The Olympic Games are such a fun time to experience as a family even when watching from home! Here is a short list of Olympic chapter books that would be perfect for family read alouds or for individual children to read during the Olympics!
I was inspired to create this list after my son and I read the last book on the list as part of his middle school reading “curriculum” this year. It was so good!
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Hour of the Olympics by Mary Pope Osborne (Recommended ages: 6-9)
Travel back to Ancient Greece with Jack and Annie in their Magic Treehouse to learn about the early Olympics.
Ancient Greece and the Olympics: A Nonfiction Companion to Magic Tree House by Mary Pope Osborne (Recommended ages: 7-10)
The Magic Tree House Nonfiction Companions are a great way to create a unit study around one of the Magic Tree House books. This particular book helps you deep dive into life in Ancient Greece and/or the Olympics then and now.
G is for Gold Medal: An Olympics Alphabet by Brad Herzog (Recommended ages: 5-10)
Ok, this is technically is not a chapter book, but we have loved this series of books for years! We used their US State books as a major part of our US geography study when the boys were younger. They are always full of interesting facts that everyone in the family will love learning!
What are the…Summer Olympics, Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games by Gail Herman (Recommended ages: 8-12 years)
We are big fans of the Who Was/What Was… series and I love that not only are there three books about the Olympics, but that one is a book about the Paralympic Games! The Paralympic Games take place in the same host city as the Olympics each time, but a few weeks later. In my opinion, they should get a lot more attention that they do!
The Story of the Olympics (Usborne Young Reading Series) by Minna Lacey (Recommended ages: 9-10)
We have not gotten our hands on this book, yet, but we are always impressed with the quality of the Usborne books!
Unsinkable: From Russian Orphan to Paralympic Swimming World Champion by Jessica Long (Recommended ages: 10-12)
This book came highly recommended by another homeschool mom and I am definitely adding it to our TBR list!
The Boys in the Boat (Young Readers Adaptation): The True Story of an American Team’s Epic Journey to Win Gold at the 1936 Olympics by Daniel James Brown (Recommended ages: 10-12)
We read this book this past year as part of our middle school curriculum and found it fascinating. I would personally love to read the full length version some time. We learned so much about rowing, enjoyed hearing about the Pacific Northwest, and saw how the Great Depression played out in real people’s lives. These are also the Games that took place in Germany during the beginning of Hitler’s dictatorship, which offered another interesting angle to the story!
You could also choose to read a book about a famous Olympian such as Jesse Owens, Serena and Venus Williams, Muhhamad Ali, or Declan Farmer! Or if your children become enamored with a certain event during the games, find some inspiring books about that particular sport!
We would love to hear what Olympic books you enjoyed!
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We enjoyed reading about the adopted Paralympian swimmer Jessica Tatiana Long. The book is called “Unsinkable” by Jessica Long herself. The awareness brought an excitement to want to watch the paralympics for my kids!
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