Word games are a fantastic way to stimulate the brain to keep it active for seniors and kids with special needs. Stimulating your brain by playing word games is a great way to reduce stress, learn and improve your vocabulary.
Seniors who are living with dementia can benefit by playing word games and activating their brain cells. Seniors can play word games with family members or caregivers. Caregivers can provide companionship to older adults by playing crossword puzzles or other fun word games described in this article.
Playing word games can be included as part of the dementia care plan for the adults with dementia or alzheimer. Playing word games can improve the mood and helps to bond with other people and improve social skills. Below are 3 brain games which you can play to jog your memory.
Scrabble is an excellent way to improve your vocabulary. It can be played by two or more players. The classic scrabble is played on a board. Traditionally Scrabble can be played on a board and letter tiles. The board is a 15X15 grid of cells and you have 100 letter tiles.
The letter tiles are marked with points. The points are based on the frequency of the letter used in the English language. The letters which are used frequently e.g vowels will have a lower score compared to letters which are used rarely.
Scrabble is an entertaining way to spend time with friends and family and have fun and entertain yourself. It will keep your mind stimulated and lowers the risk of mental illness like dementia.
Boggle is a great word card for improving your memory. The game is started by shaking the tray of dice which contains 16 cubes. Each side of the cube contains a letter.
After the shaking is stopped players will see letters laid out in four rows and four columns in the tray. The game is started by starting a timer. Once the timer is started each player will start searching for the words using the letters which are adjacent to each other. Adjacent letters are ones which are horizontal, vertical or diagonal to each other.
Once the timer is started each player will start searching for the words using the letters which are adjacent to each other. Adjacent letters are ones which are horizontal, vertical or diagonal to each other.
People with dementia can associate their memories based on the different words. So Boggle can be very exciting word games for the seniors to enjoy. Caregivers can play boggle to provide companionship and comfort to elderly people.
In general boggle helps people with memory problems as it helps people use the creative part of the brain. Boggle to associate words and experiences with available options provided by letters visible on the board.
A hangman is a great word game which requires only pen and paper. As it doesn’t involve any boards or blocks to purchase it can be part care plan with elderly with different types of dementia. It can be easily included in the senior schedule by the caregiver between the activities of daily living.
Hangman can be played by two or more players. One of the players thinks of the word and adds dashes for each letter of the word on the page. The guessing player can start with guessing the letters in the word.
When the player guesses the correct letter, the letter is written by the player who has thought the word in the correct position on the page. If the player guesses the letter incorrectly the other player penalizes the guessing player by drawing one element of the hangman.
The player can guess the word anytime if the word is correct the game is over if the guessed word is wrong the player is penalized by drawing one element of the hangman. Seniors can stimulate their brain by playing hangman while guessing the letters and words. They might also enjoy bonding with another senior with whom they are playing. This helps in reducing the symptoms of depression and having fun while playing the game. A professional caregiver can also play the game with the seniors. This will help their caregiver to bond with the seniors while playing the game and at the same time help them stimulate their brain.
The rhyming ball is another game which you can play with elderly people and it just requires a softball. It is a simple game which can be played by either 2 people or with a group of seniors. Firstly you need to find a comfortable seating for all the players.
One of the players can start the game by saying a word (e.g. mall) and passing the ball to the next senior playing the game. The senior receiving the ball should be able to say the rhyming word and after that pass the word to another player. If the senior playing the game is not able to remember a rhyming word, the player will be out of the game.
Rhyming ball helps in the senior memory care by enhancing the critical thinking skills and helps the seniors improve their vocabulary by relating words which sound similar.
Aging adults and kids with special needs, especially seniors who are diagnosed with dementia or kids with autism will need help from a professional caregiver to engage in brain stimulating activities.
Home care providers can provide assistance and facilitate the game for seniors or kids with autism so that they can enjoy the game without feeling pressured.
With CareReq you can Request personal care support for your loved ones to provide companionship. Caregiver can provide assistance in playing word games along with providing home care assistance and companionship for your loved ones.
