[For Seniors] Recreational Activities at Special Nursing Homes That Everyone Can Join
In special nursing homes for the elderly, recreational activities are held frequently.
Among residents with a wide range of physical conditions living together, some staff members may be wondering, “Is there a recreation activity that everyone can enjoy?”
In this article, we introduce recreational activities that people with varying physical conditions can enjoy.
Recreation is important not only for maintaining motor functions and cognitive abilities, but also for deepening interaction with others.
We cover a wide range—from brain-training activities to those that involve physical movement.
Please use this as a reference!
- [For Seniors] Simple Recreational Activities You Can Enjoy While Seated
- [For Seniors] Easy and fun seated activities you can do in your room
- For Seniors: Effective Recreation for Preventing Care Needs—Have Fun While Staying Healthy
- [For Seniors] Recommended Even for People with Dementia! Simple Recreational Activities
- [For Seniors] Easy to try. Fun, crowd-pleasing recreation
- Recommended recreational activities for older adults with dementia
- Hand games that liven things up for seniors—also great brain training
- [For Seniors] Recommended! Seasonal Recreational Activities
- [For Seniors] Fun and Engaging Recreational Activities in Nursing Homes
- Games and recreational activities enjoyable in a wheelchair
- Recreation Activities Effective for Long-Term Care Prevention for Seniors
- [October Health Topic] Introducing Recreational Activities for Seniors!
- [November Health Topic] Indoor Recreation Ideas for Older Adults
[For Seniors] Recreational Activities at Special Nursing Homes That Everyone Can Join (31–40)
combined paper cup
Here’s an introduction to a recreational activity called “Combining Paper Cups.” Prepare one rubber band with several strings tied to it.
Using the rubber band setup, pick up a paper cup and stack it onto another.
Adjust the rubber band by pulling or loosening the strings.
It’s a fun game that also provides gentle arm exercise, making it highly recommended.
Because it’s done with several people, it naturally encourages cooperation and interaction, which helps promote communication.
Talking with others also stimulates the brain, offering potential brain-training benefits.
The interaction itself becomes something to look forward to and can help you feel more lively and positive each day.
Arunashi quiz
As a whiteboard activity and brain training, we recommend the “Yes/No Quiz.” You list words under two columns, “Yes” and “No.” The words in the “Yes” column share a common trait, while the ones in the “No” column don’t fit that criterion.
Participants write out words and try to figure out what the common trait is.
You can either list many examples at once, or reveal one “Yes” and one “No” at a time so the hints gradually increase.
All you need is a whiteboard to play—no extra materials—so it’s an easy, accessible activity.
Bowling
I’m sure there are many people who used to enjoy bowling when they were younger.
Why not try a handmade version you can enjoy indoors? Use plastic bottles as pins, and a rubber ball you can pick up at a 100-yen shop for the bowling ball.
You can make the plastic bottles all the same size, or vary the sizes and turn it into a point-based game to make it more exciting.
It’s also a great idea to decorate the pins by wrapping them with colored construction paper.
Let everyone experience the satisfying feeling when the pins topple over.
Brain-training exercises to music
Let’s have fun exercising while singing.
This time, we’ll do a workout set to the children’s song “If You’re Happy and You Know It.” Besides clapping your hands, follow the lyrics to stomp your feet and tap your shoulders and cheeks.
Start in order—clapping, then stomping, and so on—and once you’re used to it, switch to random sequences.
Not knowing which move comes next increases the difficulty and is said to boost the brain-training effect.
While singing, opening and closing your hands (making fists and spreading your fingers) also makes it an even better workout.
Singing helps release stress and contributes to emotional stability.
Calculation Game
Let’s try a calculation game that makes mental arithmetic and math fun.
Many people find regular calculation difficult or feel they’re not good at it, so adding game and quiz elements can make it more engaging.
For example, turn it into a change-making game: you have 1,000 yen, and you buy an eggplant for 250 yen and a tomato for 180 yen—how much change do you get? Or make it a quiz about how much the coins you have on hand add up to.
Be sure to allow plenty of time to think.
[For Seniors] Recreational Activities at Special Nursing Homes That Everyone Can Join (41–50)
Word association game
In an association game, you start with one word and keep coming up with related words.
The creativity and thinking involved stimulate the brain and help keep it active.
When doing this as a recreational activity, it goes smoothly if you write on a whiteboard or paper.
Don’t worry if it takes time to come up with answers—enjoy the challenge at your own pace.
Association games can be played by a large group, with everyone sharing the words they associate, or enjoyed alone with focused thinking.
Doing it with a few people also creates opportunities to interact with others and promotes communication.
ball toss (traditional Japanese beanbag/ball-throwing game)
How about incorporating a beanbag toss that can be enjoyed while seated into your recreation activities? Although beanbag toss is often associated with school sports days, it’s an easy game to adapt because the difficulty changes depending on the size and placement of the basket and the throwing distance.
If you have a large group, you can split into teams and enjoy it as a competition.
You can make the basket smaller, place it higher, or even have a staff member move around while holding the basket to make it more exciting.
It’s also fun to count together how many beanbags went in at the end.