![[For older adults] Music recreation that helps boost mood and improve health](https://i.ytimg.com/vi_webp/qsRxYnjoUzE/maxresdefault.webp)
We’d like to introduce music-based recreational activities that can lift the spirits of older adults.
Listening to favorite songs or singing out loud can provide a change of pace and help relieve stress.
In this article, we present a variety of recreational ideas that use the music we encounter in everyday life.
Along with sing-alongs of children’s songs and simple exercises set to music, we’ve also gathered quiz-style activities that are fun like games.
If you’re planning music recreation for a senior facility or day service setting, please use these ideas as a reference.
- With upbeat rhythm routines! Music therapy for seniors
- [For Seniors] Guaranteed to Liven Things Up! A Collection of Brain Training Activities That Will Spark Laughter
- [For Seniors] Recommended for Recreation! A Collection of Fun and Lively Parody Songs
- [For Seniors] Let’s Have Fun Together! Introducing Uplifting, Energizing Songs
- [Sing for your health!] Popular songs among seniors. Also recommended for recreational activities.
- [For Seniors] Easy and fun seated activities you can do in your room
- Hand games that liven things up for seniors—also great brain training
- [For Seniors] Refresh Your Mood! Lively, Get-Moving Games
- Recreation Activities Effective for Long-Term Care Prevention for Seniors
- [Today's Recommendation] Gentle Health Exercises for Seniors
- [For Seniors] Recreational activities and games that let you have fun while strengthening your legs
- [For Seniors] Recommended Songs for Music Therapy Tailored to Physical and Mental Conditions
- [November Health Topic] Indoor Recreation Ideas for Older Adults
[For Seniors] Music Recreation Activities (1–10) That Help Improve Mood and Health
Intro QuizNEW!
@tidakukuru Today's challenge is “Intro Quiz♪”! 🎵 A live intro-quiz with professional-level piano performances by our teacher—so luxurious‼︎ The aims of the intro quiz are: 1) Listen closely and focus, 2) Recall from memory, 3) Hear and move your hands quickly (coordinated action). We’ll build skills while having fun♡ The song titles are written on cards, and you grab them like in karuta! There are points written on the back of each card, and your final score is the total of those numbers 🃏✨ This time, our generous teacher even prepared prizes, so everyone went all in 😆✨ Thank you‼︎ The winner turned out to be… the very teacher who played the piano 🤣 (The teacher who provided the prizes stepped in to compete and won brilliantly 🏅) Congratulations 🎉translationTeam strengthIntro quiz#Live piano performance#Kakogawa After-School Day ServiceChild Development Support
♬ Original Song – Copain House Sakura ☀︎ Kakogawa Noguchi Classroom – Copain House Sakura ☀︎ Kakogawa Noguchi Classroom
In this “Intro-don” game, the intro is played on the piano, and players listen and slap the card bearing the song title, like in karuta, to claim it.
It’s a game you can’t win without listening skills, judgment, and quick reflexes.
However, it might also be good training for older adults.
Since karuta is a timeless, beloved game that everyone gets absorbed in, this version is sure to spark some heated battles.
Until you get used to it, try playing in a small group, like two against one!
Karaoke cafeNEW!
@hakujunen Hello! This is the Day Care Rehabilitation 😊 The other day, we held a karaoke café event 🎶 Everyone enjoyed their favorite karaoke 🎤 while having their preferred drinks ☕️ and snacks 🍪. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Hakujunen is a geriatric health services facility located in Takahagi City, Ibaraki Prefecture ✨ We are currently hiring: ✿ Nurses, Registered Dietitians, and Care Staff ✿ We look forward to your inquiries 😊 Tel 0293-23-2900 Mailinfo@hakujunkai.jpYou can also contact us via our website or official LINE ⭐️ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Hakujun-en#Takahagi CityGeriatric Health Services Facility# Geriatric Health Services FacilityRecreation
♬ レトロな喫茶店・ローファイ・Vlog(1560895) – Tana Music
The days when you had to go to a karaoke bar whenever you wanted to sing are over.
Now, home karaoke systems are available, making it easy to enjoy singing.
So why not open a karaoke café at a care facility? Guests can fill up on food and drinks while singing or listening to their favorite songs—it could be a truly wonderful time! Singing also has great benefits like relieving stress, stimulating the brain, and improving cardiopulmonary function.
We hope you’ll open a health-promoting karaoke café and have fun with it.
concertNEW!
@magonote_hanazono Senior care facility recreationRecreationConcertOsaka
♬ Original Song – Magonote Hanazono, Medical Seed Co., Ltd. – Zenkouen Hanazono
Why not try holding a concert at a nursing care facility? Actual research has shown that continuing to play musical instruments has positive effects on older adults’ cognitive and brain functions.
There are many kinds of instruments, so you can choose one that suits you and enjoy it as a lifelong hobby.
To improve, you need to practice a little every day, but if you only practice, you might get bored along the way.
That’s why we recommend organizing regular concerts and setting a goal to perform.
It will energize your practice, and you’ll also enjoy communicating with fellow music enthusiasts.
Guess the Instrument Sound QuizNEW!
We present a quiz where you listen to 16 instruments and guess their names.
The instruments selected are ones that everyone has probably seen or heard at least once, and as hints, photos and names of the instruments are also shown, so the difficulty level is fairly low.
However, the last question is a hint-free secret! For that one, judge based on sound alone.
You won’t get it unless you listen carefully, so prick up your ears and think about the correct answer.
If you get 11 or more correct, you’ll be awarded the title of Genius Musician, so why not aim for that and give it a try?
Bon Odori (Bon dance)NEW!
Bon Odori is an essential part of summer festivals! The time when everyone forms a circle and dances to Bon Odori songs fosters a sense of unity and offers a great chance to move your body while having fun.
Older adults may have danced in their youth, so they might remember the steps the moment they hear a famous tune.
It’s a music recreation activity that can be thoroughly enjoyed indoors, so be sure to plan one in the summer and get everyone excited.
To avoid tripping and falling, make sure to wear comfortable, easy-to-move-in clothing.
Nursery Rhyme Fill-in-the-Blank QuizNEW!
Do you remember the nursery rhymes you used to listen to and sing when you were a child? In this quiz, you can take on a fill-in-the-blank challenge using lyrics from nursery rhymes everyone knows.
Even if you can hum the melody right away, many of the lyrics might not come to mind as easily, which may puzzle older participants.
But that’s exactly what makes it exciting, so be sure to discuss with those around you to figure out the correct answers.
You’ll probably find yourself naturally singing while you think, which could also serve as good mouth exercise!
Picture-drawing songNEW!
Drawing songs—where you complete a picture in time with a song—have long been beloved.
They’re fun because you can draw all sorts of things like characters and animals.
What’s interesting is that even though everyone listens to the same song and draws along, the finished picture differs from person to person.
The placement and size of the parts instructed by the song can completely change the drawing.
It’s also fun to draw without hearing the theme first and then guess the theme by looking at your own drawing at the end, so give it a try.
Drawing songs engage both hearing and sight, making them perfect for brain training!