8 Inclusive Family Holiday Activities – Kids and Senior Friendly

Looking for fun, inclusive games to entertain the whole family this festive period? Look no further!

We love holidays – especially at Christmas! Family gathers together, the kids are home from school and there’s time to spend quality time with everyone (once all the running around is over). To help you really connect over the holiday season, we’ve compiled a list of fun and inexpensive activities and games that accommodate all family members — regardless of age and ability. We call them #InclusiveGames

Games are great for brain health!

Games are not only great for entertaining the kids over the busy Christmas period, but also have health benefits for our seniors. Games like Yahtzee, Monopoly and card games can help  improve senior brain health by encouraging different ways of thinking — strategy, keeping track of things, and math.

8 inclusive family holiday activities and games seniors (and you!) will love

Here are eight of our favourite ideas to do with the kids, adults and the grandparents during the Christmas break.

1. Board games
   Dust off the old puzzles and board games, pull together a little platter of food and make a day of it. You never know where a Yahtzee, Checkers or Monopoly will go.Kmart has Monopoly for just $25.00
2. Go for a picnic
   Need a break from all the hustle and bustle of the season? Pack the basket, camping chairs and a couple balls to kick around and head down to your local park or beach. The kids can run around whilst the parents and grandparents can sit back and enjoy some much needed fresh air.
3. Holiday movie night
   If you have been on Netflix’ lately, you would know that there are a tonne of fun loving holiday movies to be watched. So why not gather around a bowl of popcorn with the family and watch one…or maybe a few. This is a great low key activity for Christmas Eve to relax together after all the festivities.

   Our top picks for the whole family:
   
   White Christmas (1954) – Bing Crosby classic has been a must-watch come Christmastime for more than six decades.
   
   George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker (1993) – A timeless classic, masterfully reenvisioned—and required annual Christmas viewing.
   
   How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) – Jim Carrey and a young Taylor Momsen star in this remake of Dr. Seuss’s holiday classic.
   
   Miracle on 34th Street (1947) – When a nice old man who claims to be Santa Claus is institutionalized as insane, a young lawyer decides to defend him by arguing in court that he is the real thing.

4. Draw up a family tree
   You never know what crazy stories will surface about your family. To make it interesting, why not make a competition out of it and see who has the best memory and can recall the most distant relatives. This is a fun way to bring up old family memories, you’ll never know what stories will be shared.
5. Craft-a-noon
   There are plenty of holiday crafts the whole family can enjoy. From Christmas ornaments to wall hangings. Why not get grandma and grandpa to pass on some new creative skills to the kids.
6. Decorating a gingerbread house
   Decorating a gingerbread house is a creative (and delicious!) activity that everyone can enjoy. Invite children in the family to decorate alongside your senior loved one so they can spend quality time together.
   Gingerbread house kits are available at Coles for $12 – Bargain!
7. Kindness Cards
   The Christmas season is all about spreading joy and love. Kindness cards are a way to tell your family how you feel and how much you love them in a simple, easy to play game. It so good that will make the entire family feel special and loved.
   Click the image below to get the instructions or Feros Care – Inclusive Games – Kindness Cards.

   

8. Make a time capsule
   A time capsule is a sealed container holding message and items that give people in the future a record of a particular time period. It’s like sending a message into the future. Making time capsules is a fun activity for the whole family. Grandparents can create a message for their grandchildren in the future, and kids to their older selves. A time capsule can be as simple as a shoe box, or a strong stainless steel container, with a proper seal.