[For Seniors] Fun Autumn Activities: Recreation Games
We’d like to introduce autumn-themed activities and recreation games for seniors.
Autumn brings pleasant weather that makes you want to go out.
It’s great if you can just decide, “Alright, let’s go!” and head out, but some people find it difficult to go out as they’d like.
So in this article, we’ll introduce enjoyable recreation games you can play indoors.
There are plenty of crafts and team-competition games that are useful in settings like day service centers, so please make good use of them.
Let’s play and feel the autumn season!
- For Seniors: Simple and Fun! November Recreation Ideas
- [November Health Topic] Indoor Recreation Ideas for Older Adults
- [For Seniors] Simple Recreational Activities You Can Enjoy While Seated
- [For Seniors] Simple Tabletop Games: Fun and Engaging Recreational Activities
- [For Seniors] Enjoy September’s Autumn Fun! A Collection of Craft, Game, and Exercise Ideas
- [For Seniors] Recreation Games Related to October Events
- [For Seniors] Recreational Activities Enjoyable in Large Groups
- September Health Topic: Introducing Recreational Activities That Capture the Feeling of Autumn’s Arrival
- [For Seniors] Simple crafts that feel like autumn: a fun creative activity
- [For Seniors] Fun Small-Group Recreation
- [October Health Topic] Introducing Recreational Activities for Seniors!
- [For Seniors] Liven Up Your Day Service! Fun Beanbag Toss Activity
- [For Seniors] Enjoyment at Day Care: A Roundup of Games and Recreational Activities
[For Seniors] Fun Autumn Activities: Recreation Games (91–100)
Sweet potato snack activity
Autumn is the season when sweet potatoes are especially delicious—and did you know October 13 is Sweet Potato Day? Let’s enjoy a snack activity using sweet potatoes, which are in season and come in many varieties.
One of the great things about sweet potatoes is that you can enjoy them in many treats like pudding, oyaki, and sweet potato yokan.
Imo-mochi is simple and easy to eat, making it perfect for a snack activity.
Mash steamed sweet potatoes and have everyone roll them into balls—it’s a fun task to do together.
If you use an electric griddle, you can cook a lot at once and enjoy grilling them with everyone.
Grape jelly cake
It would be fun to enjoy a snack activity using autumn flavors and seasonal fruits.
Let’s make a whole grape jelly cake using seedless grapes with edible skins.
The method is very simple: mix sugar and gelatin into water, heat to make the jelly mixture, then pour it over grapes that have been firmly packed and arranged in a mold, and chill until set.
Since swallowing whole grapes can be a choking hazard, cut the grapes when slicing the jelly, or halve them before adding them to the mold.
It’s a smooth, easy-to-eat treat that goes down nicely.
Makimaki Apple Game
This is a “Roll-Roll Apple” game where you use fine movements of your fingers and wrist to wind up tape! Attach a length of raffia (suzuran) tape to a piece of thick paper that will serve as a plate.
Fix the opposite end of the tape to a plastic wrap core so it can be wound up.
Place an apple made by crumpling paper on top of the thick paper, and you’re ready.
At the start signal, wind the tape to pull the apple toward you without letting it fall.
The person who gets their apple to the goal first wins.
If you panic, the apple will fall, so wind the tape quickly but carefully.
karaoke
Did you know that October 17 is “Karaoke Day”? With that in mind, how about enjoying a karaoke contest as an October event? Everyone can relax their mind and heart with favorite songs and memorable tunes, and you can also liven things up by sharing stories connected to those songs.
One of the great things about a karaoke contest is that the power of music lifts your spirits and helps stimulate the brain and heart.
Even those who aren’t confident singers can enjoy listening, and you can include songs that everyone can sing together.
Kick Darts
This is a game where you sit in a chair and kick a beanbag into the air, aiming to land it on a high-scoring area of the dartboard in front of you.
It helps develop the leg strength needed to send the beanbag to a distant dartboard and the ability to control force to reach the target spot.
The farther the dartboard is, the more power is required, so have participants try at distances suited to their stamina and muscle strength.
If you run it as a face-to-face match, players will likely focus even more as they try to beat their opponent.
Gummy Choco Pumpkin
The sight of children going around asking for treats is an essential part of Halloween, isn’t it? This song is packed with the fun and cuteness of Halloween and sweets as its theme.
The title “Gummy Choco Pumpkin” represents the shapes of hands used in rock-paper-scissors, and these hand shapes are incorporated into the choreography.
With simple moves centered on hand shapes and ghost-like motions, it’s a piece that lets you move your body while feeling the fun and cuteness woven into the music.
Rock, paper, scissors with pumpkin
It’s a pumpkin-themed activity—perfect for Halloween—that combines the hand shapes of rock, scissors, and paper.
It’s a dance that was aired on “Shimajiro no Wao,” and the light, rhythmic hand movements get your body moving well.
The lower body focuses on bending and stretching; if that’s difficult, doing it seated in a chair is also recommended.
Keep the rock–scissors–paper hand shapes in mind and move your upper body thoroughly, from fingertips to shoulders.
Since the quick tempo can be tricky to catch, it might be a good idea to practice the movements first and then try them with the music once you’re comfortable.