• Whether it be swimming or running, encourage your children to keep improving their personal bests. Mark off the distance and use a stopwatch to time how fast they swim and run. Compare the times.

• How far can your child throw an object or jump? Measure it. Note improvements.

• Have your son or daughter try to do some of the balance beam skills on a line on the floor.

• This fall visit a physical education class. You may see in-line skating, martial arts, wall climbing, golf or tennis. Ask your children to show you some of the movement skills such as hopping, dancing, rolling or jumping that they learned in their physical education class.

• Encourage your child, with parental support, to look for opportunities to engage in new sports/activities for the value of the experience and possibly to expose your child to new recreational or competitive opportunities.

• Get out a globe or a map and show your child where he or she lives and where Athens, Greece is located. Find where your favorite athlete lives and determine what season it is there.

• What time is it at your home? What time is it in Athens?

• Stress the internationalism of the event. The linking of the rings--red, blue, black, green and yellow--represents the union of the five major continents in friendship and sport. One or more of those colors is present in the flag of every nation.

• Prior to the Games, the Olympic torch is lit by the sun's rays near Zeus' temple in Ancient Olympia. Make your own torch and have fun taking turns carrying it to the park to play.

• Have a family discussion about a different Olympic event each day -getting a broad picture of the event, the goals, and the names of American and international contenders. The U.S. Olympic team alone will have more than 600 athletes.

• Share the motto: "Swifter, higher, stronger." This great motivational slogan encourages all who participate to excel in their quest to reach the upper limits of their potential. Discuss the awards ceremony, the different levels of the awards stand, and the playing of the national anthem of the victor's country.

• Ask your children what they learned from the media profiles of the athletes. What motivated the athlete to succeed? Did they talk about the importance of practice or focus and having a good coach or teacher?

• Discuss judging in gymnastics and diving events. What do you think the judges look for when scoring these athletes? What is important in these events that's different from other events? Practice something so you can do it with perfect form.

• Discuss good sportsmanship and fair play.

• Find a sport/activity the family has never heard of and research it at the public library and on the Internet, and then go try it in a modified version.

• Discuss with your kids how they think Olympians feel who don't bring home a medal. Have they failed?

• Did the Olympics inspire your family to become more physically active? Choose an activity that you want to do and participate in it at least several times a week.

• Have your family set physical activity goals, work toward them, and chart improvement. Talk about how practice is helping you improve. Relate this to the qualities that are needed to be an Olympian.