🥇 Celebrate the Winter Olympic Games in K-2!

💡 Tips, Tools and Templates

Celebrate the 2026 Winter Olympics!

Can you feel the chill of excitement in the air? On Friday, February 6th, the world will turn its eyes to Milano Cortina as the Winter Olympics officially begin! With 16 different sports to explore, the games offer a fantastic opportunity to bring global culture, teamwork, and athletic excellence into our classrooms.

To help you navigate the festivities with your little learners, we’ve rounded up a collection of ready-to-use resources. Whether you are looking for a quick morning meeting activity or a week-long Olympic project, these tools will help your students go for the gold!

• 🦦 Meet the Mascots Every Olympic game has a story, and it usually starts with the mascots! Kick off your Olympic journey by introducing your students to the official Milano Cortina mascots. This short video is the perfect hook to get your K-2 students excited about the characters representing the games this year.

• 🇺🇸 Get to Know Team USA Who are the athletes representing us on the world stage? Use the Team USA Athlete Gallery to show your students the faces behind the sports. This is a great way to talk about perseverance, practice, and the diversity of talent within our own country.

• 🎿 Interactive Sports Matching Help your students master the vocabulary of the Winter Games with these Padlet TA Flashcards. This interactive game challenges students to match the name of the sport to the correct image—perfect for a digital learning center or a whole-class warm-up on the smartboard.

• 🖍️ The Colors of Unity: Olympic Rings Coloring The five rings are the most iconic symbol of the games. Use this simple coloring page to teach your students about the significance of the rings while they practice their fine motor skills. It’s a calm, creative way to discuss how the whole world comes together.

• 🔴 Winter Olympics Bingo Who doesn’t love a game of Bingo? This Olympic Sports Bingo set is designed specifically for early elementary learners. It’s a high-energy way to review the different sports while building listening skills and pattern recognition.

• 🥇 Medal Count Tracker Bring a little math into the mix! Use this shared slide deck to keep a daily count of the medals. Your students will love seeing which countries and sports are earning the most golds, making for a great daily graphing or counting exercise.

• 📖 Olympic Storytime with Book Creator For a more structured deep dive, check out this digital book on Book Creator. It’s an accessible, visual way for young readers to learn

  the history and traditions of the Olympics at a pace that works for them.

• 📋 The Big List of Sports Curious about the difference between skeleton and luge? This comprehensive guide to the 16 Olympic Sports provides a clear look at every event featured in Milano Cortina. It’s a wonderful resource for answering all those "How do they do that?" questions from your students. YouTube not working in Canva? Check out the Google Slides version.

📺 Teaching with Teachflix Junior

🏒✨ Henry Holton Takes the Ice

🎥 Video Link: Henry Holton Takes the Ice

Henry comes from a family of ice hockey fanatics, but he just doesn't feel the "need for speed" with a stick and puck. Instead, he’s drawn to the grace and rhythm of ice skating. This delightful story, read by Ray Romano, follows Henry as he navigates family expectations and finds the courage to follow his heart.

Why we love it for K-2:

• Themes: It’s a masterclass in teaching perseverance, self-confidence, and acceptance.

• The Message: It reminds students that being "special" often means staying true to yourself, even when you’re different from the crowd.

Ready-made video resources:

• Comprehensive Teacher’s Guide Don't reinvent the wheel! This official activity guide from Storyline Online includes discussion questions and cross-curricular activities that dive deep into Henry’s journey.

• Wayground (formerly Quizizz) Interactive Quiz Check for understanding in a fun, gamified way. Use this comprehension activity to see how well your students followed Henry's transformation from a hockey player-in-training to a confident skater.

• Visual Graphic Organizers Help your students map out the story elements with these custom Canva organizers. These are perfect for identifying the "Beginning, Middle, and End" or comparing Henry’s interests with his family's.

• Digital Seesaw Activity If you are a 1:1 classroom, this Seesaw Activity is a fantastic way for students to record their reflections or draw their own "Olympic dream" directly on their devices.

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