[For Seniors] Fun Small-Group Recreation
Introducing small-group recreational activities for seniors!
These are recommended for nursing homes and day service centers, where friends and peers can enjoy them together.
Large-group activities are lively and fun, but small groups have their own advantages.
With fewer participants, everyone has more chances to shine, and one-on-one communication becomes deeper.
This might even be a good opportunity to become friendly with people you don’t usually talk to.
There are many games to choose from, so feel free to use these ideas as a reference for planning activities at your facility!
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[For Seniors] Fun Small-Group Recreational Activities (21–30)
Trump
Playing cards are easy to use, don’t take up much space, and are perfect for killing time.
In this game, you use only the cards from 1 to 5, place them face down in a row, and flip any card you like.
If the total reaches 10, you get to take the cards; if it exceeds 10, you can’t take them and must turn them back face down.
The player who collects the most cards in the end wins.
Balloon Tennis
This is “balloon tennis,” where the ball is a balloon and the racket is a paper fan.
Players from the same team sit in a single row, and two teams face each other.
Place a basket or box at both ends of the rows as goals.
You score points by getting the balloon into your own goal.
If you’re near the opponent’s goal, you must defend by fanning or hitting the balloon back with your fan to block their score.
It’s fun with both small and large groups.
Shiritori Card Game
This is a game where you play shiritori using the cards in your hand.
The randomly dealt cards each have a kana from the Japanese gojūon (hiragana).
Place the leftover cards in a pile in the center and flip one to start.
You begin shiritori from that character.
For example, if the center card is “や” (ya), you think about whether you can continue shiritori with the cards you have.
If you have “ま” (ma), you can make the word “やま” (yama, mountain), so next you look for a word that starts with “ま.” Two-letter words are fine, as are three- or four-letter words, but you may only play the final word in the shiritori chain.
Ping-Pong Ball Bingo
Let’s make a “bingo” game using ping-pong balls and an empty egg carton.
You can apparently get commercial egg packs from restaurants or other food businesses.
Ping-pong balls are sold at 100-yen shops.
Cut the egg carton so it’s a 5-by-5 grid.
Then toss ping-pong balls into the cups; if you get a line of balls vertically, horizontally, or diagonally, you win.
For a higher difficulty, you can play by making the ball bounce once in front before landing it in the carton.
What prefecture is this? Game
It’s a game where you feature a prefecture’s local specialties and tourist attractions, and everyone guesses which prefecture it is.
The example uses a video for the questions, but you could also draw illustrations in a sketchbook and flip through them as you give clues.
You could set a rule for how many hints people can use, or impose a time limit for answering.
Once the answer is revealed, it’s fun to have everyone share stories related to that prefecture!
late hand in rock-paper-scissors
Have you ever played “after-the-fact rock-paper-scissors”? A leader throws rock, paper, or scissors on the count of “Jan-ken-pon” so everyone can see it.
Then, after the cue “Ready, go!”, everyone plays their move after seeing the leader’s hand.
The prompts are: “make it a tie,” “lose,” or “win.” As a warm-up, making it a tie is easy because you just mimic the leader.
It gets harder if you make the calls rhythmical and speed up the tempo.
It’s perfect for a brain workout!
Rolling Curling Game
Curling is a sport where you slide round stones with handles, called “stones,” across the ice.
A few years ago, curling even became a boom in Japan.
Here’s an idea for a casual game that’s like real curling.
Use a paper fan to roll toilet paper tubes and compete for points.
If you paint the toilet paper tubes or decorate them with origami paper to make them colorful, you can create a game that looks great, too.
It’s easy to make, so it seems like something you could enjoy together with older adults from the crafting stage.
Since it can be played while seated at a table, many seniors are likely to be able to participate.
