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[For Seniors] Handmade Game Ideas You Can Enjoy
Games and recreational activities are essential in senior facilities like day-care centers.
In this article, we introduce handmade games you can enjoy.
Some are made using recycled materials like milk cartons and newspapers, while others use items you can get at 100-yen shops, such as paper cups and disposable chopsticks.
All of them involve thinking, competing, and playing, so they serve as brain training—and best of all, they foster communication.
In team competitions, everyone might get fired up, focus on the game, and end up in a frenzy!
[For Seniors] Handmade Game Ideas You Can Enjoy (1–10)
Takoyaki GameNEW!
At festival food stalls, many people probably choose takoyaki to eat.
So let’s include a takoyaki game as one of the summer festival activities.
Use chopsticks to pick up the prepared takoyaki and pack them into a container.
Compete with a few people—the first to finish packing wins! Become a shopkeeper and give it a try.
You can easily make the takoyaki by wrapping colored paper around crumpled newspaper.
Because takoyaki are round, it’s trickier than it looks, but it uses fine motor skills, making it perfect for older adults.
Takoyaki, pop!NEW!
When it comes to summer festivals, you can’t miss takoyaki.
You can’t eat this one, but you can enjoy it as a game.
Crumple up newspaper or other paper to make “takoyaki,” gently place it on a ladle, and pop it onto a plate.
It doesn’t require strength and lets you go at your own pace, making it perfect for older adults.
Whether it lands well or not, smiles spread, and natural applause and cheers arise.
Using your hands provides light exercise, warming both heart and body.
Why not spend a lively moment together, feeling the bustle of a summer festival and having a great time with everyone?
Cup PinballNEW!
Enjoy the simple fun of just dropping a ball! Introducing Cup Pinball.
You can make it yourself using cardboard, paper cups, pool noodles, a basket, and a ball! First, cut the cardboard into a large rectangle and make holes slightly smaller than the rims of the paper cups.
Insert paper cups into some of the holes, and attach pool noodles along the long edges of the cardboard base.
Next, prop the base at an angle using a table or chairs, and place a basket where the ball will drop—then you’re done! Adjust the difficulty by changing the number of holes.
Wani Wani PanicNEW!
https://www.tiktok.com/@mitinoko/video/7123177286345526530Let’s use cardboard and milk cartons to make and play a DIY version of the popular game Whac-A-Croc.
Use cardboard for the main body and decorate milk cartons to create the crocodiles.
Attach something like a plastic wrap core to each crocodile so you can hold it and move the crocodile in and out.
Participants will use a toy squeaky hammer to hit the crocodiles as they pop out.
You can compete by counting how many you hit, or forget about winning and losing and just enjoy it as a way to relieve stress.
Handmade Senbonbiki (lottery string pull game)NEW!
When it comes to festivals, senbon-biki (the thousand-string pull) is a must! You pull one string and get the prize it’s connected to—it’s exciting and fun wondering which one you’ll win.
I’m sure it will bring back childlike joy for older adults as well.
Senbon-biki sets can be rented or purchased online, making them easy to include in events.
If you want to keep costs down, a handmade version is also recommended! You just punch holes in a cardboard box and thread strings through, so it’s easy to make, and the strength should be fine for one-time use.
Target shooting gameNEW!
Here’s a simple and fun target-throwing game.
Prepare by sticking adhesive-backed hook-and-loop (Velcro) strips radially onto ping-pong balls.
For the target, attach felt circles of various sizes to construction paper, write point values around them, and make the center worth 100 points to finish.
The balls stick firmly with just a light toss, so it’s safe and enjoyable.
Hitting right where you aim feels refreshing, and high scores naturally spark applause and cheers.
You can encourage each other and try again and again, making for a joyful, smile-filled time.
It’s easy to set up and guaranteed to liven things up, so give it a try!
ring tossNEW!
This is a ring-toss game where you use plastic bottles filled with colored water as targets.
Each bottle has a piece of paper with a number on it, which becomes the score.
You can buy ready-made rings, or twist newspaper into rings, reinforce them with colored tape, and make your own.
Decide how many rings to throw and compete on total points.
Making the colored water bright and varied gives it more of a summer festival vibe, so it’s recommended.
Using plastic bottles of different sizes—not just one size—changes the difficulty and makes it more fun.