[For Seniors] Brain Training Recommended for Dementia Prevention
In this article, we introduce brain-training activities that can help prevent dementia in older adults.
As we age, memory is something everyone worries about.
For those concerned, we recommend simple, easy-to-do brain training designed for seniors.
Doing brain training activates the brain and can contribute to overall mental and physical well-being.
There are quiz formats, riddles, four-character idioms, and even brain-training activities you can do while moving your body.
Find the brain training that suits you, and enjoy doing it.
If you’re a caregiving professional looking for brain-training ideas, be sure to check these out.
- [For Seniors] Brain Training! Recall Quiz Collection!
- [For Seniors] Challenging but Exciting! Kanji Quiz
- [For Seniors] Find daily brain training. Today’s recommended brain workout.
- [For Seniors] Lively Wordplay Game: Fun Recreation for Elderly Care
- [For Seniors] Fun Brain Training! Prefecture Quiz
- Recommended for seniors. Brain training with an odd-one-out quiz.
- [For Seniors] Popular Brain Training and Recreational Quizzes
- [For Seniors] Fun and Lively! Recommended Quiz Questions
- [For Seniors] Fun Riddles That Stimulate the Brain
- [For Seniors] Enjoyable Brain Training! Finger Exercises That Help Prevent Dementia
- [For Seniors] A Brain-Training, Crowd-Pleasing Word Search Game
- [Brain Training] Lively Word Quiz for Seniors
- [For Seniors] Recreational activities and games that let you have fun while strengthening your legs
[For Seniors] Prevent Dementia! Recommended Brain Training (111–120)
Tokyo Patent Approval Bureau
“Tokyo Patent Approval Bureau” is a classic tongue twister.
Some older adults may have heard it or even tried the tongue twister at least once.
However, the Tokyo Patent Approval Bureau doesn’t actually exist.
It never existed in the past either; what does exist is the Japan Patent Office in Chiyoda City, Tokyo.
So where did the TV announcer tongue twister “Tokyo Patent Approval Bureau” come from? As it turns out, it’s said to have been created for use in recruitment exams.
Ultimate luxury aircraft at a deserted Kyushu airport
The tongue twister “kuukyo na Kyushu kuukou no kyuukyoku koukyuu koukuuki” (empty Kyushu airport’s ultimate luxury aircraft) feels difficult just by looking at it written down.
The sentence is also on the longer side for a tongue twister, and it’s characterized by a mix of hard k sounds and kya-kyu-kyo clusters.
Because of that, it’s said to be hard to say without tripping up.
To be able to say tongue twisters, the key is to be conscious of each word and pronounce every one clearly and distinctly.
By the way, there is no actual airport called “Kyushu Airport.” If you were to use a real airport in a tongue twister, it would be one of the airports in the Kyushu region, such as Kitakyushu Airport.
red paper roll, blue paper roll, yellow paper roll
Tongue twisters often consist of strings of hard-to-pronounce words.
“Aka-makigami ao-makigami ki-makigami” (red scroll paper, blue scroll paper, yellow scroll paper) is also a sequence of tricky words.
By the way, makigami refers to paper made by joining together sheets of hansetsu paper (a tall, narrow paper) side by side to make a long roll.
It’s sold in scroll form.
This tongue twister lines up red, blue, and yellow scroll paper.
It looks easy at first glance, but when you try to say it repeatedly, it becomes hard to pronounce.
As a tip, if you pause slightly between the color names—like red or blue—and the word “makigami,” it should be a bit easier to say.
Try it together with older adults.
Brain training erasing letters on a whiteboard
It’s a game where the 50 Japanese syllables are written on a whiteboard, and you make words using those characters.
Each character you use is erased from the board, and the goal is to create as many words as possible.
The key point is that you can’t use the same character again, so be mindful of which characters you should leave for later as you play.
If you start without thinking, you’ll tend to use the easy characters early on, so it’s recommended to deliberately come up with words that use the more difficult characters first.
Rather than just going with whatever words come to mind, it might be better to plan with the endgame in mind as you proceed.
Brain training that sharpens your reflexes
It’s a game that trains your reflexes by imitating claps so that your timing matches the model person’s clapping as closely as possible.
While getting a firm grasp of the clapping rhythm is key to enjoying the game, focusing too much on the rhythm can make you fall for tricks.
The sequence of observing the model’s hands and reflecting that in your own movements tests both your concentration and reflexes.
Adding changes in rhythm or variations in clapping midway through is also recommended, as it further directs your attention to the model’s hands.
Brain-training goods from the 100-yen shop!
This is a rehabilitation tool that uses a whiteboard and colored magnets, which you can easily get even at 100-yen shops.
Draw lines on the whiteboard and then place magnets at the intersections—simple, right? By removing magnets that are stuck on and arranging them neatly while paying attention to color, you train the ability to judge colors and order as well as fine finger movements.
Try customizing it depending on what you want to strengthen: for example, increase the number of magnets to make the arranging take more time, or use stronger magnets to require more force to remove them.
Onigiri Concentration
This is a concentration/memory game where you flip over onigiri cards and try to match the same fillings.
Since there are many cards for each filling—like “12 umeboshi” and “6 cod roe”—you have a relatively high chance of getting a match even when drawing at random, which is part of the appeal.
While it’s important to engage your memory—such as recalling where cards were—be sure to celebrate correct matches so everyone feels good and stays enthusiastic about the game.
If matching proves difficult, it’s also recommended to reveal all the cards and give players time to memorize their locations.
In the end, compare everyone’s hands and get excited about how each set of fillings came together.