What Gram Remembers was inspired from my time as an Activities Director at a nursing home. It was quickly apparent that on the Memory Wing of the facility, fewer people visited including the children of that wing’s residents. However, when someone did get visitors, all the residents perked up especially when the visitors were kids.
At Christmas time, I would encourage the visiting church groups to also visit the Memory Wing. I was told, though, that they were afraid it would upset the kids in the group. However, one group did agree to try visiting the wing, and the visit went very well. The group’s leader told me that from now on, they would make a habit of including the Memory Wing on their visit.
How are kids expected to learn empathy, kindness, and patience if they are not exposed to situations that allow them to practice it? I know we always want to protect our children and do not want to see our kids upset. However, if you communicate with them ahead of time about what they may see or experience, then they are better prepared. Also, being with them, allows you to remove them from a situation if it becomes upsetting to them.
Visiting the residents of the Memory Wing allowed the children to create a good memory and have the great feeling of seeing the residents smile, laugh, and even clap because of their visit. I always hope that creating these type of memories as a child will allow the actions to become a tradition that will continue throughout future generations.
This brochure from the Alzheimer’s Association has some great ideas of activities that children can enjoy with someone experiencing memory issues because of dementia or Alzheimer’s: Brochure
Diana, Lover of Living History
