Swimming in the lake, horseback riding, and learning to roller skate are just some of the things that come to mind when you think about summer camp. However, even if your nursing home patients will not be allowed to engage in any of those activities, they will be able to participate in activities that embody the essence of summer camp: learning new things, meeting new people, and having a good time.
Taking on New Challenges
Host a different activity every Monday in which you teach them something new, such as learning sign language, tiling with grout, or making origami. In addition, look over your volunteers' applications to discover more about their favorite interests, with the goal of developing a fun, new activity that your volunteer may lead in the future. A Cake Decorating Class, for example, may be appropriate for your volunteer who enjoys baking; a Line Dancing Class might be appropriate for your volunteer who likes to dance; and a Tech Class might be appropriate for your volunteer who is in his or her teenage years.
Taking Off in New Directions
Organise a pleasant trip for the residents on Tuesdays at a time convenient for them. Make contact with the historical department of your county if you want to organise picturesque rides around historical monuments in your city. If you have seniors who enjoy dining out, you might want to explore booking a Lunch Bunch activity to a well-known local establishment. If paid trips are not a possibility, plan free visits to nearby museums or simply to the mall to people-watch if that is what you want.
Creativity is a virtue.
Allowing folks to express their creativity via entertaining art projects on Wednesdays is a great idea. As an example, supply simple craft kits and art supplies for enjoyable summer hobbies such as creating sand art or watercolor artwork for children to utilize. You should supply blank canvases and paint to your residents if they enjoy creating their own artwork. This will allow them to express themselves creatively and produce unique masterpieces.
Making Use of Their Hands
Set up a variety of tactile activities for people to participate in on Thursdays, such as building, assembling, and crafting. For example, residents may be given unassembled model kits to build and paint, or they could be given colorful yarn and knitting needles to make scarves with. If coming up with new craft projects each week sounds like a big task, enlist the help of your volunteers to explore the Internet for inspiration, or just purchase a summer craft kit pack that has a variety of activities that may be used each week.
Getting to Know New People
For the final step, schedule a mixer in your Activity Room every Friday afternoon to bring residents together and allow them the opportunity to meet and greet one another. Play music and invite residents to join in on a sing-along or to play instruments as part of the activity. You may also have them pass around a Toss Talk ball that contains interesting ice breaker questions for them to respond to as a group. Additionally, to encourage your residents to come out of their rooms and interact with one another, create a unique happy hour menu that includes delectable snacks and refreshing drinks.
In relation to Not Just Bingo:
Not Just Bingo is an online resource for activity experts working in nursing homes and assisted living institutions who are looking for creative, engaging senior activity ideas. It is their mission to assist activity experts around the country in developing meaningful and engaging activities for their residents that go "beyond bingo" since 2009. They have been giving entertaining activity ideas online since 2009 and continue to do so. In addition to helping activity directors enhance the living experiences of their residents, Not Just Bingo believes that a senior's quality of life can really increase when they move into a nursing facility.
