[For Seniors] Let's try customizing the usual Pa-Ta-Ka-Ra exercises!
It seems that many senior care facilities incorporate the “Pa-Ta-Ka-Ra exercises” before meals and at other times.
These are important oral exercises for older adults, using the mouth and tongue while vocalizing “pa, ta, ka, ra.”
The “Pa-Ta-Ka-Ra exercises” help prevent aspiration and support enjoyable conversation through training the muscles around the mouth.
However, doing the same routine over and over can start to feel monotonous.
So let’s try a modified version of the “Pa-Ta-Ka-Ra exercises”!
This time, we’ve gathered ideas with creative twists, such as adding hand claps or turning it into a parody song.
We hope older adults can enjoy their oral exercise time as well.
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[For Seniors] Let's try customizing your usual Patakara exercises! (21–30)
Singing Pa-Ta-Ka-Ra Exercises
If you just keep repeating “pa-ta-ka-ra” in a simple way, you’ll eventually get bored and lose awareness of your mouth movements.
When that happens, a great option is to adapt it by pronouncing “pa-ta-ka-ra” in time with a song.
By articulating each syllable to the rhythm, you’ll naturally pay attention to the cadence of language, which helps not only with mouth exercises but also with smoother conversation.
You can choose any song, but children’s songs are often easiest because of their clear rhythm and suitable number of beats and words.
Tadpoles are frog children doing gymnastics.
Why not try adapting the Pa-Ta-Ka-Ra mouth exercises to the children’s song “Tadpoles Are Baby Frogs”? Change the lyrics to include words related to plants or animals that begin with “pa,” “ta,” “ka,” and “ra.” You could even make it a quiz and ask the older adults to suggest words that start with each sound.
Then fit sentences using those words into the song and sing together.
Many older adults have sung “Tadpoles Are Baby Frogs” at least once, so it should feel approachable.
By singing and having fun, you can strengthen the muscles of the mouth, tongue, and face.
Give it a try to help reduce food spillage during meals and prevent aspiration.
Patakara step-stomping rock-paper-scissors
This exercise combines three elements—vigorous marching in place, rock-paper-scissors hand movements, and the mouth-movement “pa-ta-ka-ra” routine—to provide brain-training benefits.
Start by establishing a rhythm with your steps, then align your hand and mouth movements to that beat.
Begin with a slow tempo and check each movement carefully.
Once you’re comfortable with the basics, increase the speed, vary the hand and mouth patterns, and create more complex combinations to enhance the brain-training effect.
Rather than going through the motions on autopilot, think about how each movement should be performed as you go.
That mindful approach is key to feeling the benefits of the brain training.
Gymnastics to the tune of the tulip song
Let’s do oral care with the “Pa-Ta-Ka-Ra exercises,” which are actively practiced at day services and nursing facilities.
By moving the mouth while pronouncing “pa,” “ta,” “ka,” and “ra,” you train the movements of the mouth and tongue, aiming to improve the functions of eating and swallowing and to prevent aspiration.
This time, we changed the lyrics of the well-known children’s song “Tulip” to “pa, ta, ka, ra” and tried singing it.
Children’s songs have easy melodies and rhythms, so even older adults can get started right away.
Gymnastics with various animals
Many senior care facilities incorporate the Pa-Ta-Ka-Ra mouth exercises before meals and at other times.
If you’re thinking, “I want to add some variation instead of doing the same routine,” or you’re running out of ideas, here’s a recommended Pa-Ta-Ka-Ra exercise.
Ask the seniors to name animals that start with Pa, Ta, Ka, and Ra.
For example, for “Pa” they might say “panda,” and for “Ta,” “tanuki” (raccoon dog).
After they come up with words, have them repeat each word several times.
The words don’t have to be animals—they can be familiar everyday items as well.
It can be fun to think up ideas for oral exercises together with the seniors, and having them come up with words also serves as brain training.
Exercises in time with the song ‘Frog Chorus’
Many senior care facilities have residents do oral exercises before meals, don’t they? When we eat, we use not only the mouth but also the muscles of the neck and shoulders.
With this oral exercise routine, you can move everything in time with the children’s song “The Frog Chorus” and train comprehensively.
Within a single song, you can incorporate plenty of exercises—such as moving the body and changing the lyrics to the syllables pa-ta-ka-ra while singing.
Thanks to the humorous, lighthearted feel of “The Frog Chorus,” older adults may find it easier to participate in the exercises with a relaxed, pleasant mood.
Try adding this “Frog Chorus” routine—an inventive twist on your usual oral exercises—and give it a go.
10-second continuous Pa-Ta-Ka-La game
This is a variation where participants challenge themselves to see how quickly they can pronounce each character.
Because these characters require large mouth movements, focusing on speed still leads to solid oral motor training.
Have them try each character in order and pay attention to which ones are easier to pronounce—this is also recommended.
The 10-second time setting is a key point: ask them to decide whether to say it all in one breath or to take a breath in the middle.
If you carefully count and report the number of repetitions, it can motivate them to pronounce more, which may lead to even more physical activity.