[For Seniors] Exciting Team-Based Recreational Activities
In this article, we introduce super exciting team-based recreational activities for older adults!
They might bring back nostalgic memories of your school sports days.
As the games progress, things can really heat up and turn into a thrilling competition!
Some activities can be done while seated or started with simple tools, so feel free to use these as a reference.
Making it a team competition might also be a chance to get friendly with people you don’t usually talk to.
We hope everyone has a great time together!
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[For Seniors] Exciting Team Competition Recreations (21–30)
Balloon Relay
We’re going to do a relay using balloons and uchiwa fans! Of course, there’s no need to run—it’s a game you can enjoy while seated.
Place a balloon on your fan and pass it along from person to person; the team that relays the balloon to the last player the fastest wins.
It may look easy to just pass the balloon in order, but if you don’t move slowly, it’ll quickly fly off in another direction! If it drops, let’s help each other out and do our best to get it to the goal!
rod soccer
This “stick soccer” is a kind of soccer that people with limited mobility in their legs can play! Instead of using your feet to send the ball to the goal, each player uses a stick.
You also don’t need a large soccer field.
The game is played seated, with each team lined up in a single row along a narrow, partitioned court.
There’s a goal at each end of the court, and at the kickoff signal, players use their sticks to defend and attack, working the ball toward the goal to take a shot.
Even though it’s not played with your feet, it gets pretty intense!
[For Seniors] Exciting Team Competition Recreational Activities (31–40)
Paper core feed
Games that everyone cooperates on really get people interacting and create a lively atmosphere.
This time, we’d like to introduce “Paper Core Relay,” a game with simple movements that anyone can enjoy.
Prepare a long table, and have both teams sit along the sides.
Stretch a strip of plastic ribbon (suzuran tape) from end to end, and have the first and last players hold each end of the tape.
At the start signal, the first player begins threading paper cores onto the tape one after another.
The team that sends even one more paper core than the opposing team within the time limit wins.
It’s also fun to plan strategies together!
Easy! Beach Ball Recreation
Beach balls are light, easy to throw, and designed with safety in mind.
This time, we’ll introduce some recreational activities using a beach ball.
First, have older adults sit on chairs facing each other.
Place the beach ball on their outstretched legs and pass it to the next person in a relay style.
You could make it a team competition and prepare prizes for the winners to boost excitement.
Another lively option is beach ball soccer target toss: players kick the ball, and whoever gets it into the container first wins.
Since it involves a lot of leg movement, it helps strengthen older adults’ muscles and is also ideal for rehabilitation.
Towel relay with newspaper
Here are two games that use newspapers and are great for getting a large group excited.
The first is the Newspaper Towel Relay.
Have older adults sit in a circle, and use a long, rolled-up newspaper stick to pass a towel to the person next to them.
The person who receives it last should throw their hands up and shout to signal the goal.
The second is the Towel Catch Game.
The person holding the towel throws it toward a teammate, and the teammate catches it with a newspaper stick.
The thrower needs to control the strength of their throw, and the receiver needs to imagine where it will fly in order to catch it well.
Recreational activities that get lots of people involved can spark conversations between those who don’t usually interact.
Enjoy these activities that help expand your circle.
Boom with a rolled-up newspaper!
All you need is newspaper—just that! First, make a box out of newspaper for each team.
Then place untouched sheets of newspaper in front of each team member.
On “Ready, go!”, tear and crumple the newspaper in front of you and toss it with a big thud into your team’s newspaper box.
The team with the most inside wins.
It’s not just about tearing and throwing; you’ll also think about how many pieces to tear the paper into to fit the most in the box, so it’s a brain game too! It’s super simple, but it’s guaranteed to get everyone excited.
Bean Relay
A bean relay using beans! Instead of running with a bean as a baton, it’s a relay-style game where you use chopsticks to pick up beans from one plate and transfer them to the next.
Once you’ve moved all the beans from your plate, you pass it on to the next person.
Since you use hard, uncooked beans rather than soft ones, they’re tricky to grab.
Chasing and catching those slippery beans will definitely get everyone excited!