[For Seniors] Activities to Enjoy March: Games, Crafts, Music, and Snack Recreation
March, when it gradually gets warmer, is a season that lifts our spirits as we feel the signs of spring.
Why not incorporate seasonal activities into recreational programs to enjoy with older adults? We’ve gathered ideas full of seasonal flair—from games and crafts themed around spring icons like cherry blossoms, butterflies, and bamboo shoots, to snack-time activities that spark the appetite with sweet aromas, and even music sessions that make you want to move.
Many can be done while seated or prepared with familiar, easy-to-get materials, so be sure to try them in your daily recreation programs.
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[For Seniors] Activities to Enjoy March: Games, Crafts, Music, and Snack Recreation (1–10)
Onigiri Kororin Game
How about trying the sure-to-be-exciting “Rolling Rice Ball Game”? Attach yarn to a paper plate and make rice balls and obstacles.
Place the rice balls you made on the paper plate and start the game! Reel in the yarn, and if you can bring the rice ball all the way to you without dropping it, you succeed.
There are obstacles made from plastic wrap or construction paper along the way, so be careful not to let it fall! The winner is decided both by speed and by how many rice balls you can transport without dropping them.
It’s a recreation activity that gets not only the older adults pulling the string excited, but also everyone watching around them.
Please feel free to use this as a reference!
Bamboo Shoot Digging Game
Bamboo shoots are one of the tastes of spring.
Some older adults may even have gone out to dig for them.
Here’s a bamboo shoot digging game that’s perfect for spring.
All you need are two things: newspaper and paper cups! Roll up the newspaper to make a stick, then attach a paper cup to one end.
Place more paper cups on the table to represent bamboo shoots, and you’re ready to go.
Drawing pictures or adding illustrations to the cups will make it feel even more authentic.
If you cover the “bamboo shoots” with the stick’s cup and lift, they come up surprisingly easily.
Set rules like “the first to collect five wins” to make it exciting.
It’s also a fun way to exercise the arms, elbows, and shoulders, so it’s recommended for senior facilities as well.
Hina Doll Rearrangement Game
The Hina doll rearrangement game is such a wonderful recreation activity.
Making Hina dolls out of paper cups and working together to rearrange them sounds like a lot of fun.
It’s a great way to reminisce while engaging your mind—two birds with one stone.
It allows older adults to participate comfortably, so everyone can enjoy it in a friendly, relaxed atmosphere.
Thinking about the correct order for placing the dolls and using your hands also helps stimulate the brain.
Enjoy a delightful time while feeling the arrival of spring.
[For Seniors] Enjoying March: Games, Crafts, Music, and Snack Activities (11–20)
Strawberry picking
The strawberry-picking recreation activity looks like something seniors can enjoy too.
The key is to make strawberries out of paper cups and hang them from a hanger.
Grabbing the strawberries with a reacher/grabber can also help improve grip strength.
Skillfully moving the hanger and neatly picking up the strawberries are perfect for boosting dexterity and concentration.
If everyone joins in and has fun together, smiles are guaranteed.
The appeal is that you can move your body while enjoying a new game.
Why not give it a try with everyone?
rapeseed blossomsNEW!
Bring the cheerful yellow of rapeseed blossoms into your calendar design, and every day will start with a smile! A distinctive feature of rapeseed flowers is that they have many small blossoms.
In this idea, you’ll use 7.5 cm origami paper to make each flower and then use seven of them to create a single rapeseed stem.
First, fold the four corners of the origami toward the center.
Then flip the paper over and fold it the same way.
Flip it over again, make slits along the cross-shaped lines, and fold the four outer corners and the eight corners created by the slits into small triangles.
Finally, fold the corners gathered in the center slightly outward to complete one flower! Make six more just like it, then combine them with a stem and leaves to finish.
Let’s make flowers bloom on a withered tree.
When the warm spring arrives, the cherry blossoms come into full bloom, but in March many regions are still just beginning to bloom, aren’t they? How about enjoying an early cherry blossom viewing as a recreation activity at a senior facility? This game is called “Let’s Make Flowers Bloom on the Withered Tree.” As the name suggests, you toss cherry blossom flowers onto objects that resemble tree branches to make them look fully bloomed! If the flowers land on paper plates placed at the tips of the branches—with points written on them—you earn those points.
This game can be enjoyed while seated, making it appealing because everyone can participate together.
Please enjoy a full bloom of cherry blossoms with this game!
Hinamatsuri Party
When enjoying recreation in a large group, such as at a day service, how about hosting a Hinamatsuri (Girls’ Day) party? It would be exciting for everyone to dress up as the Emperor and Empress dolls, the three court ladies, and the five musicians, and recreate a realistic tiered display together.
Dancing to songs related to Hinamatsuri or holding a quiz competition also sounds fun.
Preparing snacks like dango for everyone to share is a great idea, too.
Here’s hoping your Hinamatsuri party is lots of fun and becomes a cherished memory!
