Activity professionals in senior living communities have become some of the most resourceful people during this time of Covid. Having to adapt to changing regulations while continuing to provide quality programming has been nothing short of a miracle!
While these may not all be new to you, perhaps one of these activities will spark a new creative idea for your planning!
- Community Paint & Sip Class – have all participants paint the same picture and then display these together. Preparation of materials is key! (Paint, brushes, water cups, paper towels, plastic aprons, hand wipes for clean up and don’t forget the example of work that they will paint). If a community is large, consider have each hallway paint a different picture.
- Hawaiian Paper Quilting – have each participant set up with prepared cut out paper quilt patterns in traditional Hawaiian patterns. Contrast colors such as yellow on blue to showcase the beautiful patterns. Search online about Hawaiian quilt patterns to find some floral patterns to use. Each participant will glue their quilt square together. To complete the project, use each of the completed “Hawaiian Quilt Squares” and assembled into a large wall exhibit to make the community “quilt”. This is a great way to symbolize a community coming together during a challenging time. Consider having a Hawaiian Day with flower leis and a Hawaiian Theme Cart.
- Literary Circle (Book Reading Club) – During this time of no gathering. Try reading a story or find a book series. If reading a book, find one that is easy to pick up and put down. Laura Ingalls has her Little House book series. Her daughter, Rose Wilder also wrote an easy to read and understand series of books. Take a short survey and find out what your audience would like to hear. Another twist is to gather the resident comments about the book and type these up to be handed out to the participants. It helps to draw the audience together.
- In-Room Gardening – Try a gardening cart where you bring the project to the person. African Violets are quite forgiving and very easy to grow from a cutting. You simply cut off one of the leaves (by the stem of the plant) and then place it into a small pot of soil. Not all will take but most will grow a new plant. Also try forcing bulbs in the winter. This does not even require soil to accomplish this! Another thought is to take a cart with “hospital plants” that need some attention. Keep in mind that it is best not to share plants between residents during this time. The resident could spritz the plant with water, pull off dead leaves, repot the plant and more.
- Virtual Museum Visits – Research which museums offer this and then arrange to have your residents visit museums virtually around the world!
- Virtual Concerts – Another great resource during this time with isolation. Look online and contact places around the world to find out what is offered!
- Community Craft Project – Every resident completes a craft that comes together for a much larger display. Example would be everyone makes a long-stemmed flower that is placed all together in a large vase. How about making paper flags from every country to be strung together for a future party? The crafting possibilities are endless!
- Words of Wisdom – Have scenarios of real people that need advice from those that have life experience. Perhaps it is a young mother asking for advice on how raise her children. Another person may need advice on the best budgeting tips. Write out one question that is handed out to each participant that will give their own answer. Post all the answers and hand these out to the residents too.
- Google Earth – Allow your resident to travel ANY WHERE in the world! Take them via Google Earth to walk the streets of Vienna, or along the banks of the Nile River. Travel back in time and show them what it looks like now in the town that they grew up in as a child. Oh, the places that they can go can be amazing!
- Creative Continuous Writing – This is such a fun project! Print out a large photograph of an interesting scene. Show the same photo to each resident and ask them to add one line to the existing story.
Example: The photo is of a young mother hanging clothes on the clothesline while her baby girl is crawling near the laundry basket missing one sock. The first person may say “The mother is hanging her wet laundry on the line”; the second person “the baby pulled off her sock”; third person “the puppy found the sock in the grass and ran away with it” the fourth person “The mother couldn’t understand how the baby’s sock ended up on the other side of the yard”. It is good to note that you should read all the sentences up to that point when asking a resident to add to the story. These sentences are then all typed together and handed out to all the participants. Again, this is an activity that brings the participants together in a time of separation.
Use these ideas to spark your own creation. We all want the same outcomes of keeping our residents active and engaged. It is everyone’s hope that we can all return to our group activities soon. A big shout out to all the activity professionals that bring the fun and spread the joy to our residents.
Let us know how these ideas work for you by joining us on the ACTIVITY HELPER Facebook group.
