Winter Care Home Activities For Guaranteed Christmas Cheer

13th December 2023

With festivities in full swing, are you in need of ideas for winter care home activities?

Here at Cleva, we handle the financial safety of our care home clients. Our clients may rely on us for their accounting security, but we also know how to have some fun! We have put together some fantastic Winter care home activities for you to try.

Giving any of our Winter care home activities a go? Be sure to let us know by tagging us on Linkedin or Twitter @clevacard!

Wreath Making Masterclass.

Not only is this a therapeutic activity, it’s a great way to get your residents into the festive mood! Fresh foliage makes for a brilliant sensory experience, lasting a whole afternoon. The finished creations can be hung on residents’ doors or around your facility. Not only will this boost your residents’ moods, it will also help to simultaneously ‘deck your halls’!

Considering that those with dementia find familiar surroundings comforting, the instant addition of bright decorations can be overwhelming or confusing. By slowly integrating these elements over a period of weeks, this can make the festive transition as stress-free as possible!

Making Christmas Cards.

A fantastic way to get your residents’ creative juices flowing whilst getting an essential part of their festive celebrations sorted. Some designs can be more fiddly than others, so assisting and recommending per resident is key. Coupling the activity with some festive music (and maybe even a mulled wine!) makes this for a perfect afternoon. A personalised card is also a lovely gift for your residents’ family to receive!

For some amazing design ideas, check out the following link!

Bird watching.

Save the date, the Big Garden Birdwatch is happening January 26-28th 2024! This is one of the most accessible of the winter care home activities we’ve listed. It is also an important national survey, looking at the native populations of common garden birds. Recording bird sightings is a great addition to your weekly schedule, and helps your residents prepare for the big weekend!.

To find out all the information you need on how your facility could take part, check out the RSPB’s website!

Carol singing.

Whether your residents watch or take part themselves; Carol singing is a brilliant way to lift spirits this winter!

It is widely documented that singing is a brilliant mood-booster. Singing is excellent for your residents’ memories, as they are recalling lyrics and melodies from their past. Not only is singing great for your residents and their community spirit, but also for your staff!

“From a carer’s point of view I think it is fantastic… people relax and mix, we are joined together and help one another… Everybody has just got so much pleasure on their faces, and that’s uplifting in itself, when you see other people really enjoying something.”

(PMC)

Festive Baking.

Get your residents’ sleeves rolled up and make some delicious Christmas creations! Whether it’s sausage rolls, mince pies, or even decorating biscuits! This winter care home activity will have your residents’ muscles working, and their tastebuds tingling!

With 2/3rds of people saying that baking improves their mood (lovefood.com), be sure to get this activity into your schedule!

Have you got any more ideas for festive feel good activities you would like to share with our Cleva Community? Get involved with our discussion on Linkedin!