Fun Halloween recreation activities at a nursing care facility
When it comes to big events in October, Halloween is the first that comes to mind!
Many day service staff may be thinking, “We want our elderly clients to experience the excitement of Halloween that’s so popular among younger generations!”
In this article, we introduce recommended recreational activities for Halloween events held at care facilities.
We’ve gathered a variety of content to liven up Halloween at care homes—from easy-to-play games to Halloween decorations that brighten up the facility.
Let’s help older adults fully enjoy the fun of Halloween!
- [For Seniors] Challenge Your Brain with a Halloween Quiz! Fun Trivia Questions to Learn and Enjoy
- [For Seniors] Fun Autumn Activities: Recreation Games
- [For Seniors] Fun Halloween Games: Ideas to Enjoy with Ghosts, Mummies, and Spiderwebs
- Exciting Halloween games! Ideas that will captivate both kids and adults
- [For Seniors] Handmade Halloween Treats to Enjoy: Fun Ideas with Pumpkins and Ghosts
- [For Senior Care Facilities] Fun! Recommended Events for October
- Recommended recreational activities to help seniors enjoy their time in care facilities
- [For Seniors] Let’s Get Excited with Halloween Crafts! Fun and Easy Decoration Ideas
- [For Seniors] Recreation Games Related to October Events
- [For Seniors] Highlights of Fun Events at Day-Service Centers
- Explaining interesting initiatives at nursing care facilities! We also introduce seasonal recreational activities.
- [For Seniors] Enjoyable Day Service: A Collection of Fun Event Ideas
- [For Seniors] Liven Up November Day Services! Fun Autumn Event Ideas
Fun Halloween Recreational Activities at a Care Facility (61–70)
Halloween pumpkin wreath
Why not make a wreath that will beautifully elevate your Halloween decor, no matter where you display it—by the front door, in the living room, or anywhere else? Create the wreath base from thick paperboard, use yarn to represent a spiderweb, and add decorations made with a craft punch.
This is especially recommended for seniors who enjoy detailed handiwork! You can combine punched parts to make three-dimensional flowers, or layer cut construction paper to create a 3D pumpkin.
Crafts that encourage focused work are also effective for finger rehabilitation and dementia prevention, so consider incorporating this activity in day service centers and similar settings.
Halloween is a big commotion
This piece portrays the lively atmosphere of Halloween, where various monsters like ghosts gather.
The light, march-like rhythm is striking, and you can feel the excitement for the once-a-year party.
The routine centers on marching steps to express the march rhythm and gentle, swaying ghost-like movements, making it a calm yet enjoyable exercise for the body.
Even when performed seated, by staying mindful of the marching footwork, you can effectively train your whole body, not just the upper body.
Halloween cupcake
Let’s make the perfect cupcakes to add a cute touch to your Halloween party! Cupcakes are great even for beginners at homemade treats—just mix the ingredients and bake, so there’s less chance of failure.
Plus, if you bake them in muffin cups from a 100-yen shop, they make perfect party favors! You can keep the cake plain or add cocoa for a more grown-up flavor.
Top them with pumpkin cream for decoration, and you’ll capture the full Halloween vibe!
Halloween Carnival
This is a song that introduces various Halloween motifs through singing and movement.
Its strong, resonant, relaxed rhythm conveys the fun spirit of Halloween.
The calm beat is the key, and through movements like ghosts, pumpkins, and witches, you can really get your whole body moving.
It’s easy to catch the rhythm, so if you also pay attention to your facial expressions, the fun will increase even more.
Rather than just reproducing set motions, it could be enjoyable to think for yourself about what kinds of movements best express each motif.
Halloween Curling
Enjoying a Halloween-themed game is also recommended in October.
How about getting everyone excited with a simple tabletop Halloween curling game? Curling’s popularity soared after the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics and captivated people all across Japan.
Put a crumpled piece of paper or another ball-shaped item inside a paper cup to mimic a curling stone, then slide it across the table and compete for points.
Add a Halloween touch by decorating the table and drawing pumpkins or other designs on the paper cups!
Halloween Game: Banish the Ghosts
It’s a perfect game for stimulating little fingers: flick the pieces with your fingers to chase away the ghosts! Draw ghost faces on white round stickers and stick them onto plastic bottle caps.
Draw jack-o’-lantern faces on yellow round stickers and attach them the same way.
Prepare as many ghost pieces as possible, and make enough jack-o’-lantern pieces for the number of players.
Once you set the ghost pieces inside a square frame, you’re ready to play.
From outside the frame, flick the jack-o’-lantern pieces with your fingers to hit the ghost pieces inside.
The player who knocks the most ghost pieces out of the frame wins!
Halloween tree
Crafts using natural materials are great for enjoying the changing seasons, so they’re highly recommended for older adults! They’re also perfect for October events like Halloween, making them a great fit for day-service recreation.
First, glue green moss onto a large pine cone.
Pine cones you pick up at a park are fine! Next, decorate it with your favorite Halloween motifs, nuts, or dried flowers—and you’re done.
Supplies from the 100-yen shop are more than enough, so you can make this easily and affordably!