Recreation Activities to Liven Up January Events for Seniors
January is full of traditional, time-honored events.
It’s wonderful that the spirit of treasuring the start of a new year has been passed down for so long.
In this article, we introduce recreational activities to liven up January events for older adults! Many care facilities, such as day service centers, likely have annual events they hold every year.
If you’re thinking, “I’d like to add a new game this year,” you’ll find plenty of recreation ideas here to use as a reference.
Some are easy to try, so you can enjoy them at home as well.
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[For Seniors] Recreational Activities to Liven Up January Events (41–50)
ball toss (traditional Japanese beanbag/ball-throwing game)
Tamaire, the ball-toss game often seen at school sports festivals.
Some older adults may have taken part in sports days and played tamaire in the past.
Here’s a perfect tamaire activity for a warm April day to get the body moving.
Because it’s a familiar game, it can help older adults refresh their mood and relieve stress.
Have participants sit in chairs and place a basket in the center.
Prepare red, white, and other colored balls, and have the participants throw them into the basket.
The person who gets the most balls in the basket wins.
Throwing with the arms and shoulders also provides upper-body exercise.
Fukuwarai (a traditional Japanese “lucky laugh” face-making game)
When it comes to January activities the whole family can enjoy, “Fukuwarai” is a classic, isn’t it? I think it’s twice as fun if everyone makes their own instead of buying one! Whether the pieces end up in the right places or the face turns out a bit goofy, it’s fun either way—that’s the charm of Fukuwarai.
It might not be very familiar to many older adults, but there’s a song called “Fukuwarai” by the musician Yu Takahashi.
It’s about smiles making the world a happier place, and just listening to it can make you feel really happy.
If you get the chance, please give it a listen!
Listen to rakugo
Kick off the year with the first laughs of the season and make it a fun one! Some older adults may be fans of rakugo, the traditional performing art that dates back to the Edo period.
There are surely people who used to spend New Year’s by going to a yose theater to listen to rakugo.
Since January marks the start of the year, we all want to spend it smiling and having fun.
You could invite a rakugo performer for everyone to enjoy together, or create an opportunity to learn and perform rakugo yourselves.
Three rakugo stories recommended for New Year are “Yabu-iri,” “Katsugiya,” and “Hatsu Tenjin.” Be sure to give them a listen!
Mnemonics! January Events Quiz
Even on ordinary days that we pass without much thought, various shops and industries may have established some kind of anniversary.
This is a quiz that encourages you to think about why those anniversaries were set on those particular dates and to deepen your understanding of them.
In addition to dates that are important to companies, some are chosen based on puns made from the numbers in the date, so pay attention to how the numbers sound.
After getting familiar with the wordplay-style quizzes, it could be fun to think of other dates that might work as puns as well.
Snowball fight
Snowball fights are a common pastime in snowy regions.
How about trying one this January? Let’s enjoy an indoor “snowball fight” using paper snowballs made by crumpling white paper.
In senior facilities, it could be fun to make it a team competition, like dodgeball, where players try to hit each other.
For those living in areas with little snowfall, a snowball fight might feel fresh and exciting.
You could also spice it up by arranging a game where players aim their “snowballs” at prizes like snacks, treating them as the enemy—sure to get everyone energized!
mochi pounding
Seeing the mallet and mortar for mochi pounding gets seniors excited, too.
As the saying goes, “Old skills die hard,” the body remembers what it learned long ago no matter how old we get.
Try linking it with fun New Year’s memories and enjoy it together.
Raise your voices with calls like “Sore!” and “Yoisho!” to liven up the recreation.
Even those who usually find it a hassle to move because of back pain might suddenly forget all about it!
snack making
You want seniors to enjoy snacks made from safe, reassuring ingredients, right? Here are recipes for lucky New Year’s sweets that are also great for January events.
How about zenzai (sweet red bean soup) using azuki beans to ward off evil, or kintsuba made with sweet potatoes to boost good fortune with money? Both may take a little effort, but they don’t require any special techniques, so anyone can make them.
For an easy shortcut, use store-bought chunky anko for the zenzai! Shiratamako (glutinous rice flour) has less stickiness than mochi, making it a good choice for seniors’ snacks.
