For Activities Directors ·
What you'll accomplish
You'll have a personal Activity Theme Library: a growing collection of complete activity packages (ideas, discussion prompts, trivia questions, and craft suggestions) organized by month, season, and theme. You build it once and use it year after year.
What you'll need
On your computer, create a folder called "Activity Theme Library." Inside, create 12 subfolders, one for each month. You'll save theme packages here as Word documents or Google Docs.
What you should see: A folder on your desktop or in Google Drive: Activity Theme Library > January, February, March... December
Go to chatgpt.com and log in (or create a free account). Open a new conversation.
What you should see: A blank ChatGPT conversation window with a text input box at the bottom.
Type the following prompt (customize the month and any specific cultural observances):
Create a comprehensive activity theme package for January for an assisted living community. Residents: mix of independent and mild-to-moderate dementia, ages 75-95. Include:
1. 5 themed activity ideas (vary types: music, reminiscence, crafts, games, physical)
2. 10 trivia questions about winter or New Year's (with answers)
3. 8 reminiscence discussion prompts about New Year's memories or winter childhood experiences
4. 2 simple craft project ideas with materials lists
5. 3 book or movie suggestions residents might enjoy this month
6. Suggested playlist theme (5 songs from the 1940s-60s appropriate for the season)
Format as a usable program guide.
What you should see: ChatGPT produces a comprehensive package with all six sections, formatted and ready to save.
Copy the entire response. Open a new Word document or Google Doc. Paste and save it as "January Theme Package" in your January folder.
That's one month done. Repeat for all 12 months. You can do 2-3 months per session, and each one takes about 5 minutes.
After building monthly packages, create separate packages for your most-used special events:
Use the same prompt template, just specify the event instead of the month.
For your memory care residents, create modified versions of each package. Add to your prompt: "Modify all activities to be appropriate for mid-to-late stage dementia. Simplify instructions, emphasize sensory and music-based activities, and replace competitive trivia with open-ended reminiscence questions."
Each time you discover a great activity that worked, add it to the relevant month's document. After using ChatGPT to find new ideas, add the best ones. Your library grows richer over time.