Liven up the Respect-for-the-Aged gathering: A roundup of recreational activities everyone can enjoy.
Keirokai is an event held to express our daily gratitude to older adults.
Respect for the Aged Day is celebrated in various forms, such as events for day-service residents or those hosted by local governments.
Recreation games are an essential part of any Keirokai.
In this article, we’ll introduce many recreation games that people of all ages can enjoy together.
Since Keirokai brings together participants from different age groups, we recommend activities that everyone can enjoy as a form of intergenerational exchange.
We hope you find this helpful.
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- [For Seniors] Enjoy safely even during the COVID-19 pandemic: Seated activities
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- Entertainment and Performances That Delight at Day Services for the Elderly
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- Recommended for seniors! Liven up your event with a Respect-for-the-Aged Day quiz!
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- [For Seniors] Exciting Team-Based Recreational Activities
Liven up your Respect-for-the-Aged Day gathering: A roundup of recreational activities everyone can enjoy (31–40)
kusudama (decorative paper ball used for celebrations)
How about using a festive kusudama to really liven up a celebratory event and highlight the joy? The classic contents are a banner with a message and confetti, but the fact that you don’t know what’s inside until you open it heightens the sense of anticipation.
Pulling the string with a countdown and having the message burst onto the scene is exciting even when you already know the result.
It’s important to think about how the message will be written and what kind of decorations will flutter out, so you can create a kusudama that makes the moment even more fun.
loach scooping
Dojo-sukui is a dance that can be called a traditional performing art, performed to the folk song “Yasugibushi” from Yasugi City in Shimane Prefecture.
With comical movements that suggest bending low at the waist to scoop up loaches, it expresses a sense of fun.
The costume is important for creating its distinctive atmosphere—wear a tenugui headcloth and a coin-shaped nose piece (modeled after an old one-mon coin), among other details.
While the loach-scooping motion is the classic motif, there are actually no fixed steps, so the performer’s ad-libbing is put to the test.
Presentation of gifts
For the annual Respect-for-the-Aged gathering, why not present a gift as a token of appreciation? Items that suit the preferences of older adults, handmade gifts, heartfelt message cards or flowers… From practical items and decorative pieces to intangible gifts like words or haiku, all can be wonderful choices.
A gift given with genuine feeling can gently warm the recipient’s heart.
Consider what to give while asking about each person’s individual hobbies and preferences.
Whac-A-Mole
Whack-a-mole is a game where your reflexes are tested as you quickly hit the moles popping out of holes with a hammer, right? We’ve recreated that whack-a-mole on a large, vertical board—let’s put everyone’s reflexes to the test.
A person waits behind the board wearing mole puppets, quickly sticking their hands through the holes, and others try to hit them with a squeaky hammer.
Since the person behind can be seen through the holes, swift movements that don’t give you away are crucial.
Seeing someone frantically moving their hands is also part of what makes it so funny.
Little Dance
It’s a dance performed with a uniquely shrunken look, where each movement exudes cuteness.
With the gimmick of only the face being real and the rest a doll, it really tests the skill of how comically you can make the movements appear.
Since the motions of the arms and legs tend to be simple, it’s also recommended to exaggerate facial expressions to bring out the humor.
There are plenty of elements you can get particular about—what kind of movements to show to what kind of music, what costumes to use, and so on.
Liven up the Respect-for-the-Aged Day gathering: A roundup of recreational activities everyone can enjoy (41–50)
puppet show
Puppet shows, which use puppets to present stories, seem to be something we see less often as we grow older.
This project aims to recreate well-known tales through puppetry and let audiences experience the world of those stories.
Even if you already know the plot, seeing it enacted through real movement may lead to new discoveries.
The variety of ways to arrange it—such as which kinds of puppets to use and what mechanisms to incorporate—is another point of enjoyment.
street performance
Street performance is a staple act at events, and the fun part is that you can see the effort behind it—whether it ends in failure or success.
To help people feel the excitement of street performance, it’s actually important to show some failures on purpose; the success that follows will stand out even more.
And since clowns are strongly associated with street performance, putting real thought into the costume can evoke a circus-like atmosphere.
We recommend taking on a variety of acts—like juggling or cigar boxes—and letting the audience watch you work hard as you rise to the challenge.