Member Profile:

Molly

Activity Professional & Writer From Maryland, United States

About Molly: Molly Wisniewski is a freelance writer for the aging services. She has cared for older adults living with dementia for over ten years. Her blog the Upside to Aging is dedicated to sharing an alternative and more positive side to aging.

17 Activities


Laughing Together - Five Activities to Get Residents Smiling 16

Laughing Together - Five Activities to Get Residents Smiling

How to Help New Residents Adjust to Lifestyle Changes 5

How to Help New Residents Adjust to Lifestyle Changes

5 Myths and Misconceptions About Dementia 15

5 Myths and Misconceptions About Dementia

4 Creative Activity Programming Ideas Residents will Love 4

4 Creative Activity Programming Ideas Residents will Love

6 Resume & Interview Tips for Activity Coordinators 15

6 Resume & Interview Tips for Activity Coordinators

8 Creative Group Activities for Seniors 7

8 Creative Group Activities for Seniors

How to Plan Age Appropriate Activities for Seniors 20

How to Plan Age Appropriate Activities for Seniors

Reminiscing: How to Create a Memory Board 17

Reminiscing: How to Create a Memory Board

5 Ways to Spice Up Your Activity Calendar 7

5 Ways to Spice Up Your Activity Calendar

5 Uplifting Outdoor Activities 2

5 Uplifting Outdoor Activities

8 Creative Ways to Use an iPad in Nursing Home Settings 4

8 Creative Ways to Use an iPad in Nursing Home Settings

Easy Group Cooking Ideas for Dementia Care 4

Easy Group Cooking Ideas for Dementia Care

How to Manage Aggressive Behavior 10

How to Manage Aggressive Behavior

Implicit and Explicit Bias in Senior Care 11

Implicit and Explicit Bias in Senior Care

3 Ways to Practise Mindfulness with the Elderly 6

3 Ways to Practise Mindfulness with the Elderly

The Importance of Political Correctness in Senior Care 6

The Importance of Political Correctness in Senior Care

The Seven Stages of Alzheimer's Disease 11

The Seven Stages of Alzheimer's Disease

206 Comment

Molly 10th Dec 2018 Activity Professional & Writer

Forum

Thank you, Solange, for the study link! I love that there is evidence to show the need for a computer activity program. Bryony, I'm glad you brought up this topic - It is an important one that many of us in activities try to incorporate but without the proper resources it is difficult! I'd love to hear how your proposal to the administration goes!
Molly 6th Dec 2018 Activity Professional & Writer

Forum

Hi Amy,

You have some great ideas already and sounds like you all will have a ton of fun. Keeping with the snow theme maybe you could make homemade snowglobes? All you would need are a small glass jar, a plastic figurine for decorations (maybe wintery trees), glitter, water, and hot glue or super glue. Glue the figurine to the inside part of the lid, add water and glitter to the jar, put the lid back on and superglue it shut, then turn it upside down and give it a good shake!

Have fun,

Molly
Molly 6th Dec 2018 Activity Professional & Writer

Cinderella Christmas Pantomime

I love this! Thank you so much for sharing, Mandy. How exciting you made it on the front page!! Sounds like a ton of fun.
Molly 3rd Dec 2018 Activity Professional & Writer

Forum

This is great, Susan! Thank you so much for sharing such great ideas!
Molly 3rd Dec 2018 Activity Professional & Writer

Forum

Hi Robyn,

Maybe make a set of pre-made kits for each resident that includes things like printable crosswords, adult-suitable coloring pages, a book or magazine, riddles, and trivia games. You can print these in bulk and have them pre-made for every new resident.

Word Searches: https://www.goldencarers.com/word-search/
Word Games: https://www.goldencarers.com/word-games/
This Day in History: https://www.goldencarers.com/this-day-in-history/
Short Stories: https://www.goldencarers.com/short-stories/
Hidden Objects: https://www.goldencarers.com/hidden-objects/
Coloring: https://www.goldencarers.com/colouring/

Molly 3rd Dec 2018 Activity Professional & Writer

Forum

Hey Lori! If you click on the comment in the e-mail it should bring you right to the forum so you can see the response in the thread.
Molly 23rd Nov 2018 Activity Professional & Writer

Forum

Hi Kylie, Are there common spots he likes to wander into? Maybe try laying out decoy items throughout the unit? As he walks around, he can pick them up and store them. I once had a resident who did this and when asked said "I'm looking for myself" which is just heartbreaking! Maybe ramping up the one on ones and engaging in reminiscing activities could help too?
Molly 23rd Nov 2018 Activity Professional & Writer

Forum

Hey Tiffany, never too much storage. But you are right when it is disorganized you miss out on so much. Maybe you can have an inventory day? Bring all of the stuff out and put it into piles around the activities room. Then buy storage bins (the plastic kind you can get for $5 at Wal-mart) and label everything. We would always keep our Holiday stuff downstairs and bring it up when we need them. And the arts and crafts or general items we would keep upstairs so we have them on hand. You could even put the residents to work on this one and could even be a lot of fun if you play some sing-along songs and have good snacks on hand for those who just want to watch!
Molly 23rd Nov 2018 Activity Professional & Writer

Forum

Hi Nicola!

Golden Carers has a great selection of posters to choose from. Here are the links:

https://www.goldencarers.com/christmas-poster-1/4867/

https://www.goldencarers.com/christmas-poster-2/4868/

https://www.goldencarers.com/christmas-poster-3/5332/

https://www.goldencarers.com/posters/
Molly 15th Nov 2018 Activity Professional & Writer

Forum

Hi Shari,

Do you have an Activities kitchen available to you? We make a Thanksgiving lunch every year that ends up being a huge hit, and we even have a planning group of residents to pick menu items.

Thanksgiving decorations are always fun, too, and a great way to include an intergenerational activity if you invite family members or school children to visit. Here is a cute pilgrim craft that would make great centerpieces https://www.goldencarers.com/thanksgiving-pilgrims/3336/.

I find that this time of year just sitting around in a circle, drinking apple cider, and talking about how holiday's use to be spent, favorite family recipes or funny Thanksgiving mishaps (especially if you ask them about the first Thanksgiving they hosted) makes for a great afternoon of conversation and laughter.

Happy Thanksgiving!
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