite shows, to help them learn while the TV is on and after it’s off. Look for more tips all summer long, to OutSmart the 150% Summer Spike in childrens’ television viewing.

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