[For Seniors] Liven Up Your Day Service! Fun Beanbag Toss Activity
One of the items often used in day-service recreation is the beanbag (otedama).
Beanbags filled with adzuki beans or rice are soft balls that don’t hurt even if they hit you, making them a safe tool for everyone from children to older adults.
While many people picture juggling with two or three beanbags, it can be hard to come up with other ways to play.
In this article, we’ll introduce a variety of recommended beanbag games for day-service recreation!
Many of them are easy to play while seated, so older adults can enjoy them with confidence.
Give some new beanbag games a try!
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[For Seniors] Let’s Have Fun at Day Service! Enjoyable Beanbag Toss Activities (41–50)
beanbag kicking
If you’re looking for a leg exercise activity, how about “beanbag kicking”? Arrange sheets of paper with point values in a vertical line, place a chair on the opposite side, and sit down.
Then balance a beanbag on the top of your foot and kick it up so it lands on one of the point sheets.
Decide how many beanbags each person gets to kick; the player with the highest total score wins.
If balancing the beanbag on your foot is difficult, you can place it on the floor and kick it with your toes instead.
If you want to increase the amount of exercise, add more beanbags.
Adjust the rules to suit the players.
Target shooting
Line up various targets and enjoy a game of target practice! Use recyclables like empty plastic bottles and cans as targets, arrange them on a table, and throw beanbags from a distance to knock them down.
The difficulty changes depending on the size and shape of each target.
You could assign points to each target, give each person five beanbags, and compete to see who scores the highest by hitting or toppling targets—that sounds like fun! It’s also a satisfying little stress reliever when your beanbag hits the mark.
Keep tossing the beanbags!
Let’s take on the challenge of not knocking over the unsteady, wobbly piece of thick paper! We’ll introduce a game idea that uses beanbags you toss one after another.
Beanbags are familiar items to people in Japan, right? How about trying a game where you play using beanbags—tossing them one after another? Participants form a circle, and in the center you place a piece of thick paper or cardboard on top of a stand—then you’re ready to go! Players take turns throwing beanbags at the thick paper, aiming to land them on top.
It’s a thrilling game where the person who causes the thick paper to fall off the stand loses!
Baton relay
Competitive events are a big draw at sports festivals, but activities that everyone completes together are also popular.
The baton relay introduced here is one where older adults cooperate by threading a baton onto a string and passing it along.
Split into two teams, participants enjoy seeing how many times each team can pass the baton.
Through the act of passing it back and forth, a sense of unity develops and communication skills deepen.
Moreover, the feeling of accomplishment from successfully passing the baton leads to positive experiences and can help elevate mood.
Wobbly Rod Movement
It’s a simple game where you prepare several toilet paper cores with beanbags placed on top and move them to designated spots.
The key is to move them without dropping the beanbags, paying attention to keeping your body steady.
By changing the size of the toilet paper cores used as the base and adjusting the size of the beanbags, you can tailor the difficulty in various ways.
If you set the distance so it can be completed within arm’s reach, it’s a game you can enjoy while seated.
