Even if you are not Irish, it is quite fun to get into the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day when the festive day rolls around. You can get your loved one into the festive mood as well by planning some activities for them. Engaging in activities together is a good way to connect with them, regardless of the stage of their dementia.

In this article, we share some fun St. Patrick’s Day activities for dementia.

Paper Shamrocks

Have your loved one cut out strips of green colored paper. It would be helpful if you drew guiding lines on the papers prior. Once this is done, they can help make loops with the strips of paper while you staple accordingly to make a shamrock shape. However, if your loved one has shaky hands or is not so mobile with their hands, another alternative craft would be to get them to draw shamrock shapes on paper and color them in instead.

St. Patrick’s Card

Another simple craft idea is creating your own St. Patrick’s card. Grab some colored pencils or colored markers, as well as several pieces A5 sized paper. Next, let your loved one get creative with the card! You may want to provide some reference pictures or pictures of common items/icons seen during St. Patrick’s Day such as shamrocks or leprechauns, to give them some inspiration on what to draw.

St. Patrick’s Wall Sign

Get some colored paper or colored foam sheets for this activity. Trace out the word “LUCK” and some shamrock shapes on the paper or foam sheets, then proceed to cut them out. As it can be hard for older adults especially those with dementia to cut out intricate shapes, you can cut out the shapes for them. Have your loved one decorate the shapes and letters by pasting stickers, sticking colored buttons, or coloring them. If you are having them stick colored buttons, do keep a watchful eye on them as persons with dementia might tend to place things in their mouths.

Shamrock Cookie Decorating

Add some festive cheer by baking some shamrock-shaped cookies (you can create the shape with the use of shamrock-shaped cookie cutters). Although it is not safe to let your loved one get involved in the baking process, they can certainly decorate the cookies. Do remember to purchase green icing ahead of time! They are sure to have fun decorating the lovely snacks.

Music Session

There is nothing better to get into the holiday spirit than music. Play some Irish songs, such as Danny Boy or When Irish Eyes Are Smiling. There are many compilations of the best traditional Irish songs that you can check out online.

Dementia Care at Terrabella Marchbanks

As a retirement community that offers memory care living, we understand the importance of keeping persons with dementia active and how hard it can be to keep them engaged. With Celebrations activities and events, residents stay active and healthy. The carefully curated, wide variety of programs to choose from ensure that the programs offered will suit all types of needs and health conditions, such as the different stages and types of dementia.