[For Seniors] Recommended Events for February: Fun Ideas to Fill Everyone with Smiles
February still brings lingering cold, but let’s hold events and get through it together with smiles and fun! When it comes to events that liven up February, the classics are Setsubun and Valentine’s Day.
There’s also Cat Day, Mount Fuji Day, and Kabuki Day.
Recreational activities that let you enjoy seasonal traditions with seniors create special moments that warm both heart and body.
From bean-throwing and heart-themed games to exercises full of seasonal flavor, we’ll introduce ideas packed with February-specific touches.
Move your mind and body, and enjoy a time filled with smiles.
- Recreation Ideas for Seniors: Perfect for Setsubun and Bean-Throwing Activities
- For Seniors: Fun Activities in February — Celebrate Setsubun, Valentine’s Day, and Snow
- [For Seniors] Fun February Crafts: Ideas Inspired by Setsubun, Valentine’s Day, and Other Events
- [For Day Service Centers] February Craft Ideas: Decorations for Setsubun, Valentine’s Day, and the Feeling of Spring
- [For seniors] A handmade calendar you’ll want to make in February
- [For Seniors] Fun Recreational Activities Without Equipment
- [For Seniors] Enjoyable Brain Training! Valentine’s Trivia Quiz & Fun Facts
- [For Seniors] Recommended February Snack Activities: Easy, Enjoyable Sweet Treat Ideas
- [For Seniors] Simple Recreational Activities You Can Enjoy While Seated
- [Day Service] Setsubun decorations that bring smiles. Ideas for enjoying them with a variety of materials.
- [For Seniors] Liven Up Setsubun Crafts! Handmade Ideas Using a Variety of Materials
- For Seniors: Wall Decorations to Brighten Up February — Festive Ideas for Setsubun, Valentine’s Day, Plum Blossoms, and More
- [For Seniors] Hinamatsuri Recreation: Fun Ideas for Games, Crafts, and Snack Making
[For Seniors] Recommended Events for February: Fun Ideas That Bring Out Everyone’s Smiles (61–70)
Setsubun crafts using a milk carton and origami
This is a small container decorated with a cute ogre (oni) mascot made by combining a milk carton and origami.
Since it’s a box inspired by Setsubun, putting roasted soybeans inside would enhance the atmosphere.
Cut off the bottom of the milk carton, wrap it with origami and glue it on to make the base, then create the mascot and attach it.
If you assemble an oni from cut parts, it’s quick and easy; if you attach an oni made from a single sheet of origami, you can enjoy a more three-dimensional look.
It’s important to balance the color of the base with the color of the oni you attach.
Making cat tail hooks
February 22 has been designated Cat Day by the Cat Day Executive Committee, and various cat-related campaigns are held, especially among cat lovers.
For those looking for a February craft activity, we recommend making a cat tail hook.
After gluing felt to cardboard, align it with a template featuring a cat illustration and cut it out.
Attach a ribbon around the neck, and glue on a tail made from bent wire.
Finally, stick a magnet to the back using double-sided tape, and it’s done.
It’s a fun item you can use to hang things on the hook or display as decor.
Setsubun Newspaper Bean-Throwing Game
February, when the cold reaches its peak.
How about trying a newspaper bean-toss game that lets you feel the season? This is a recreation activity for Setsubun.
First, hand out newspapers, tear them up, and roll the pieces into balls to make “beans.” The beans can be any size—big or small.
This process is also good exercise for the fingers.
Next, set up a box with an ogre (oni) face on it and aim your throws at it.
You can make it a points-based game by competing to see who gets the most beans into the box, which is sure to liven things up.
It also sounds fun to work together to fill the box with beans!
Setsubun: Oni (ogre) and Otafuku (good-fortune woman)
Let’s make origami featuring the essential oni (ogre) motif for Setsubun and the otafuku (good-luck woman) motif to emphasize a celebratory mood.
For the oni motif, use triangular creases as guides and shape it while keeping the horns in mind.
For the otafuku, make good use of the white reverse side, rounding it off while aiming for a cute look.
By choosing different colors of origami paper and drawing various facial expressions, you can create your own unique Setsubun decorations.
It’s also recommended to finish it off gorgeously by mounting them on a base like a lace paper doily.
Oni Underpants Exercise
When it comes to characters essential to Setsubun, oni (demons) are a must—and the go-to song that depicts them is “Oni no Pantsu.” Let’s do exercises to this song and get a feel for what Setsubun oni look like by moving our bodies.
A key point is not only the oni’s horns but also how to express their “pants.” By incorporating clapping and finger shapes, it effectively trains the fingertips as well.
Rather than limiting movements to in front of the body, it’s recommended to include steps like marching to engage the whole body thoroughly.
Rock-Paper-Scissors Oni Island
Speaking of motifs related to Setsubun, it’s ogres; and when it comes to stories featuring ogres, it’s Momotaro—so this is a game that depicts a battle between Momotaro and the ogres.
It’s a team-versus-team game divided into the Peach (Momotaro) Team and the Ogre Team, and you play using rock-paper-scissors and dice.
Teams face off with rock-paper-scissors; the winning team rolls a die, and the losing team’s characters have their health reduced by the number rolled.
If you reduce all of the opposing characters’ health to zero, you win.
The losing team then draws a card and performs the specified exercise.
Because each character has its own health, players also practice calculation skills as they decide how to allocate damage, and even when you lose, you still get to move your body.
Spot the difference
A spot-the-difference game that lets you clear your mind by focusing on the picture in front of you! February is packed with events that excite people all across Japan, like Setsubun and Valentine’s Day.
To capture the seasonal mood, let’s have fun with spot-the-difference puzzles themed around February.
Think small, enjoyable challenges that stimulate the brain without being too hard—like a slightly different spelling of “Valentine,” hearts of different sizes, or a different number of horns on an oni.
Try adjusting the difficulty by gradually shortening the thinking time, and enjoy it at your own pace.
