Wishing that older adults can spend each day in good health!
In this article, we’ll introduce senior activities that we truly hope you’ll try—ones that can energize you from the bottom of your heart.
We’ve gathered a wide range of options, from brain-training types to activities that get you moving.
There are ideas you can quietly work on alone, as well as recreational activities everyone can do together.
Read through to the end, think it over carefully, and choose the ones that are perfect for the seniors who will be participating!
- [For Seniors] Simple Recreational Activities You Can Enjoy While Seated
- [For Seniors] Enjoyable Indoor Activities! Recreations and Games That Engage the Mind and Body
- [For Seniors] Today’s Recommended Activity: Fun and Engaging
- [For Seniors] Have Fun! A Collection of Group Game Recreation Ideas
- [For Seniors] Have Fun with Recreation! Origami Ideas
- For Seniors: Effective Recreation for Preventing Care Needs—Have Fun While Staying Healthy
- Liven up the Respect-for-the-Aged gathering: A roundup of recreational activities everyone can enjoy.
- [For Seniors] Fun and Engaging Brain-Training Recreation
- [November Health Topic] Indoor Recreation Ideas for Older Adults
- [For Seniors] Recommended Handmade Activities! Simple Ideas
- [For Seniors] What's in the Box? A Collection of Exciting Content Ideas
- Hand games that liven things up for seniors—also great brain training
- [For Seniors] Brain-training puzzle game you can enjoy solo! Perfect pastime for killing time
[For Seniors] Enjoy Every Day! A Roundup of Senior Recreation Ideas (1–10)
Shopping and Cooking Rec
The shopping we casually do in our daily lives involves various kinds of thinking, such as the ability to imagine the finished dish and choose what’s needed, as well as the ability to calculate costs.
How about turning such shopping into a quiz? First, present a theme dish and a list of ingredient options, and have participants choose what they need.
Next, provide the prices for each ingredient and the amount of money they have, and have them calculate the change.
It’s the kind of problem that seems to test how much shopping experience someone has accumulated.
karuta (traditional Japanese playing cards)
Karuta, starting with Hyakunin Isshu, is a classic New Year’s game.
It tests your ability to scan the whole field and your quick reflexes as you search for the card that matches the one being read.
Since some people may have memorized or played Hyakunin Isshu, preparing a different karuta set could make the game fairer and more enjoyable.
Even if you spot the right card, you won’t score unless you take it faster than your opponent, so as the game progresses, your concentration and reaction speed are likely to sharpen.
Karaoke activity
Karaoke is a recreation that can be enjoyed not only by the people singing but also by those listening, isn’t it? When you sing nostalgic songs from your youth, everyone there can get excited together.
The act of recalling what songs you used to sing and what the lyrics were like also seems like good brain training.
Plus, if you focus on projecting your voice, you can expect benefits like clearer pronunciation and even facial muscle exercise.
Isn’t it the best kind of recreation—one that lifts everyone’s spirits, brings the group together, and contributes to health?
Number Place (Sudoku)
A classic number-based puzzle game—you often see it in magazines, too.
The rule is to fill in numbers up to 9 without duplication in the thickly outlined regions as well as in each row and column.
The numbers given at the start serve as hints, and the difficulty changes depending on how those hints are placed.
It’s a puzzle that trains your thinking skills as you consider which numbers fit by looking at the interplay of rows, columns, and regions.
Since you carefully work out the patterns that fit, it likely helps improve your concentration as well.
Counting companions
It’s a quiz where you look at an image containing two types of illustrations and count the specified one.
Since you search for the designated items within the whole image, it helps train your focus on the illustrations.
Performing two tasks at once—paying attention to the illustrations while counting them—may also serve as brain training.
The unit in which the items are counted is another key point; if a special unit is used, it can add the task of recalling that unit as well.
Gymnastics that involve different movements on the left and right sides
This is an exercise where you perform different movements with your left and right hands.
It helps loosen your muscles by moving your body, and it also stimulates your brain by switching movements—making it a classic form of brain training.
When the movement changes just as you’re getting used to it, many people may feel confused.
Organizing that confusion is what leads to brain training, so gradually make the movements more complex.
If the feeling of not understanding continues, you might give up on the exercise, so it’s important to get used to it little by little with slow, gentle movements.
origami
Origami is an activity where you fold paper into shapes, and it’s something people of all ages can enjoy.
You can try making something you remember folding before, or have fun challenging yourself with new designs while looking at instructions.
Since you do the tasks of creasing and unfolding with your hands, it’s perfect as finger exercise.
Depending on the theme, the number of creases increases and the work becomes more intricate, so it calls for more delicate finger movements as well as concentration.
If you try models made of separate parts, it can also develop your ability to imagine how pieces fit together and improve your sense of balance.