Recommended recreational activities for older adults with dementia
In senior care facilities and day service centers, there are people with a wide range of needs.
Therefore, it’s important to plan recreational activities that match each older adult’s condition.
This time, we’ll introduce recommended recreational activities for seniors with dementia.
For older adults with dementia, emotional support—such as helping them “feel enjoyment” and “find their place”—is essential.
Activities that are easy to try and encourage interaction among participants are also recommended.
Use this article as a reference when planning recreation for seniors with dementia.
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Recommended Recreational Activities for Older Adults with Dementia (11–20)
movie watching
Watching movies is a recommended recreational activity for people with dementia.
Films with relatively short runtimes that can be enjoyed in a relaxed way are ideal.
Consider researching genres and titles that are often well-liked, such as period dramas, popular films from the Showa era, musicals, or movies that evoke a sense of the seasons.
Watching nostalgic films can have a reminiscence-therapy effect for older adults, stimulating the brain and helping to slow the progression of dementia.
Wobbly Cap Game
As we age, the dexterity of our fingertips declines.
In fact, it’s said that more than half of the brain’s regions are involved in moving the hands and processing sensation.
As a result, with aging, the commands from the brain to the hands and fingers can become sluggish and don’t transmit as smoothly.
Finger exercises can help your hands and fingers move more smoothly.
So let’s train our fingertips with a game that uses an empty plastic bottle.
Cut the bottle so that about the top half from the mouth remains.
Cover the cut edge with vinyl tape to finish.
Place the bottle upright with the capped mouth facing down, and put a bottle cap inside.
A game where you try to drop the cap into a wobbling, swaying bottle seems like something everyone can enjoy together with lots of laughs.
Simple Darts
Simple Darts is a fun game idea you can make using a small whiteboard and magnets.
Draw a large circle on the whiteboard with a smaller circle in the center.
Divide the large circle into eight sections and assign points to each one.
The center circle should be the highest score: 100 points.
Wrap the magnets in any fabric you like.
The rules are simple: throw the magnets at the whiteboard and compete based on the score where they stick.
It’s sure to be exciting as either an individual or team game.
You can easily prepare it since whiteboards and magnets are available at 100-yen shops.
Brain training with Rock-Paper-Scissors on Mito Komon
Many older adults have probably watched the drama Mito Kōmon at least once, don’t you think? It’s about Mito Kōmon traveling around Japan, and the show’s theme song is famous too.
Using the theme song “Aa Jinsei ni Namida Ari,” let’s do a finger-play activity with the rock-paper-scissors motions.
Clap your hands, make a fist (rock) with one hand and pull it toward yourself, while making a hand (paper) with the other and extend it forward.
Another pattern is: clap your hands, make a fist (rock) with one hand and extend it forward, then use scissors to pull it back.
It might be easier for older adults to participate if it’s a song they already know.
foot bath
Foot baths are really good for your body.
Soaking your feet in warm water and then massaging the soles and the tops of your feet improves circulation and can make you feel revitalized.
Adding bath salts, regular salt, or baking soda helps you warm up, too.
Even people who don’t want to take a full bath or find it a hassle might be willing to try just a foot bath, so please give it a try.
It also helps at the first signs of a cold.
Make sure the water doesn’t get lukewarm—add hot water as needed to keep it warm while you soak.
A stroll activity to the nearby park
When the weather turns warm and mild, I highly recommend a stroll activity.
In fact, going for a walk is packed with benefits! Exposure to sunlight helps your body produce vitamin D, which strengthens bones.
Planning a date and destination for an outing engages orientation skills—the ability to understand your situation—while getting ready to go out and following a route use executive functions, the abilities needed to achieve goals.
If you’re walking, you can also expect various effects such as maintaining muscle strength and improving circulation.
Even in a wheelchair, spending the day differently than usual can refresh both body and mind, so please give it a try.
Recommended Recreational Activities for Elderly People with Dementia (21–30)
Reminiscence Session: Nostalgic Tools from Early Showa Era
Reminiscence therapy is a type of psychotherapy in which you choose a theme, recall past memories, and reflect on the scenery, environment, and your own self from that time.
To help you remember, it’s good to prepare photos or videos of tools you used in the past—or the actual items if possible.
By recalling details such as how the tool was used (“I used it like this”), when and under what circumstances (“I used it at night after finishing farm work”), or specific experiences (“I was scolded because I couldn’t use it well”), you can evoke a wide range of memories.
You may learn related episodes and even remember things the person themselves had forgotten.
When continued, this approach is considered to have beneficial effects on improving cognitive function.