[For Seniors] Simple Tabletop Games: Fun and Engaging Recreational Activities
Looking for games that get everyone buzzing around the table? This time, we’re introducing fun table games you can enjoy together with seniors.
From homemade hockey and billiards to seasonal taste-pickup and clam-digging games, there are tons of clever ideas everyone can enjoy! The lineup ranges from activities that use your fingertips to full-body challenges.
Enjoy a variety of games that will lift your spirits and energize your body while deepening connections with friends.
- [For Seniors] Simple Recreational Activities You Can Enjoy While Seated
- [For Seniors] Fun Small-Group Recreation
- [For Seniors] Recreational Activities Enjoyable in Large Groups
- [For Seniors] Enjoy safely even during the COVID-19 pandemic: Seated activities
- [For Seniors] Fun Recreational Activities Without Equipment
- [For Seniors] Easy and fun seated activities you can do in your room
- [For Seniors] Exciting Team-Based Recreational Activities
- [For Seniors] Today’s Recommended Activity: Fun and Engaging
- Hand games that liven things up for seniors—also great brain training
- [For Seniors] Guaranteed to Be a Hit! Popular Day Service Recreational Activities
- [For Seniors] Enjoyable Indoor Activities! Recreations and Games That Engage the Mind and Body
- [For Seniors] Fun Autumn Activities: Recreation Games
- [For Seniors] Refresh Your Mood! Lively, Get-Moving Games
Handmade Games (1–10)
Rolling Table Tennis
Why not incorporate an air-hockey-style rolling ping-pong game into your recreation activities using familiar items like milk cartons and tissue boxes? By rallying with a ping-pong ball, older adults can enjoy it easily, too! The rule is that you score points if the ball goes behind you or if you drop your box.
Wrapping an A4 sheet around a milk carton makes it slide more smoothly, and using a milk carton with a lid helps keep it from getting crushed.
Try using this in recreational activities at senior facilities!
Table hockey
This is a simple table hockey game you can play without any tools or much effort! With one round empty cheese box and two empty tissue boxes, you can play table hockey on a regular table.
Use the empty cheese box as the puck, and the tissue boxes as the mallets.
Put your hand through the tissue box opening to hit the puck.
Remove the plastic film that’s often attached to the opening, and if the serrated edges seem dangerous, cover them with tape or similar.
You can decorate all the boxes, but be careful—over-decorating might make them less slippery!
Fishing game
It’s not always easy to get to the sea or a river, so how about doing some indoor fishing? You can make everything you need by hand.
Use a rod-like stick such as a cardboard tube from plastic wrap for the fishing pole, and attach a magnet to the end of the line instead of a hook.
Draw fish on paper or print out fish illustrations, and attach one elongated, circular paper clip to each fish.
Then scatter the fish around, and you’re ready to play! Use the magnet-tipped fishing pole to catch the fish by their clips, one after another.
If you make the fish out of plastic shrink sheets, you can even float them on water and play for real!
Numbers Ball
Split into two teams and play a Numbers Ball game where you throw balls at a target with numbers! Spread out a target with numbers 1 through 9 on a table, and have players throw color-coded balls around it.
Make sure the balls are slightly indented so they won’t roll off.
To make the game more exciting, decide on a lucky number and an NG (no-go) number beforehand.
Balls on the lucky number count as a bonus, while balls on the NG number count as a penalty.
When you announce the totals during scoring, it’s guaranteed to get everyone hyped!
paper sumo
Cardboard becomes the ring for paper sumo! Draw a circle and lines like a sumo ring on a square piece of cardboard.
Make the wrestlers out of slightly sturdy paper, such as cardstock.
Once you place the paper wrestlers on the cardboard ring, tap the cardboard lightly! The impact of the tapping can knock over your opponent’s paper wrestler or push them out of the lines—whoever does so wins.
Appoint a referee, too, and everyone can cheer with the calls of “Nokotta! Nokotta!” to make it even more exciting!
Daruma-otoshi
Here’s a simple and fun Daruma-otoshi-style game that’s sure to liven things up.
All you need are some empty tissue boxes and newspaper, so it’s easy to try.
Stack several tissue boxes as the “Daruma,” then use a stick made by rolling up newspaper to knock the Daruma down.
The rules are simple: whoever knocks down the most wins! It’s a great stress-relief activity, so why not use it at senior facilities to get everyone engaged? It also seems perfect for family fun with your children or grandchildren.
Money scooping
Here’s an introduction to a money-scooping game you can enjoy just like the traditional goldfish scooping.
Prepare a container filled with cardboard “money” and an empty container on a table.
Using a kitchen spatula or a tool made from cardboard, scoop up the money and transfer it to the empty container.
A fun twist is that the total value of the money you scoop becomes your score.
It gets even more exciting if you add elements like blindfolds or include “miss” bills and 0-yen bills among the money.
It’s easy to set up, with simple, easy-to-remember rules, so it’s something you can try casually.
