Last Saturday, the ECFE program in Sleepy Eye sponsored a “Junior Olympics” program for children age 0 through 2nd grade. My friend and I loaded up our kids and took off to explore, and had a great time.

The event was very well organized. After we had signed in, they took digital photos of each of the kids for a project they could do later. Then we headed to the gym and took off our shoes to explore the run-and-jump activities. There were activities for all ages, starting with a small slide and ball pit for the youngest kids. My toddler loved the miniature hurdles and the “ice skating” (sliding on carpet with wax-paper “skates”). The boys had a great time with the tricyle course and hockey area, and my four-year-old liked walking on the balance beam.

We went into the cafeteria for a well-organized, healthy snack (crackers, pretzels, and cheese pre-portioned in coffee filters, bananas, and water bottles) and then started on the craft activities. The older kids made Olympic torches, name tags with their pictures, and even their own Olympic medals, while there were toys for the younger children to play with.

I hadn’t seen such big smiles on my kids’ faces for quite a while. They were each able to find something they enjoyed and work at their own pace. The morning flew by, and the kids were disappointed when it was closing time and we had to go.

Best of all, the event was free. It was very well planned and a lot of fun for all the little Olympians.

We’re fortunate to have ECFE (Early Childhood Family Education) programs here in Minnesota, and they always come up with some clever–and fun–activities for kids.

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