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By Laura Drinan
Hometown Weekly Reporter
Let the games begin.
On the rainy afternoon of January 23, the Wellesley Free Library organized a variety of Olympic-themed activities for children and their caregivers to participate in. From 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m., the Wakelin room was transformed into the PyeongChang arena, where children could imagine themselves as Olympic athletes.
Set up in the front of the room was a craft table for children to make their own torches out of construction paper, tissue paper, and tape before commencing the other activities. At the neighboring table, crayons and printouts inspired children to create flags. While some chose to illustrate the American flag, others took the liberty of inventing their own flags with their favorite colors and patterns.
At another table, the participants were invited to decorate shortbread cookies with multicolored icing tubes to create the Olympic rings before enjoying the snack.
Recreational activities inspired by the winter games also kept the children entertained. Plastic cups were placed upside-down on two long strips of tape for a makeshift slalom ski course, which challenged the youngsters to hop from side to side.
For the younger children in attendance, a beanbag toss painted with the Olympic rings proved to be a popular activity to do with their caregivers.
The older children spent time playing a modified version of hockey, using swim noodles for hockey sticks and balloons instead of a single puck. Although the goal of the activity was to gather all of the balloons into a cardboard box placed on its side, a group of children took turns passing the balloons to each other with the swim noodles instead.
The library staff also challenged participants to shuffle around the room on two laminated strips of construction paper, which resembled skis. Children raced each other up and down the room on their skis, and challenged their caregivers to race, too.
As the participants began with the games with the Olympic torch, it was only fitting to end with an awards ceremony. Each child received a gold medal for their participation and was invited to take a picture in front of the Olympic flag.
With dozens of children stopping by to partake in the fun, the Wellesley Free Library’s 2018 Winter Games were a success.
