Resources for
activity professionals
in elder care

Arts & Crafts

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Cup and saucer table decorations

Pretty table decorations made from cups, sauces and silk flowers.
Thank you Jean for this wonderful idea!

Recycled Paper Mâché Bowls

A great craft that can be as basic or as complex as you like. It is light weight, doesn't break easily, inexpensive, therapeutic and above all, fun to make.

Recycled CD Fish Mobile

Providing lovely visual stimulation, this activity encourages creativity and should be placed in bedrooms and recreation areas.

Pressed Flowers

It is so easy to make lovely pressed flowers and leaves that you can use to decorate cards, jars and magnets.

Decoupage on Glass

Turn bottles and glass jars into these cute candle holders, vases or containers for chocolates and other sweets. Ideal gift idea!

Colouring in for March

Here are some colouring-in templates for March.

More cards for mother's day

Here a some lovely and simple cards you can make for Mother's Day.

Valentine's Day Heart Circle

Here is a lovely and simple valentine's day heart decoration you can make.

Chinese New Year Paper Lanterns II

Create some easy and lovely paper lanterns to celebrate Chinese New Year!

Art Templates - Artists born in January

Celebrate the January birthdays of these famous artists with colouring-in templates inspired from their work.

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Recycled Book Pages Christmas Wreath

These recycled book Christmas Wreaths are stunning and easy to make!

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Paper Petals Christmas Ornament

Another lovely Christmas ornament you can hand-make!

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Fabric Christmas Ornament

These Christmas ornaments are striking and fun to make!

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Paper Christmas Ornament

Beautiful, easy to make Christmas ornaments!

Paul Klee Art Templates

Paul Klee's art work is not easy to classify, he was influenced by expressionism, cubism, surrealism and abstraction.

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Craft Garden

Create your own beautiful craft garden!
Thanks Marie for this wonderful activity!

Paper leaves fall decoration

This is an easy activity for one and all. Good fun for creative minds.

Preserved fall leaves

Preserved fall leaves last throughout the festive season shining and supple, and are a lovely addition to a table or used as hanging decoration.

Recycled Glass Jars Candle Holders

They are easy to make and an ideal present for a friend or relative or perhaps a kind nurse or volunteer.

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Halloween Witches Shoes

We are making and decorating our shoes for table decorations.
Thanks for sharing this activity Kerry! (Sourced from http://www.skiptomylou.org/)

Fall Leaves Hanging Decoration

Lovely decorations made from fallen leaves to celebrate Autumn.

How to Make Daffodils

Make beautiful paper daffodil flowers to celebrate the arrival of Spring!

Titanic colouring-in template

A template of the Titanic for colouring-in.

Brazilian Art Templates

Here are some colouring-in templates for Brazilian Independence Day.

Pom-Pom Poi Dancing Balls

A Maori poi ball is a juggling ball originally made of woven flax. Maori dancers use them when performing to tell stories, teach and imitate natural sounds.

Aboriginal Clapping Music Sticks

Music sticks are used to keep the rhythm in songs, dances and corroborees in ceremonial events.

How to make a Dream Catcher

A dream catcher is a handmade object made by American Indians believed to give its owner good dreams.

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Marble Painting

Here is a fun art activity that everyone can enjoy. Thanks Melissa for this activity!

How to Make Pom-Poms

Making pom-poms requires patience but the end product is very satisfying. Pom-poms can be used for colour sorting games for Alzheimer's patients.

Templates from famous artists born in July

Art templates from well known artists born in the month of July

Discus Throw Game

Discus is another fun Olympic event that can be enjoyed by all!

Olympic Torch

Decorate your facility by placing an Olympic Torch in every room where residents can be reminded of the event, e.g. dining room, TV room, recreation room, reception area.

Aboriginal Art Templates for Colouring

Here are some Indigenous Australia colouring-in templates.

member submited alzheimer's 7 Comments
Recycled Magazine Scrapbooks

Beautiful scrapbooks made from recycled magazines. Make them to suit the interests of individuals. Thanks Kellie for this wonderful activity!

Greetings Cards for Fathers Day

Making greeting cards is a lot of fun! Have a session to make cards for every male in you facility on Father's Day. Celebrate their hobbies, their love of animals, their fancy cars and their enthusiasm for sports.

Sticks & Bark Collage

Create beautiful artwork from sticks and bark!

Scavenger Collages

As the saying goes "One Person's Trash is Another Person's Art". Scavenger Collages can be made of almost anything you find or intend to throw out.

Wheelchair Diamond Jubilee Banner

This is a messy activity but lots of fun! The idea is that the wheels of the wheelchairs will make the art work on the fabric.

Royal Jubilee Decorations

Decorations for the Royal Jubilee!

Flotilla Paper Boats

The River Thames Jubilee Pageant will feature 1,000 boats. Run a craft session to make 60 paper boats - one for each year. They are easily made.

Recycled Puzzle Photo Frame

This is another great activity that can be offered as a present to someone close to you or to a volunteer/staff for their time and kindness.

Paper Beads for Mothers Day

This is a lovely present for a friend, staff or volunteer.

Homemade Cards for Mother's Day

There is nothing like a personalised Mother's Day card made with love! They are easy to make and require materials you can find around the place or your local discount store. There are no rules so let the imagination run wild.

Mosaic Tiles for decorating

This is an easier version of the Mosaic tile activity which will be more suitable to participants who enjoy colouring or painting.

Sidney Nolan Art Templates

Have fun recreating 2 famous Sidney Nolan paintings!

Mosaic Tiles made from colourful paper

These Islamic and European mosaics tiles look rather stunning when complete!

Hopping Bunnies

Cute hopping bunnies with cotton wool tails!

Easter Bunny Baskets

A lovely Easter craft activity!

Lovely Hanging Paper Flowers

Easy paper flowers to decorate your facility on all occasions.

Leprechaun's Hat

Here's a lovely craft activity for St. Patrick's Day.

Fun with Limericks - how to make your own

Limerick poetry is very stimulating for the mind and lots of fun.

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Xmas chains

Use Christmas cards to create lovely Christmas chain decorations!

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Festive Wall Art Craft

Lovely wall art for all occasions! Video instructions included.

Recycled Hanging Snow Flakes

Here is an activity that offers social opportunity and can make your facility look festive on all occasions.

Chinese Symbols Chain or Poster

Create these lovely paper chains to decorate your facility in time for Chinese New Year!

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Recycled Newspaper Christmas Wreath

Use your old newspapers to make this beautiful Christmas wreath.Video instructions included!

Christmas Colouring-in

Christmas and nativity themed colouring-in templates to decorate your facility!

Standing Fabric Christmas Angels

These cute fabric angels are easy to make and very attractive to use on the table or mantel piece, windowsill, shelves or to hang from ceiling.

Pasta Christmas Wreaths

These beautiful wreaths can also be made with corks, large buttons, shells, and unshelled nuts.

Recycled Christmas Ornaments

Use old cards to make ornaments for your Christmas tree or string them along to make a garland for walls or windows.

Recycled Advent Calendar

There are dozens of ways to make Advent calendars from recycled material. This is just one of them.

Lovely Christmas Doves

Make a few of these lovely doves and place them on your Christmas table as a container for chocolate, cookies and marshmallows.

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Recycled hats for Oaks or Cup Day

Member submitted activity - thank you Filidea!
Beautiful hats made from paper plates, servettes, wrapping paper, bows, feathers and tule.

Picture Frame for Special Occasion

This is an easy craft that can be run over 2 craft sessions.

Air Dry Clay Thanksgiving Turkey

These turkeys can be used as table decorations, or placed on window sills or furniture.

Air Dry Clay Activities

Air Dry clay is a creative and therapeutic craft product suitable for people from 8 to 80 years old. It is easy to shape, decorate and paint; no kilns or ovens are necessary and it does not shrink when drying. Great for gifts!

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Bean bag Toss

This has always been a very popular game at all the facilities where I have worked. If you don't have a sewing machine ask a volunteer or one of your clients' relatives to do it for you.

Endangered Species Art Templates

Here are some art templates for World Animal Day

Picasso Inspired Art Templates

Celebrate Picasso's birthday with some art inspired by Picasso.

Recyclable Jack-o-Lantern Cans

Here is a craft activity for Halloween using recyclable materials.

Recycled Hanging Halloween Bats

These are easy to make decorations using egg cartons.

Paper Airplanes

Ideal for men, this activity will foster friendship and bring much laughter. It would be helpful if you could find a male volunteer to sit with participants and remind them of different ways to make paper airplanes.

Art with Seeds and Pulses

For cereal and seed craft you may use: bird seed, all colors of beans, corn kernels, sunflower seeds, rice, pasta, all colours of lentils, nuts and small pebbles and sand (whatever you have handy) .

Winter Craft Club

Get a few ladies together with a nice cup of tea and teach them how to make these wonderful crafts.

Colouring-in for June

Some artwork templates for June!

Salt Dough Magnets

I find this activity very rewarding. Participants can have the pleasure of holding dough in their hands for fun; no need for gloves like when they are cooking.

Paper Plate Sunflower

This is another great craft to do and ideal to decorate your facility for parties or a Spring Festival. Offer lots of decoration options and let participants express themselves artistically.

Summer Yarn Balls

These are lovely balls to decorate your facility at your annual Summer Ball. These spring balls are very satisfying, rewarding, and fun to make!

Colouring-in for May

Lovely artwork templates including a floral photo frame, butterflies, jar with flowers and a stylized cat.

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Mother's Day Flowers Craft

Another way of making lovely tissue flowers for Mother's Day - video included!

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How to make a Piñata

This game is played as the highlight of the party – at both children and adults parties. Video included!

Easter Bonnets

Here are a couple of easy Easter bonnets for your parade! I have included some templates for the decorations but let your clients express their artistic flair by encouraging them to decorate as they please.

Letters of the Alphabet Templates

Create and decorate your own banners for special events!

Easter Colouring-in Templates

Arts and crafts templates for Easter

Egg carton Spring Flowers

Recycle egg cartons and make your facility look festive by hanging these colourful flowers everywhere.

Contact paper mobiles

Visual stimulation offers the broadest range of possibilities.

Tissue Paper Sun Catchers - Easter Bunny

Making mobiles or sun catchers are activities that low care residents can do for frail people in Nursing Homes. Mobiles and sun catchers can act as a visual stimulation to those no longer able to participate in activities.

Recycled Crayon Sun Catchers

Beautiful hanging sun catchers for any season!

Four Leaf Clovers and Shamrocks

Lovely decorations for St. Patrick's Day!

Leprechaun #2 for St Patricks Day

Make it more interesting by having small groups of participants to share in the creation of each Leprechaun; two or three people taking turns in tracing, cutting, gluing and decorating the hat, legs, jacket and vest.

Recycled Percussion Instruments

These easy percussion instruments will reward you with a happy and very noisy sing-a-long! Remind participants how important percussion instruments are for mankind; indeed every culture has some sort of percussion instrument.

2011 - The Year of the Rabbit Colouring-in

2011 is the Year of the Rabbit - decorate your facility with this poster!

Origami Valentine's Lily

Beautiful Japanese lily decorations for Valentine's Day.

Jamaica's Afternoon Delight Party decorations

Here are some festive decorations for your Jamaican Afternoon Delight Party!

Chinese New Year Dragon and Chinese Marine Dragon

Decorate your facility with lanterns, streamers, fans, incense and rabbits (2011 – year of the rabbit). Of course there is no Chinese New Year without some dragons!

Scented Bath Salts

Easy and fun, this activity takes roughly one hour to make. This is an ideal inexpensive gift to make for a volunteer or to offer as a birthday gift.

Christmas Baskets with recycled Doilies

Recycle old doilies into these cute baskets for your Christmas table. They can be used to hold rum balls, chocolate, homemade Christmas biscuits and anything else you can think of.

Wooden Branch Christmas Trees

This is a very useful tree to have! It can be used all year around, just change the ornaments on Easter, Valentines Day, Mothers Day, Chocolate day, Wish Tree Day.

Evergreen Hanging Christmas Trees

Any of the Arborvitae evergreens can be used; I find the Thuja occidentalis particularly good because the leaves as flat by nature, making it easier to glue the layers.

Recycled Jigsaw Puzzle Christmas Trees

This is a cute craft activity using discarded jigsaw puzzle pieces to create hanging decorations for your factility at Christmas.

Recycled Christmas Card Tree Ornaments

Lovely Christmas tree ornaments made from recycled Christmas cards

Dreidel Game

How to make a Driedel and play the Driedel Game!

Guy Fawkes Art Templates

Here are some templates to be coloured in and decorated for Guy Fawkes Day!

Guy Fawkes Hat

Make a special Guy Fawkes hat to place on his head!

Monet Water Lillies Recreation

Celebrate Claude Monet's birthday in November by recreating one of his famous paintings!

Advent Wreaths

Make your own beautiful advent wreath and celebrate with a morning tea on the four Sundays preceding Christmas!

Thanksgiving Doily Wall Decoration

Stunning hanging decorations for Thanksgiving and other celebrations!

Melbourne Cup Hats

Create your own beautiful hats to be worn on Melbourne Cup Day!

Melbourne Cup Artwork

Create a fantastic Melbourne Cup piece of art in this activity!

Mandalas

Beautiful mandala templates to decorate in a relaxing and creative activity

Fun ways to celebrate World Animal Day

The wonderful thing about World Animal day is that it can be celebrated indoors or outdoors. Here are some suggestions of fun things to do on World Animal Day.

Recycled Egg Carton Jack O'Lantern

A fun Halloween craft activity using recycled egg cartons.

Halloween Table Centrepieces

Halloween styled table decorations!

Coffee Filter Sun Flowers

Improve dexterity. Provide enjoyment.

Recycled carton Bird Feeder

To promote interaction and sharing. To enhance self-esteem

Spring Flowers & Butterflies

To promote friendship. Maintain skills.

Coconut Trees for a Hawaiian Party

Make your own coconut trees that stand over 1.3m tall in this fun craft activity!

Flower Leis for a Hawaiian Party

So simple and so beautiful! These flower leis are sure to be admired and appreciated.

Winter Craft – Hanging Leaves

These lovely leaves will look great hanging from ceilings, decorating glass windows and walls or made into mobiles for people who spend long periods of time in bed.

Winter Craft – Snow Flakes

Stunning snow-flakes to decorate any room. They are so simple to make and just beautiful.

World Oceans Day Poster

Help celebrate the oceans rich diversity of life. Have fun by turning a wall in your facility into your own ocean or aquarium.

Tissue flowers for Mother's Day

To observe cultural dates. To engage residents in reminiscing

Easter Banner!

Download the 'Happy Easter' letters and have your residents paint and decorate them to create a beautiful banner for your facility!

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Recycled Easter Baskets

Lovely Easter baskets you can make with recycled paintings and paper.

Daisy Photo Frame

Celebrate Mother's Day with beautiful floral decorations with photo centerpieces!

Flower pot colouring-in

A lovely arts & craft activity for Mother's Day!

Recycled Dream Spring Tree

To celebrate spring make a 'dream' tree composed of spring flowers and blossoms. You may also include recycled paper flowers with painted flowers as per the example spring tree above.

St. Patrick's Pot of Gold Poster

A Leprechaun is a devious little troll who is capable of turning into a frog to escape capture. Leprechauns are shoe-makers who dress in suites with waist coats, hats and buckled shoes.

St. Patrick's Leprechaun and beer poster

St. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland. His life is shrouded in legend.

International Flag Decorations

It's Winter Olympics time! Have fun decorating international flags.

Valentine's Day Hearts

Cultural observance. Reminiscing.

Lanterns for Chinese New Year

Take your residents on a fascinating cultural experience – celebrate Chinese New Year!

Australian Indigenous Dot Painting.

Australian Aboriginals use plant shoots, Echidna quills and small twigs to paint their dream time stories.

Paper Chains for Australia Day

Decorate your facility with these easy to make paper chains.

Collage with gum nuts and leaves

Celebrate cultural uniqueness and promote friendship and sharing.

Australian Bookmarks for Australia Day

Easy and fun to make! Give the bookmarks as souvenirs to friends, staff and relatives.

Stained Glass Window Christmas Decorations

Here is an activity that will help you with your resolve to become more ‘green’. It is fun to make and requires little skill and yet looks rather striking hanged in walls, doors, windows and shelves.

Christmas templates for colouring-in

Colouring-in, whether with crayons, coloured pencils or paint is therapy as well as a great way to pass the time absorbed in something creative. It may help to maintain what remains of dexterity and fine motor control.

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Recycled Magazine Christmas Trees

Do your bit to save the planet with this gorgeous recycled Christmas Tree craft activity!

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Christmas Angel (Standing)

Here is a lovely christmas craft activity - create beautiful standing Christmas angels!

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Christmas decorations with Salt Dough

This is folk art and maybe some of your residents will remember playing with it as a child. Video included!

Popsicle Christmas Stars

Maintenance of dexterity. Promote sense of accomplishment.

Thanksgiving Pilgrims

Promote the Thanksgiving spirit and consolidate friendships!

Thanksgiving Turkey

Brighten up your space with some lovely thanksgiving decorations you can make during craft sessions!

How to make horses for the ‘Race Horse’ game:

Make your own game for Melbourne Cup Celebrations!

Ivy Wreaths for Remembrance/Anzac Day

Enhance self esteem. Have fun with arts and crafts!

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Felt Poppies for Remembrance Day

Socialization with peers in a group setting. Sense of accomplishment. Video included!

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Crepe Paper Poppies for Remembrance Day

Potential for reminiscing. Personal satisfaction. Video included!

Pot Decoration

Encourage creative expression. Improve dexterity.

Fun with Salt Dough

Increase socialization. Improve ability to follow directions.

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Bow Ties for Father's Day and Special Events

VIDEO Instructions included! Make bow ties in a craft session and give it to your male residents on Father’s Day to help celebrate this festive occasion.

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Balloon Bean bags

VIDEO Instructions included! Object: maintain social skills and reinforce friendships. Sensory stimulation.

Fishing Competition

Hand-eye coordination. Upper body movements (exercise).

Papier-Mache Maracas - percussion instruments

Versatile and interesting activity. Maintains and improves dexterity.

Pot Painting

Enhance spiritual fulfillment. Improve dexterity.

Autumn Tree

To promote fine motor movements. To have fun!

Stringing Beads

Eye-hand coordination practice and fine motor skill exercise

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