[For Seniors] Test Your Memory!? Ideas for Whiteboard Games
Recreation using a whiteboard is a staple in care settings.
It’s easy to do anytime, anywhere, costs almost nothing, and the appeal is that a wide variety of games can be enjoyed by both small and large groups.
In this article, I’d like to introduce memory games that use a whiteboard.
There are plenty of games that test memory—such as how many words you can recall or what can be inferred from a hint.
They’re perfect for brain training too, so be sure to give them a try.
- Fun Brain Training! Memory Games for Seniors
- [For Seniors] Brain Training with a Whiteboard! Fill-in-the-Blank Exercises & Quizzes
- [For Seniors] Brain-Training Recreation Using a Whiteboard
- [For Seniors] Play Long and Have Fun! A Whiteboard Activity with Brain-Training Elements
- [For Seniors] Fun Brain Training! Lively Whiteboard Activities
- [For Seniors] Brain Training! Recall Quiz Collection!
- Recommended for brain training: a proverb quiz using a whiteboard
- [Brain Training] Lively Word Quiz for Seniors
- [For Seniors] Ideal for Dementia Prevention: Easy-to-Practice Reminiscence Therapy Topics
- [For Seniors] Fun and Engaging Brain-Training Recreation
- [For Seniors] Lively Wordplay Game: Fun Recreation for Elderly Care
- [For Seniors] Brain Training Recommended for Dementia Prevention
- [For Seniors] Great for Brain Training! Question Card Ideas
[For Seniors] Test Your Memory!? Whiteboard Game Ideas (1–10)
A game to create kanji
There are many brain-training activities you can easily do on a whiteboard, and this one is a game where you add two strokes to the character 「口」 to make kanji.
Apparently there are as many as 27, including characters like '田', '右', and '古', but when you’re put on the spot it’s hard to think of them, isn’t it? Still, it’s fun to share ideas together and rediscover—“Oh right, there’s that kanji too.” You could also make it a game where the person who comes up with the most within a set time wins, which would likely make it even more exciting.
Animal Memory Rec
People aged 75 and over are now required to take a Cognitive Function Test to renew their driver’s license.
Even those who don’t have much trouble remembering things can feel a bit nervous when they know they’re going to be tested.
How about livening things up with a memory-training game similar to that test? Here’s a simple way to run it: first, show 8–10 animal illustrations—or just the words if you don’t have pictures—have the participant memorize them, then ask them to write them on a whiteboard.
Adjust the difficulty by changing the number of animals or the memorization time.
If you have a whiteboard, it should be fun even outdoors.
Kanji Guessing Game
Let’s play a kanji guessing game that’s fun even with a big group! You write a kanji on a whiteboard one stroke at a time—but doing it in the normal order would be boring! So mix up the stroke order and write it randomly instead.
That makes the game harder and more exciting.
Even simple, familiar kanji become tricky to recognize when you change the stroke order.
Take it slow, add one stroke at a time, and have fun!
[For Seniors] Test Your Memory!? Whiteboard Game Ideas (11–20)
What is a ____ that starts with ____?
Here’s a brain-training quiz that you can enjoy with a large group as long as you have a whiteboard.
For example, let’s say you make a quiz like, “What are some ___ that start with ___?” First, you put a letter in the first blank.
Then you put a category in the second blank.
For instance, if you put “i” in the first blank and “foods” in the second, the quiz becomes: “What foods start with ‘i’?” Have everyone answer in turn.
If you say, “Let’s try to come up with 10,” everyone will think hard.
That’s what makes it a brain workout.
Song guessing quiz
Many senior facilities use karaoke as a recreational activity.
Singing loudly can help relieve stress and is said to be good for health.
However, it requires sound equipment, and in some places you can’t make loud noise.
In such cases, this “Guess the Song” quiz comes in handy.
Write words that appear in the lyrics—like ‘sleep,’ ‘octopus,’ ‘top,’ ‘play,’ and ‘New Year’—on a whiteboard, and have people guess the song’s title.
By the way, the song is ‘Oshōgatsu’ (New Year).
It’s a recommended activity when you have a group of people who love singing.
Fill-in crossword
This is a game where you complete a crossword puzzle that already has most of its letters filled in by filling the remaining blanks.
Thinking about which letters work both across and down, and then placing them one after another, helps stimulate your brain.
The more blanks there are to fill, the higher the difficulty, so encourage players to gradually try puzzles with multiple blank patterns.
Sometimes the letters alone won’t lead you to the answer, so in those cases, it’s recommended to reveal hints about the meanings of the words that go across and down.
Picture shiritori
This is a classic game everyone knows—Shiritori—with a drawing twist.
Players guess what’s drawn on the whiteboard and then connect it to the next drawing that starts with the last sound of the previous word.
After the game has progressed to some extent, pause and check whether the shiritori chain was valid.
The process of thinking of words, moving your hands, and drawing them helps stimulate the brain.
If someone lacks confidence in their drawing, offering hints is recommended—by getting creative with how hints are given, you can help develop their thinking skills.