There are many ways that you and your residents can acknowledge Remembrance Day.

Reading poems like “In Flanders Fields” is a good option to get you started. Click this link for some others: 

https://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/people-and-stories/get-involved/guide-to-commemorative-services/poems

Want to help your resident's learn more about Remembrance Day? Here are 10 Quick Facts: https://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/information-for/educators/quick-facts/remembrance-day‍

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Want to share some personal Remembrance Day stories with your residents? Here are some to choose from: https://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/those-who-served/diaries-letters-stories

Encourage your resident's to make a gorgeous poppy wreath for Remembrance Day that they can hang on their door or throughout your senior living community. It is very simple and can use up leftover egg cartons from your kitchen!

Supplies Needed:

• Paper plate
• Black sharpie
• Red/black paint
• Scissors
• Glue
• Egg carton

Instructions: 

1) Use a ruler and draw two lines horizontally across the middle of the plate.
2) Cut out both (in)sides.
3) Cut individual cups out of the egg carton and paint red.
4) Let dry then paint the middle black.
5) Paint the plate green. Glue on the poppy flowers.
6) Write "Remember" in the middle.

Poppies are a quintessential element of Remembrance Day, and are the traditional mark of the occasion. Why are poppies associated with Remembrance Day? The poppy is known as a symbol of remembrance and hope for a peaceful future. Poppies represent veterans that gave their lives in war and the loved ones they left behind. They show a sign of mourning and respect for fallen soldiers.

You can make poppies in a variety of ways to decorate resident's doors or other areas in your home. Here's what you need to make paper poppies with your residents: 

Supplies Needed: 

• construction paper (red, black and yellow)
• scissors
• glue
• black and yellow buttons (optional)

Instructions: 

1. Fold a piece of red construction paper in half, three times.
2. Cut a half heart shape out of the folded paper, making sure to cut at the folded edge.
3. Open up the hearts and arrange them into a poppy shape.
4. Glue together with a black and yellow center.

Use bubble wrap to create interesting and colorful prints on paper. A colourful, creative and inclusive way to create beautiful art with your residents!

Supplies Needed: 

• Bubble wrap
• Tempera or poster paint
• Paint brushes or roller brushes
• Scissors
• Paper

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Step 1: Cut a sheet of bubble wrap into approximately the same size as your paper.

Step 2: Cover your work area with a mat or with newspapers. Put the bubble wrap at the center, bubbly side-up.

Place different colors of tempera or poster paint on your palette. Water the paint down so that it is quite spreadable but not too runny.

Step 3: Paint the bubble wrap sheet using paint brushes or roller brushes. You can do stripes or paint random splotches.

Remember to clean your paint brush when changing colors or use a different brush for each color.

Step 4: Once you've filled the bubble wrap with colors, place your paper over it. Press firmly down with your hands to transfer the print from the bubble wrap to the paper.

Step 5: Carefully lift the paper from the bubble wrap sheet.

Step 6: Check out the colorful bubble wrap prints on the paper! Once dry, you can frame your bubble wrap printed paper.

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Throughout the year, indoor plants and vases filled with flowers can be a real mood lifter – adding color and sweet fragrance to our environment. During the spring and summer months, the availability of local fresh cut flowers and greens make flower arranging a very accessible hobby. In addition to beautifying our surroundings, flower arranging encourages improved manual dexterity, promotes sensory stimulation and can also reduce stress. It's an activity that can be enjoyed by people of all ages, abilities and skill levels. Floral arrangements can be created while standing, sitting at a table, seated in a wheelchair and even while propped up in bed. It’s also an activity that can span generations, with grandchildren or students working alongside a senior to create fabulous floral displays together. It promotes socialization, boosts mood and happiness,

Here are the meanings of some common flowers: 

• Chrysanthemums – joy and long life
• Daisies – new beginnings
• Delphinium – vivacity
• Gerbera Daisies – cheerfulness
• Heather – good luck
• Hyacinth – playfulness
• Iris – wisdom
• Snapdragons – graciousness
• Sunflowers – adoration
• Sweet Peas – appreciation

Tips for Creating Floral Arrangements

• Choose from a variety of vases. The containers don’t need to be expensive, and they don’t even need to be traditional. A colorful plastic water pitcher or a glass mason jar are examples of inexpensive and readily available options.
• Select flowers with sturdy stems, such as zinnias, marigolds and cosmos. These types of flowers are often easier to maneuver for people with limited dexterity and will better tolerate numerous adjustments.
• Before adding flowers and greens to a vase, spread everything out on a table so the choices are all visible, and use scissors to trim the stems to a variety of lengths.

Supplies

• Water bottle (the small 8 oz ones are the perfect size)
• Funnel (optional)
• 2 Balloons
• ~1/2 cup filler material (see below)
• Scissors

Step 1: Fill the Bottle

• Provide lots of options for sensory substances to select from (corn starch, flour, salt, rice, quinoa, gel, etc.)  
• Then fill the small bottle half way (a funnel is sometimes helpful).
  

Step 2: Blow Up Balloon

• Blow up the balloon
• One person pinches along the base of the neck (as to not let out the air too soon), while the other secures the balloon to the top of the water bottle.
  

Step 3: Fill The Balloon

• Pick up the bottle and flip it upside-down to fill the balloon.
• Then pinch the balloon’s neck and remove it from the rim of the bottle.
• Alternatively, instead of blowing up the balloon and using a water bottle, you could put the funnel directly into the balloon (this is a little difficult if you want a larger ball

Step 4: Let the Air Out

• Pinch the neck and let the air out very slowly.  If you do it too fast then the filling may fly out (especially if you are using a soft material like cornstarch or flour).
• Squeeze out all of the remaining air.  If there is still air inside when the balloon is tied, the second balloon will not go on correctly.
• If the ball is not your desired size, you can blow a little more air into the balloon and put it back on the bottle to dump more filler in or out.

Step 5: Secure The Balloon

• Run your fingers down the neck of the balloon to push down any filling.
• Then tie off the end of the balloon. At this point you can be finished if you don’t mind your stress ball looking clearly like a balloon, or use a second balloon to create a rounder/sleeker look and make a rupture less likely.
• Cut off the balloon’s tail, just above the knot.
• Cut the neck off balloon 2 (red in the photo below) and stretch out the opening.  Put balloon 1 inside (knot-side first), and wrap balloon 2 around balloon 1.
• Another method is to cut both ends off of a balloon, which you use to cover the tied-off end of the balloon and create a stripe down the middle. This will hide the knot and give the ball a round shape. Depending on the size of the ball, the stripe may have a tendency to slip off.

Finished Product

• Round out the ball with your hands and you are finished.
• Stress balls are great because they can be used in a number of ways to meet the specific needs of your residents.

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It’s easy to be kind and it’s easy to be a part of the kindness rock project. All you need to do is get your residents together, get those creative juices flowing and then head outside! Once your rocks are painted, go for a walk around your community and place rocks in places where they can be easily found. Once you leave the rock, don’t worry about who will find it or what happens to it. Your goal is to create a positive message for the finder and positive activities for your residents.

What You’ll Need:

• Smooth river rocks for painting. You can find your own in your yard or buy a bag from craft or home improvement stores.
• Acrylic Paint
• Paint Pens
• Paint Brushes
• Outdoor sealer or outdoor modge podge

Steps:

1. Cover the top of your rock with a base layer of paint. While that dries, you can add a base layer to some of your other rocks. You don’t need to paint the bottom of the rock.
2. Paint a design or add some inspiring words to your rocks using your paint pens. It’s easier to do precise work like writing words with the pens rather than paint brushes.
3. Allow the rocks to dry.
4. Add the hashtag #TheKindnessRockProject to the bottom of your rock so anyone who finds it can learn more about the project.
5. Once the rock is completely dry, seal it from the elements by adding a layer of sealant or outdoor modge podge.
6. Leave your rocks where others will find them.

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Looking for an idea that is creative and that's also very resident-centered? Try doing "Door Makeovers" with your residents.

This is a great activity that you can do as a 1:1 program or as a small group of residents in a hallway.

You could do this for a specific holiday like Christmas, conduct the activity as a welcome to a new resident or use it as a way to reminisce by decorating the door with meaningful pictures, colours or items; you could even try to make the door look like the door of their old home.

This is a great way to get to know your residents, get the creativity flowing and do a meaningful activity.

Supplies: 
Tape or sticky tack
Art supplies and decorations

A vision board is a collage of images, pictures and affirmations representing your dreams and desires. It's designed to help give you inspiration and motivation in various stages of your life. For older adults, it can help look for meaning at this stage in their lives, give them clarity, help them stay positive, encourage motivation and promote creativity.

What You'll Need: 
Old magazines
Scissors
Glue
Tape
Coloured pencils or markers

This is a great sensory activity for your residents that you can do with a variety of different flowers, herbs and spices.

Put various things in jars and open up the jars for residents to smell and have them guess what the scent is.

Simple, but can also bring up fond memories for your residents.