![[For Seniors] Fun Snake Craft Ideas](https://i.ytimg.com/vi_webp/cYZefRT2k1A/maxresdefault.webp)
Snakes, which are also one of the zodiac animals.
When the zodiac sign for the year is the snake, you often have chances to make snake-themed crafts during recreational activities.
This time, we’re sharing ideas for crafts that use recycled materials like milk cartons and empty containers, as well as materials you can easily find at 100-yen shops, such as felt and clay.
Seasonal crafts like New Year’s cards, zodiac decorations, and ema plaques let you enjoy both the fun of making them and the pleasure of displaying them.
Some involve fine motor work with your fingers, which can stimulate the brain and may help prevent dementia.
Have fun crafting while chatting together!
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[For Seniors] Fun Snake Craft Ideas (1–10)
Snake Catcher Game
They say snakes can open their mouths wide and eat prey larger than their own heads.
Here’s a game that makes use of that wide-mouthed snake feature.
Take a strip of construction paper, fold it in half with a slight offset, and cut slits.
Then fold it in half again, and if you push one end toward the center, it will move so the mouth opens.
Next, attach a tongue made from paper and draw a face to finish.
It will look like a snake flicking its tongue and opening and closing its mouth.
With a small tweak, this snake can be turned into something like the claw arm of a catcher game.
You can play just like a real crane game, lifting and carrying paper prizes.
It’s a great item to liven up recreational activities for older adults.
Snake and Kadomatsu
Let’s try folding the zodiac snake and the New Year’s kadomatsu decoration with origami.
The snake involves many simple steps, making it easy for older adults to work on.
Despite the simple process, it nicely expresses patterns and the snake’s body movement.
The kadomatsu, being a decoration suitable for New Year’s, includes some slightly more complex steps.
Older adults who enjoy origami can have fun making it.
For those who find it difficult, please have people around them offer support.
Once finished, you can mount the origami on a backing sheet to display it, or use it as parts for a wreath—both will look lovely.
Snake ema (votive plaque)
Ema are wooden plaques dedicated at shrines with wishes written on them, and they’re often offered during the first shrine visit of the New Year (Hatsumode).
Some shrines have zodiac ema on which you write your wish and pray.
Here, we introduce a cute zodiac ema you can make with construction paper.
It’s a lovely craft that lets older adults who may find it difficult to go for Hatsumode still feel the New Year’s atmosphere.
Using a single sheet of copier paper, you’ll create the ema and snake parts.
Use those parts as templates to sketch onto construction paper, and let’s get started.
Choose construction paper colors that match each part.
Paste each piece in place to complete the snake ema.
Invite older adults to write their New Year’s greetings or wishes on it.
Zodiac ornament for the Year of the Snake
Let’s try making lovely crafts by reusing scrap materials.
This time, we’re introducing a snake New Year’s decoration made from a toilet paper roll.
Wrap the toilet paper roll with origami paper in the color of your choice.
A key point is to make two slits along one rim of the roll.
Next, paste strips of origami paper onto a strip of construction paper.
If you include traditional Japanese patterned origami, it will give the piece a festive New Year’s feel.
Attach the strip components evenly around the toilet paper roll.
Finally, insert the snake’s face, made from construction paper, into the two slits you cut earlier to complete the craft.
This is a project that older adults can enjoy too, as they can appreciate the season while looking at something they made themselves.
Wall decoration
This is a snake craft that’s perfect for an animal zodiac wall decoration.
When it comes to snakes, many older adults may feel uneasy because of their appearance and movements.
For wall decorations, let’s add a touch of cuteness to the snake as we make it.
Even older adults whose sense of time or seasons may have faded could feel the seasons through creating zodiac-themed crafts.
Also, seeing a piece they made beautifully brighten up the room may help them feel more attached to the facility.
Making a snake wall decoration is something that can be done while seated, and it’s likely to spark conversation and broaden interactions with those around them.
Please enjoy creating a lovely wall decoration together with the older adults.
Torn-paper collage with newspapers
Recently, studies have emerged suggesting that art activities can be effective for people with dementia.
There are many types of art activities, but torn-paper collage (chigiri-e) is especially recommended for older adults.
Chigiri-e is a method of expression where paper or washi is torn by hand and pasted onto a backing sheet.
Although the steps are simple, it also involves complex tasks—for example, finely moving the fingers to tear and paste paper, distinguishing colors, and placing them according to an underdrawing.
How about invigorating the brain while creating lovely works and training the fingertips at the same time? Older adults are also likely to feel a sense of accomplishment from completing pieces they’ve worked hard on.
Wiggly snake made from empty containers
When you think of snakes, some of you might picture the way they slither along, right? Let’s make a craft that incorporates this movement.
We’ll thread rubber bands—representing the snake’s motion—through a lactic acid drink bottle.
Beforehand, make a hole in the center of the bottom of the bottle.
Thread about four rubber bands and link them together, then draw patterns to finish it off.
You can enjoy the snake’s movement by stretching it or moving the container up and down to make it wiggle.
As you play with it, older adults might share snake-related stories from their past.
It’s a craft that’s likely to spark lively conversation.