Elderly Activities http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk Download our free activities sheets: View our wide range of activities for the elderly, including sensory therapy activities, arts and crafts, indoor and outdoor games, dementia activities and more. Tue, 23 Apr 2013 15:24:56 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=463 Conversation Boxes http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/entertainment-and-parties-activities/conversation-boxes http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/entertainment-and-parties-activities/conversation-boxes#comments Tue, 23 Apr 2013 15:24:02 +0000 admin http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/?p=401 These are a great tool for reminiscing, socialising and encouraging communication. We picked themes and then filled a shoe box with items associated with each theme. The themes included toys, baking, gardening, sports, seaside, seasons and music. We put this into our activities programme and the results were extremely positive. All residents began chatting, even [...]

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]]> These are a great tool for reminiscing, socialising and encouraging communication. We picked themes and then filled a shoe box with items associated with each theme.

The themes included toys, baking, gardening, sports, seaside, seasons and music. We put this into our activities programme and the results were extremely positive. All residents began chatting, even those who are normally a little shy in larger groups. It created a fun atmosphere and they soon came up with their own ideas to add to the boxes. When we opened up the toy box, one lady remarked that old fashioned spinning tops used to be worked with a string and another remembered that skipping was a group activity girls played. Among the contents of the seasons box were pine cones and fake holly.

Equipment needed

  • Shoe boxes
  • Items associated with your themes

Instructions

  1. Pick several themes.
  2. Collect items associated with the themes.
  3. Put the items for each theme in a shoebox and label it.
  4. Get your groups together to look through each of the boxes and talk about their contents.

Thank you to Signature Loxley Park, Sheffield for this activity idea.

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]]> http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/entertainment-and-parties-activities/conversation-boxes/feed 0 Eggshell Mosaic http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/art-and-craft-activities/eggshell-mosaic http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/art-and-craft-activities/eggshell-mosaic#comments Thu, 21 Jun 2012 09:49:22 +0000 admin http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/?p=288 A smashing ways to turn eggshells into mosaics! Equipment needed Egg shells Pencil Card PVA glue Paintbrush Coloured food dye Beakers of water Instructions Broken eggshells are perfect for mosaics! Fill some beakers with water and add two capfuls of food dye to each beaker. Wash the eggshells and break them into small pieces. Add [...]

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]]> A smashing ways to turn eggshells into mosaics!

Equipment needed

  • Egg shells
  • Pencil
  • Card
  • PVA glue
  • Paintbrush
  • Coloured food dye
  • Beakers of water

Instructions

  1. Broken eggshells are perfect for mosaics!
  2. Fill some beakers with water and add two capfuls of food dye to each beaker. Wash the eggshells and break them into small pieces. Add the eggshells to the beakers and leave them to soak in the food dye.
  3. After they have been soaking for a while, take them out and leave them to dry on some kitchen towel. They’ll look like pieces of cracked tile!
  4. To make the mosaic, draw the outline of your design onto a piece of card.
  5. Paste some PVA glue onto a small section, keeping to the lines.
  6. Lay pieces of the egg shell onto the glue. It can be quite fiddly so only work on small sections at one time, so that you don’t get the rest of the picture messy.
  7. The pieces don’t need to fit together perfectly. As long as you stay within the outlines, you’ll get a fantastic mosaic effect.
  8. Fill each section with different coloured pieces of shell. Gradually the picture will start to take shape.

Thank you to NAPA for this activity idea.

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]]> http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/art-and-craft-activities/eggshell-mosaic/feed 3 Cup Stacking Game http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/indoor-games-activities/cup-stacking-game http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/indoor-games-activities/cup-stacking-game#comments Thu, 21 Jun 2012 09:44:42 +0000 admin http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/?p=284 Cup stacking is a great way to improve dexterity and hand eye co-ordination and makes a great individual or group challenge! The aim of the game is to make pyramids out of cups as quickly and neatly as you can while being timed. Equipment needed 9 paper/plastic cups in 3 piles of 3 Stopwatch Flat [...]

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]]> Cup stacking is a great way to improve dexterity and hand eye co-ordination and makes a great individual or group challenge! The aim of the game is to make pyramids out of cups as quickly and neatly as you can while being timed.

Equipment needed

  • 9 paper/plastic cups in 3 piles of 3
  • Stopwatch
  • Flat surface

Instructions

  1. Ask participating residents to put their hands face down on the table in front of their 3 piles.
  2. When you start the clock, they have to stack up each pile into a pyramid using both hands.
  3. Once they have stacked all 3 pyramids they must go back to where they started, dismantle each pyramid and put the cups back into 3 piles using both hands.
  4. When they have finished they must lace their hands back on the table in front of their cups and you need to stop the clock.
    • Who managed to stack up and take down their cups the quickest?
    • Whose stacks were the neatest?
    • Who lost all their cups?
  5. Tip: Practise with 1 pile and build up to 3 to increase the challenge!

Thank you to NAPA and Corinna Gray for this activity idea.

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]]> http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/indoor-games-activities/cup-stacking-game/feed 3 The Big Knit (charity event) http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/art-and-craft-activities/the-big-knit-charity-event http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/art-and-craft-activities/the-big-knit-charity-event#comments Fri, 02 Sep 2011 11:05:11 +0000 admin http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/?p=279 For residents in Northern Ireland there is an annual charity event which involves knitting small hats for smoothies and some of the money paid for each smoothie with a hat goes to age concern. Equipment needed Lots of wool Size 4 knitting needles Wool needle Scissors Instructions Cast on 28 stitches Do 2 rows plain [...]

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]]> For residents in Northern Ireland there is an annual charity event which involves knitting small hats for smoothies and some of the money paid for each smoothie with a hat goes to age concern.

Equipment needed

  • Lots of wool
  • Size 4 knitting needles
  • Wool needle
  • Scissors

Instructions

  1. Cast on 28 stitches
  2. Do 2 rows plain knit
  3. 12 rows, knit one row, pearl one row (stocking stitch) cast every second stitch (should be about 4 rows to cast of completely) then sew up

This activity was posted by: Slemish House Private Nusring Home, Ballymena

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]]> http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/art-and-craft-activities/the-big-knit-charity-event/feed 1 Supersize Crossword http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/indoor-games-activities/supersize-crossword http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/indoor-games-activities/supersize-crossword#comments Fri, 02 Sep 2011 11:02:38 +0000 admin http://www.elderlyactivities.co.uk/?p=275 Using a photocopier enlarge a crossword out of a magazine or newspaper, general knowledge is best. Completing the crossword can be done in a large group with a flip chart or pinned to a wall, or you could give each person a copy of the enlarged crossword. Equipment needed Newspaper or magazine Pen Photocopier and [...]

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]]> Using a photocopier enlarge a crossword out of a magazine or newspaper, general knowledge is best. Completing the crossword can be done in a large group with a flip chart or pinned to a wall, or you could give each person a copy of the enlarged crossword.

Equipment needed

  • Newspaper or magazine
  • Pen
  • Photocopier and some paper

Instructions

  1. Read out the questions to the room and fill in the crossword with the answers given.
  2. Prizes can be given for correct answers.

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