Category Archives: Activities for NJ Seniors

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Planning a Trip? Don’t Forget About Your Health

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New Jersey Senior Care News

If you’re planning on traveling out of the country, getting your plane tickets and packing your suitcase may not be enough.Travel medicine experts strongly recommend that you don’t leave home without also taking the proper health precautions. Continue reading →

NJ Home Care News: Keep The Brain Active

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New Jersey Senior Care Activities

Lifting weights can make you stronger.  Now, there is every reason to believe that giving your brain a workout can also help seniors block distractions and improve concentration.

As we age, our brains change.  Older adults experience changes in how they perceive information their eyes and ears gather from the environment. This is called sensory integration – a tendency to combine information from different senses – which older adults experience it more readily than younger ones. Sensory integration can make it harder to block out distracting sights and sounds when you are trying to focus on a task.

A recent study was designed to determine if eight hours of brain exercise can improve healthy older adults’ (65 – 75 years old) ability to filter out unwanted sights and sounds.  Using MRI technology, visualizing blood flow and brain activity, researchers found that a growing number of activities, from crossword puzzles to Sudoku, reduced these subjects’ susceptibility to distracting stimuli and improved concentration. The training involved either a structured one-on-one mental work-out program or a group brain exercise program.

How can you improve your concentration and block out distractions?  Just as you exercise your body, make time to exercise your brain. The recommendation is to set aside 15 – 20 minutes every day to complete a crossword puzzle or other brain game. ~

By Frank Esposito, of Expert Home Care, which provides professional, dependable home health care and companion care for NJ elderly, helping them with their daily living activities since 1984. Call toll free at 1-800-848-2336 to have your questions answered or if you are in need help for a loved one. Free NJ Home Care Assessment (a $375 value!) when you mention this post.

SENIOR ORAL HISTORIES: Don’t Wait Too Long

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New Jersey Senior Tips

Oral history is the systematic collection of living people’s testimony about their own experiences. Historians recognize that the everyday memories of everyday people, not just the rich and famous, have historical importance.

Your stories and the stories of the people around you are unique, valuable treasures for your family and your community. You and your family can preserve unwritten family history by collecting and preserving these stories.

Many people become concerned about “doing it right,” yet getting a voice on tape or on video is the most important thing.  If you are looking to record the memories of someone else, here are some tips to consider:

  1. In general, have a list of topics in mind, not specific questions, word-for-word, and not a specific sequence.
  2. Begin by asking a question that will prompt a long answer and “get the subject going.”
  3. Ask easy questions first, such as brief biographical queries. Only later, once a rapport has been established, should you add personal or emotionally demanding questions
  4. Don’t be afraid of allowing there to be some silence while the subject thinks about answering the question.
  5. Be a good listener, using body language such as looking at the interviewee, nodding, and smiling to encourage and give the message, “I am interested.”
  6. If necessary, use verbal encouragement such as “This is wonderful information!” or “How interesting!” Be careful, however, not to pepper the interview with verbal encouragement such as “uh-huh,” said at the same time that the interviewee is speaking.
  7. Ask for specific examples if the interviewee makes a general statement and you need to know more. Or you might say, “I don’t understand. Could you explain that in more detail?”
  8. Rephrase and re-ask an important question several times to get the full amount of information the interviewee knows.
  9. Ask open-ended questions that will elicit more than one word answers.
  10. Be flexible. Watch for and pick up on promising topics introduced by the interviewee, even if the topics are not on your interview guide sheet.

The most important thing to remember?  Don’t procrastinate.  You don’t want to wait too long. ~

Post by: Frank Esposito, VP Expert Home Care.  New Jersey’s Expert Home Care provides professional, dependable home health care and companion care for NJ elderly, helping them with their daily living activities since 1984. Please call us toll free at 800-848-2336 when you have home care related questions or need assistance for a loved one. Get a Free Home Care Assessment (a $375 value!) when you mention this post.

Fun Activities for New Jersey Grandparents and Grandchildren

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Maintaining close relationships with young grandchildren or great-grandchildren is important for the emotional health and well being of seniors. Here are some things to consider whether you live close or far away:

When you live nearby

Play dress-up. Go through your closet and set aside unused clothes for pretend play – the more vintage and outlandish, the better. Add shoes, handbags and costume jewelry, too. Let your grandchild choose clothes for both of you to wear.

Do a puzzle. Pick out a jigsaw puzzle together at the store, and when it’s done, use puzzle glue to create a keepsake the child can hang on his or her bedroom wall.

Make portraits of each other. Use crayons or paints to tap into your inner artists. Display your grandchild’s artwork at your house, and let him or her take home your masterpiece.

Cook or bake together. Even very young children can follow simple directions and help mix batter or shape dough. Keep track of what you make together in a blank journal. This is a great way to pass on heirloom family recipes.

Share a special hobby. Whether you knit, collect coins, go fishing or play cards, involve your grandchild in these activities. They are a wonderful opportunity for learning.

When you live far away

If you aren’t close enough for in-person bonding, try these easy high-tech ways to stay close to grand kids:

Try video chat. Get help setting up a webcam so you can have live video conferences with your grandchildren. It’s a fun way to connect in a more personal way instead of using the phone.

Send a DVD bedtime story. Record yourself reading your grandchild’s favorite book. They can watch it at home and read along before bed.

Start a photo scavenger hunt. Pick a theme each week, like animals, food or even a certain shape or color. You and your grandchild can take pictures (film or digital) of things relating to that theme. Then, share the images via e-mail or regular mail and collect them in a photo album. Bring the albums when you do get together so you can talk about the pictures.

Grandparenting: Fun Activities for Grandchildren and Grandparents

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NJ Senior Living & Lifestyle

Maintaining close relationships with grandchildren is important for the emotional health and well being of seniors.  Here are some things to consider whether you live close or far away:

At home:

  • Play dress-up. Go through your closet and set aside unused clothes for pretend play – the more vintage and outlandish, the better. Add shoes, handbags and costume jewelry, too. Let your grandchild choose clothes for both of you to wear.
  • Do a puzzle. Pick out a jigsaw puzzle together at the store, and when it’s done, use puzzle glue to create a keepsake the child can hang on his or her bedroom wall.
  • Make portraits of each other. Use crayons or paints to tap into your inner artists. Display your grandchild’s artwork at your house, and let him or her take home your masterpiece.
  • Cook or bake together. Even very young children can follow simple directions and help mix batter or shape dough. Keep track of what you make together in a blank journal. This is a great way to pass on heirloom family recipes.
  • Work in the garden. Start in the cooler months by planning what you’ll grow, and map out where things will go in the garden. Come spring, shop together for seeds and supplies and make a weekly date to plant, prune and harvest.
  • Share a special hobby. Whether you knit, collect coins, go fishing or play cards, involve your grandchild in these activities. They are a wonderful opportunity for learning.

Excursions:

  • Take a class together. With parental permission, sign up for a gym, music or art class with your grandchild. Some towns even offer free classes like this for kids and grownups to do together.
  • Take in a show. Keep an eye out for local productions of kid-friendly productions. Your grandchild’s favorite television character may even be coming to a stage near you.
  • Visit the park. Go to the playground or just take a leisurely nature walk.
  • Head to a local museum. It doesn’t even have to be a special one just for kids – although those are certainly fun. Children of all ages can benefit from a trip to an art museum or historical center. Find out in advance if they hold special activities for kids.
  • Spend the day at a farm. Kids will love picking their own produce and visiting with any resident animals.

When you live far away:

Many families live far apart. If you aren’t close enough for in-person bonding, try these easy high-tech ways to stay close to grandkids:

  • Try video chat. Get help setting up a webcam so you can have live video conferences with your grandchildren. It’s a fun way to connect in a more personal way instead of using the phone.
  • Send a DVD bedtime story. Record yourself reading your grandchild’s favorite book. They can watch it at home and read along before bed.
  • Start a photo scavenger hunt. Pick a theme each week, like animals, food or even a certain shape or color. You and your grandchild can take pictures (film or digital) of things relating to that theme. Then, share the images via e-mail or regular mail and collect them in a photo album. Bring the albums when you do get together so you can talk about the pictures.

Posted by: Frank Esposito, VP Expert Home Care.  New Jersey’s Expert Home Care provides professional, dependable home health care and companion care for NJ elderly, helping them with their daily living activities since 1984. Please call us toll free at 800-848-2336 when you have home care related questions or need assistance for a loved one. Get a Free Home Care Assessment (a $375 value!) when you mention this post.