[For Seniors] Enjoyment at Day Care: A Roundup of Games and Recreational Activities
We’ve put together a collection of games and recreational activities that can be enjoyed at day care.
We introduce plenty of options, including simple games you can play while seated, brain-training games, and activities that help with hand and finger rehabilitation—so please use them as a reference.
Some activities require props, but they’re simple to make using recycled materials or items from 100-yen shops, making them easy for older adults to recreate.
Give them a try with everyone during recreation time or in small breaks.
- [For Seniors] Simple Recreational Activities You Can Enjoy While Seated
- For Seniors: Effective Recreation for Preventing Care Needs—Have Fun While Staying Healthy
- [For Seniors] Simple Tabletop Games: Fun and Engaging Recreational Activities
- [For Seniors] Easy and fun seated activities you can do in your room
- [For Seniors] Today’s Recommended Activity: Fun and Engaging
- [Elderly Day Service] Let’s all have fun! Games and recreational activities
- [For Seniors] Fun! Games and Ideas to Boost Memory
- [For Seniors] Have Fun! A Collection of Group Game Recreation Ideas
- Hand games that liven things up for seniors—also great brain training
- [For Seniors] Easy to try. Fun, crowd-pleasing recreation
- [For Seniors] Fun Small-Group Recreation
- [For Seniors] Recreational Activities Enjoyable in Large Groups
- [For Seniors] Enjoyable Indoor Activities! Recreations and Games That Engage the Mind and Body
[For Seniors] Enjoy Daycare: A Collection of Games and Recreational Activities (251–260)
Color Matching Game
Here’s a great idea for puzzle lovers: a color-matching game.
First, prepare the same number of toilet paper rolls and paper cups.
Turn the paper cups upside down and stick colored paper on the bottoms.
Then stick the same colored paper on the toilet paper rolls.
Repeat this for each color to finish the setup.
To play, find the toilet paper roll that matches the color of a paper cup and stack it on top.
The more colors you add, the more challenging it becomes.
Dropping Colored Balls
We would like to introduce a color ball drop activity for pairs.
Have two older adults sit facing each other, each holding two sticks by their tips.
Place baskets labeled with colors between them.
Roll balls along the sticks and drop each ball into the basket with the matching color label.
This game emphasizes cooperation between the two participants.
Encourage them to communicate and synchronize their movements.
It’s a fun activity that can spark conversation and help expand social connections.
Tea Picking Game
Tea picking, famous for the phrase “Hachijūhachi-ya, when summer draws near.” This time, we’re introducing a game inspired by Hachijūhachi-ya.
Prepare green and light green origami paper and roll each sheet into a cone shape.
It’s good to have a mix of sizes, large and small.
Set out two disposable containers so you can harvest green mature leaves and light green young leaves separately.
Place shredded newspaper dyed green inside a cardboard box.
Once you’ve tucked the origami into the box, you’re all set.
At the signal, harvest while sorting between leaves and young leaves.
There are many variations: race for speed, compete for how many you can harvest within a time limit, or use tweezers.
It can help train fine motor skills and improve comprehension and decision-making.
Give it a try!
Ring Relay
In March there are some days when you can feel the warmth, but there are also days with sharp temperature swings.
At times like that, let’s liven things up indoors with a “ring relay.” To prepare, use paper or toilet paper rolls to make rings in large, medium, and small sizes, and pass them to the next person by threading them onto chopsticks.
It works well as a small-group game, and it’s also fun as a team competition for larger groups.
Through the relay, you’ll naturally interact with those around you and help promote communication.
Since you can do it while seated, it should be easy for older adults to join in too.
Enjoy your time!
Association card game
It’s a game that tests your imagination and creativity by thinking of things associated with keywords written on cards.
You prepare three types of cards that represent “color,” “characteristic,” and “thing,” and place one card from each category on the table.
Then you think of something that fits all the conditions shown on the cards and share your answer.
Even a prompt like “a white, soft creature” could lead to multiple answers such as “rabbit” or “sheep,” so it could also be fun to compete on how many ideas you can come up with.
