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Topics of Conversation with People with Dementia
Talk about pictures in a magazine
Talk about a pet you had when you were a child
Talk about a favorite sports figure
Did you play a sport in school?
Reminisce about a favorite summer
Play "Have you ever?"
Look at family photos
Remember great inventions
Reminisce about the first day of school
Say "Tell me more" when they talk about a memory
Remember famous people
Finish nursery rhymes
Finish Bible quotes
Ask simple trivia questions
Reminisce about your first kiss
Finish famous sayings
Read the daily paper out aloud
Name the presidents
Play "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?"
Your favorite food
Your favorite recipe
Your favorite color (now name things that are "red")
Name the United States (point to them on a map or drawing)
Did you go Trick or Treating on Halloween? (Favorite costume or trick)
Tell us about a trip you once took, where, with whom?
Did you ever meet a celebrity?
How many colors can we name?
How many women's (men's) names can we name?
Pick an animal, talk about it
What's your favorite cookie?
How many words can you think of that begin with "A," ... ?
Did you ever make a snowman?
Name Famous Movie Stars
Sit, hold their hand and lend a good listening ear
Bring postcards of places you have visited and talk about them
Ask for help in planning your garden and look through a seed catalogue together
Watch television together and talk about the programs you've seen
Watch a soap opera and talk about the characters
Have grandchildren bring or send along artwork or school papers
Read a short story or several poems each time you visit
Tell jokes to one another - bring along a joke book if either of you need help
Learn a new word each time you visit together
Share memories of how the community has changed
Decide what you both would do if you had $1 million
Travel Hour
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Activities for People with Dementia
Things to Do with People with Dementia
Clip coupons from the newspaper or magazine
Make potpourri bags, which can be put in the person’s lingerie drawer and/or given as gifts. **
Gather together an assortment of hats and ask each person to select one. The group can then be encouraged to make up stories to go along with the hats. The funnier and more dramatic the hats, the more fun this activity can be.**
My Mother loves to sort coins by denomination. I often pour the coins back into the container and present them later and the process starts over. It is one of the few things I have found that she enjoys and can do on her own without assistance. ***
Sort colored poker chips
Rent or buy a videotape of an old favorite movie or musical to bring along. A great source is Critics Choice Videos.
Count tickets
Rake leaves
Use the carpet sweeper
Read reminiscent articles aloud
Bake cookies
Look up names in the phone book
Ask a friend who has a baby or young child to visit
Listen to Polka music
Plant seeds (indoors or outdoors)
Toss a ball
Color pictures
Make homemade lemonade
Wipe of the table
Weed the flower bed
Make a simple recipe together
Have a spelling bee
Read from Reader's Digest
Fold clothes/towels
Have a neighbor or friend bring a calm pet to visit
Cut pictures out of greeting cards
Wash silverware
Bake homemade bread
Sort beads by shape or color
Sing Christmas carols
Put silverware away
Make a Valentine collage
Play favorite songs and sing together
Go for a ride
Make a cherry pie
Dye Easter eggs
Take a walk
String Cheerios to hang outside for the birds
Make a fresh fruit salad
Sweep the patio
Color paper shamrocks green
Have afternoon tea
Play Pictionary
Paint a sheet
Cut out paper dolls
Identify states and capitols
Make a family tree
Color a picture of our flag
Cook hot dogs outside
Grow magic rocks
Water house plants
Play horseshoes
Dance
Sing favorite hymns
Make homemade ice cream
Force bulbs for winter blooming
Make Christmas cards
Sort playing cards by their color (or suit)
Write a letter to a family member
Dress in team colors on a football Saturday or Sunday
Pop popcorn
Give a manicure
Make paper butterflies
Plant a tree
Make a May basket
Make homemade applesauce
Mold with PlayDoh
Look at pictures in National Geographic magazine
Put a simple puzzle together
Sand a piece of wood
Put on hand lotion with a pleasant scent
Decorate paper place mats
Arrange fresh flowers
Straighten the underwear drawer
Make peanut butter sandwiches
Wipe off patio furniture
Cut up used paper for scratch paper or note pads
Take care of the fish tank
Trace and cut out leaves
Paint with string
Cut out pictures from magazines
Put coins in a jar
Sew sewing cards
Put bird feed out for the birds
Clean out a pumpkin
Roll yarn into a ball
Make a birthday cake
Paint pine cones
Plant a plant in a pot
Xerox a drawing of a "Smiley" face and color them
Plant potato "eyes" in pots
Identify cartoon characters from the funny pages (ie., Sad Sack, Popeye or Little Lulu)
Hang clothes on a clothes line
Put playing cards in the order of their value
Have a local school choir come in and sing for the group
Call a local dance studio and ask them to put on a demonstration for you
Call your local manicure shop and barber and ask them if they would volunteer some time to do nails and give haircuts
Go on a tour (zoo, museum, etc.
Call the local nursery school and ask to have the kids come for a visit
Assemble an easy puzzle
Assemble pieces of plastic PVC pipe connections
Play balloon volley ball (sitting in a circle)
Shake "maracas" (pill bottles filled with popcorn or beans)
Wave scarves to music*
Pom poms to "cheer" *
Chair dance/exercise classes *
Help walk the dog
Go thru junk mail
Make a card to send to a friend (perhaps one in the daycare center, another attendee)
Shell some peas or beans
Wash vegetables
Cut out pictures of celebrities a magazine
Sort photos for an album? Identify people in old photos while you label the back.
Polish shoes or boots
Give her a manicure
Bring some fresh flowers and ask for help cutting the stems and arranging them (then leave them in her room)
Bring styrofoam balls to paint for Xmas ornaments--then while still wet, roll in glitter
Glue ribbons, lace, or appliques to fabric place mats
Listen to messages from family or friends recorded on a cassette tape
Bring things related to the season or upcoming holiday to talk about
Have an indoor picnic
Enjoy a cup of a favorite beverage that you've brought in a thermos
Bring a musical instrument to play
Sing, hum, or whistle together
Play charades
Wind yarn for a knitting project
Make simple gifts for the grandchildren
Bring along your sewing basket, button box, or tool kit to organize together
Build a bird feeder or house to hang outside a window
Bring along a bird book and look up birds you see outside
Pamper your friend or relative with makeup, perfume or aftershave
Create a terrarium
Play cards or board games together - lifelong favorites and new ones
Do crossword puzzles together
Go "window shopping" in fancy catalogues filled with things you'd never buy
Bring a favorite recipe book to explore or plan a meal together
Bring along a treat made from a recipe your friend or relative adult said sounded good
Give your friend or relative a gentle massage with lotion to keep skin soft
Bring things that smell good - spices, perfumes, or roses
Bring different textured fabrics to touch - silk, wool, denim, corduroy, or velvet
Do exercises together to keep in shape
Write poetry or a short story together
Make a "joy box" by filling a decorated shoebox with fun and favorite items
Keep a journal of interesting discussions you have during your visits
Start a newsletter to send to family and friends
Bring along an old friend for a special reunion
Take photos of your friend of family member to send to family or friends - ask for theirs, too
Take a walk together outside as weather permits - sit on the porch or patio
Make a friendly wager on a sports event
Dance, or tap your shoes, to a favorite dance music
Use some small rhythm instruments or a kazoo to make your own music
Play tic-tac-toe or hangman
Share memories of how the community has changed
Toss cards into a hat, pitch pennies, shoot marbles, play jacks
Design and make your own Christmas or other holiday cards to send
Give a hug as you arrive and each time you say "good-bye"
Do a crossword puzzle together
Go thru a children's magazine like Highlights
Play the cardgame "SKIP-BO" with two or more players.
PUZZLES with extra large pieces (My Dad (from Charleen Miller) will do them for hours on end. We get them for him at thrift shops. That's the ONLY thing we've run across that he enjoys and does for hours a day. He just completed a 300-extra large piece puzzle. He always feels accomplished which. helps self-worth.)
* We would like to thank Dawn Malek for these ideas. Dawn is co-owner of C.C. Plus, "dance for fun and fitness." Dawn can be reached at mdmalek@home.com.
**Suggestions from Katherine Beck-Ei, BSSW, MSW, Older Adult/Memory Care Specialist, Glacier Hills Retirement Community, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
***Jeff Rieck
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