Add the element of colour to your 2024 Olympic Games themed sports day!
The Olympics 2024 will be taking place in Paris between Friday 26th July and Sunday 11th August. There's plenty of ways to tie the leading international sporting event into colour themed sports days and fundraising ideas, so let's make like Tom Daley and dive in!
First things first, hacky sacks!
We know children love colour powder, so to ensure the fun lasts even longer and they don't throw it all at once, by filling odd socks with colour powder, you can have hours of fun! A hacky sack is a great way to play a number of Olympic Sports, in the school playground. Send out a request to parents, for donations of odd socks (we know every household has them!), and get filling them up. You can even get students involved in making up the hacky sacks, beforehand!
Archery
Don't worry, we're not suggesting arming young children with bows and arrows in the playground! This is our child-friendly take. Using chalk, create targets on the playground floor for children to throw hacky sacks into. When the hacky sack hits the ground a burst of colour powder will be released and mark the spot it hit. The team member who gets closest to the bullseye wins a point!
Track
There's plenty of ways to make running more fun for kids, Sport Aberdeen have an amazing selection of ideas that are suitable for children of all ages. Our favourite way to add an element of excitement to running is to incorporate colour powder!
- Colour Run - Using a paper cup, scoop out colour powder from our 5kg bags of colour powder and throw this at the running children, covering them in vibrant colours. From April we will have our black colour powder available to purchase, so you can use the 5 colours of the Olympic Rings to keep on brand!
- Relays - Switch the baton for a hacky sack or 100g bag of colour powder. At the end of the race, the winners get covered in the other teams colours.
- Long jump - Add a sprinkling of colour powder to the sand pit so when landing there is a cloud of colour! Have volunteers add more colour powder when needed.
- Colour Run Obstacle Course - Like above, but add in hurdles, hoops to jump through, a slip and slide area or even inflatables! The kids will love it.
Throwing
- Shot put - Participants should stand inside a chalk circle and hold a hacky sack against their shoulder. The technique for throwing shot put is an art form in itself, as you can see in the video of the Müller British Athletic Championships!
- Discus - A similar technique to shot put, so make sure to warm up before this event. Rather than using a hacky sack try using an individual 100g bag of colour powder!
Colour-and-spoon race
Forget the egg, we're all about the colour powder here! Not your typical Olympic sport, but you really can't beat this style of event for sports day! Scoop a spoonful of colour powder for each child and set them on their way. You could add an extra element to this event by introducing obstacles.
When it comes to hosting your own Olympic Sports Day in the playground, focus on inclusivity and participation for all students. By creating a welcoming and friendly environment, you can foster not only physical skills but also social-emotional growth and a sense of belonging among your students. Let's come together and celebrate the power of sport, friendship, and inclusivity in your very own Olympic Games.
