We all want a reason to laugh and smile. Try the Super Smile Activity.
Here's how it goes:
Invite this first brave soul to share one or more statements about themselves which others in the group may (or may not) know.
Encourage the rest of your group to listen carefully, and when someone hears a statement that they have in common, they are invited to link elbows with the first volunteer.
Next, this second person will share something about themselves to the larger group, and the process repeats itself with a third person linking arms with the second person because they share something in common, and so on.
Continue play until every member of the group has formed a common ‘link’ with another person.
Note, the last person to link to the very long chain of connections will be invited to share one or more statements about themselves which the very first volunteer will necessarily share in common, enabling these two people to link.
One large connected circle has now been formed.
Instructions:
This is one of those classic river-crossing conundrums which typically has only one answer. Yet, as with so many group initiatives, the value is found in the journey and not so much the destination.
Oh, and don’t think too hard about the circumstances – it’s hypothetical, and is designed simply to stimulate critical thinking. That is to say, don’t ask why, it’s not real.
In your set-up, either ask your group to imagine five primary elements – a woman, a rowboat, a chicken, a fox and a bag of corn – or provide some form of prop or toy to represent each.
Explain that the woman has a dilemma – she needs to get the fox, the chicken and the bag of corn across to the other side of a river in as few moves as possible. She has a rowboat, but it can only carry her and one other item at a time.
Her dilemma is clear – she cannot leave the fox and the chicken alone together (the fox will eat the chicken,) and she cannot leave the chicken with the corn (the chicken will eat the corn.)
So, challenge your group(s) to identify a solution that gets all five elements safely to the other side of the river. How does the woman do it?
Allow ample time for your groups to discuss their ideas and perform lots of experiments.
Okay, here’s the solution:
To begin, the woman and the chicken cross the river together. The fox and corn are safe together.
Once on the other side, the woman leaves the chicken and returns to the fox and corn. She takes the fox across the river, and since she can’t leave the fox and chicken together, she brings the chicken back with her (that’s the trick which many groups do not think of.)
She cannot leave the chicken with the corn, so she leaves the chicken and rows the corn across the river and leaves it with the fox.
Finally, she returns to pick up the chicken and rows across the river one last time. Voila!
Instructions:
Mindful breathing is an opportunity to help you and your group relax and focus on the physical sensations of your breath and body.
As Pema Chodron says, “Meditation practice isn’t about trying to throw ourselves away and become something better. It’s about befriending who we are already.”
The key to this activity is meant to create a safe space for your group to practice mindfulness. You can include meditative music or aromatherapy during these sessions.
Instructions:
An awesome game to help new and old residents get to know each other more and connect over shared experiences.
Have a list of questions that answer the question "Have You Ever" and get residents to hold up their hands to indicate they've done something. If you want to get friendly competition going, you could score people on a whiteboard.
Here are some examples of questions you could use:
This is a great activity to help practice gratitude, while also acknowledging the hard things
Ask your residents each day, week, month or year, what has been their rose (something you’re grateful for or something that made you happy), thorn (the hardest part of the past time frame) and bud (something that you’re looking forward to now).
Encourage discussion when resident's reply as it helps them connect and get to know one another.
Do you have a large population of single residents in your community? Why not help them get to know each other as friends or more with 5-minute Singles Speed Dating!
Set up tables with two chairs on either side. One side doesn't move and the other side does once a bell is rung at the 5-minute mark. You can support them to have conversations with prompts on their tables or to pose a question at the beginning of each round. Here are some examples:
This is a great activity that allows residents to reflect, reminisce and test their memories on pop culture.
The simple way to play this quiz is to ask your seniors group to name the partner of the person I am about to call out. Begin by saying "Abbott and....." and then ask them to fill in the blanks.
A great way to get your residents' creative juices flowing and is guaranteed to make everyone laugh.
Each person in the circle is only allowed to say one sentence and must continue the story. The first person begins the story by saying “Once upon a time” and completes the sentence. The next person continues the story (has to make sense). The process continues until it reaches the end of the circle and then rotates back around and the final person who began must conclude the story in one sentence.
You can add themes to this activity: Halloween, Christmas, etc.
Spring cleaning can feel overwhelming for some and exciting and satisfying to others. Why not support both types of people by having a party to help look forward to spring cleaning and decluttering.
At the beginning of Spring, you can host an auction party to help your residents get rid of unwanted possessions and clean out their homes.
While cleaning, residents can pull together items they want to auction and pool them in a large space in the home. From there, residents and staff can help price goods, decide if the auction will be live or silent, and decide on who will play the auctioneer.
Participants could include residents, staff and loved ones and you could make it fun by doing a themed auction with costumes, setting up a photo booth, and more!
