Activity Ideas

Looking for activity ideas? Here are some good places to start. Have suggestions for more? Let us know.

Activity Links

Activity Connection - www.activityconnection.com - This is a subscription site that has lots of activity suggestions and a bulletin board where you can post questions and answers. There is a preview of the site for those who are trying to decide to join or not.

Re-creative Resources - www.recreativeresources.com - This website has documents, a job bank, training and seminar listings as well as resources for activity professionals.

Activity Program Idea Bank

At the fall PAPA board meeting the members took a few minutes to brainstorm programming ideas they had found successful. Here are some of those ideas:

• Dressing in PJs and reading "Night Before Christmas" or other bedtime stories
• Cart to travel daily between 1-3 pm. Each day is different: book cart, tea/coffee cart, music, manicures/back massages, activity cart
• One-to-One Musical program that plays cello for bedfast or hospice (local school music department)
• Pen pal program with local school; teacher comes once a week and brings four different students with letters
• Word games made from longer words
• Local vo-tech school does manicures
• Grandparent program
• Stories told by residents are put into a book for placement in the local library; can be read to children
• Day of camping - complete with sleeping bags, tent all placed in designated area; sing-along; campfire and s'more making
• Valentines Day - bags placed outside resident's doors for cards and notes
• Photos used at Memorial services then given to families
• New Orleans Day - play computer games
• Jeopardy - developed a big board and gave prize to the big winner
• Getting to Know You - monthly program with guest resident to tell about himself or herself
• Going to the Dogs - Dog races similar to horse race game.
• Scrabble - each resident gets 10 letters to make as many possible words as they can
• Educational entertainment - speakers who discuss health issues
• Western Day - panning for gold (stones sprayed gold placed in sand)
• Lost in the Hay - plastic animals in chest of hay
• Arts Festival - competition in various categories; photos taken and sent in for the competition

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