[For Seniors] Fun and Engaging Recreational Activities in Nursing Homes

Popcorn Game

Ready in no time! 😆 Popcorn you can bounce and pop with your feet 🍿 #SeniorActivities #DementiaPrevention #DayService #Easy #Recreation #shorts

Even if you know that moving your body is good for your health, you might still feel reluctant to get active.

So here’s a fun popcorn game that lets you exercise your feet while enjoying yourself.

Sit in a chair and place paper plates on both knees.

Fill the plates with lots of crumpled-up paper balls.

Think of the paper plates as frying pans and the crumpled paper as popcorn for the game.

When someone says, “Ready, start!”, flutter your legs and march your feet to shake the paper popcorn out of the plates.

Watching the crumpled paper fall from the plates looks just like popcorn popping in a heated frying pan.

Because it’s an exercise you can do like a game, it seems like older adults can enjoy participating too.

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Nakajima Junko

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magic hand grab

Let's have fun with a grabber and paper cups! It's brain activation time!

Here’s a “magic hand grab” activity that you can arrange in many different ways.

In this version, you use a grabber tool to collect paper cups lined up on a table.

Because it engages both the head and the hands, it can help stimulate the brain.

Another key point is that you can enjoy this activity in connection with the seasons.

For example, in spring you could draw cherry blossoms on the cups, and in summer you could draw seashells.

Doing so can make it easier to regain a sense of time.

There seem to be many possible variations.

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yamamoto

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mayonnaise

#shorts What's inside the box!?

Even if seasonings differ in taste and texture depending on the type, the containers they come in are often similar.

This is a high-difficulty challenge: can you identify mayonnaise—one of those seasonings—using only the feel of its container? The main difference is the shape of the nozzle, so someone who can recognize that by touch might arrive at the right answer.

The premise of “seasoning” is already a big hint, and adding clues like flavor and color would likely help more people figure it out.

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kappamaki

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Melody change rec

[Singing Recreation] I Tried Singing “Donguri Korokoro” to the Tune of “Aa, Jinsei ni Namida Ari”

Let’s try making parody versions using songs that older adults are familiar with, such as nursery rhymes and TV drama theme songs.

Singing the lyrics of a different song to a familiar melody can really liven things up.

The key point here is to choose songs that older adults know well.

If you pick songs that aren’t widely known, their motivation to sing may drop, so please be careful.

With parodies, even if you make some mistakes in the lyrics or go off pitch a little, it can turn into laughter.

It also helps stabilize emotions and relieve stress, so we hope you’ll enjoy singing.

Consciously singing different lyrics to a familiar tune stimulates the brain and supports activation.

Please give it a try.

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Nakajima Junko

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Recommended for recreation! Hōrun Bingo

Let’s get started together! New Sports – Hōrun Bingo Edition – [Official Niimi City]

Let me introduce “Hōrun Bingo,” a bingo game with elements of sports that gets you moving.

Draw lines on the floor to make a grid where each row has five squares.

You can use sturdy rope or masking tape, so it’s a game you can enjoy anywhere.

Throw a ball into the grid; if you line up three or more in a row, you score points, and you get higher points for four or five in a row.

Decide how many rounds to play and compete on total points.

It’s usually played standing, but you can change the throwing position and try it while seated in a chair too.

It’s an easy bingo game to customize with your own rules.

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utatane

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A quiz to find the odd-one-out kanji

[Brain Training for Seniors] Find the character '少' on a whiteboard♪ A game to spot '少' among many '小'!

It’s a game where you look for the odd-one-out kanji whose shape is slightly different from the others that look the same on the board.

Tracing the lined-up characters with your eyes and spotting what feels off helps stimulate the brain.

The more characters there are, the longer it takes to find the odd one out, so it’s recommended to gradually increase the number to really get your brain working.

It could also be fun to aim for missed odd ones by using patterns like kanji with many strokes or subtle differences that are easy to overlook.

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kappamaki

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Have fun catching the ball with your body

[Senior Recreation] No touching others! Ball-based recreation [Preventive Care]

A recommended recreation activity for seniors using a rubber ball.

Rubber balls don’t slip easily, so they’re easier to catch.

This time, work in pairs and toss the ball back and forth, catching it by clamping it between your hands.

It seems like it will train your reaction speed more than catching with your palms.

Switching to one-handed catches or knee catches also adds excitement, so they’re recommended.

Receiving the ball in various ways can help stimulate both mind and body.

A key point is not to overinflate the ball so it’s easier to grip.

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Nanaka

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