As dementia progresses, even simple activities can become difficult. A puzzle may have too many pieces. A coloring page may have too many small spaces. A game may require too many rules. Even an activity the person once enjoyed can become frustrating when it requires too much thinking, remembering, or figuring out what to do next.
If you’re looking for simple activities or hobbies for someone with dementia, the key is often to lower the difficulty.
With my mom, I have learned that making an activity easier often works better than encouraging her to try harder. If something is too difficult, I lower the difficulty. I use bigger pieces, fewer choices, simpler pictures, larger objects, and activities that are easy to understand just by watching.
Here are 10 low-difficulty dementia activities and hobbies that can be adapted to what a person can still comfortably do.
1. Large-Piece Puzzles
Puzzles can still be enjoyable, but the number and size of the pieces make a big difference. For my mom, I use simple puzzles with only a small number of large pieces and a picture that is easy to recognize. A complicated puzzle with dozens of small pieces would no longer be enjoyable for her.
If a puzzle is still too difficult, I make it easier. I may put several pieces in place first and leave only a few for her to finish. Sometimes I hand her a piece that is already turned in the right direction.
That is not cheating. I am not testing whether she can solve the puzzle. I am helping her stay involved in something she can still enjoy.
2. Stringing Large Beads
This is one of the activities my mom has been able to do for surprisingly long periods of time. I use large beads with large holes and a thick string. There is no pattern she has to follow. She simply chooses a bead and puts it on the string. Sometimes she can sit with her beads for 30 or 40 minutes.
Small beads would make the same activity much harder. So would asking her to follow a color pattern or copy a design. Making the materials bigger and removing the rules turns it into a much easier activity.
3. Easy Coloring With Large, Simple Pictures
Not every coloring book works well for someone with dementia. Many adult coloring books are extremely detailed. They may have hundreds of tiny spaces, complicated flowers, or intricate patterns. That can require far more concentration than the person wants or is able to give.
I prefer coloring pages with one large, recognizable picture, thick outlines, and big open spaces. A flower, a bird, a house, or a piece of fruit. I also don’t put twenty different colors in front of my mom. A few colors are enough.
The picture doesn’t have to be colored correctly. The important thing is that the page looks simple enough that she is willing to begin.
4. Tossing a Large Soft Ball
This activity requires almost no explanation. Sit facing each other and gently toss a large, soft ball back and forth. The kind I prefer is soft enough that it won’t hurt if it accidentally hits someone, but slightly firmer than a sponge so it keeps its shape and is easy to hold.
Start close together. If catching the ball is difficult, roll it across the floor or table instead. There is no score and nothing to remember. Toss it, catch it, and toss it back.
Sometimes the easiest activities are the ones a person can understand without anyone having to explain what to do.
5. Tossing a Large Soft Balloon
A large, soft balloon can be even easier than a ball. Because it is big and moves slowly through the air, the person has more time to see it coming and react. Sit across from each other and gently tap it back and forth.
You may not need to give any instructions at all. Tap the balloon toward the person. Often, seeing what is happening is enough for them to understand what to do next.
This is especially helpful when following verbal instructions has become difficult.
6. Tossing Soft Balls Into a Large Basket
The same large soft balls can be used for another activity. Put a large laundry basket or container nearby and toss the balls into it.
Start with the basket very close. If the person is easily getting the balls in and enjoying it, move it a little farther away. If they are missing repeatedly, bring it closer again.
I would rather make the basket so close that my mom succeeds than put it far away to make the activity more challenging. It doesn’t need to be challenging. It needs to be enjoyable.
7. Stacking Large Blocks or Cups
Large lightweight blocks or stacking cups can make another very simple activity. Put a few on the table and begin stacking them. If the person joins you, keep going. Build a small tower. Knock it down. Build another one.
There does not need to be a pattern to copy or a particular structure to build. This is also a good example of why showing can work better than explaining. Instead of giving several instructions, I can simply stack two objects and let my mom see what I am doing.
When dementia makes words harder to follow, the activity itself can sometimes provide the instruction.
8. Large-Print Picture Books
My mom does not enjoy looking at pages filled with small print. A book with large pictures, large print, and only a small amount of text on each page is different.
We can look at the pictures together. I can read a short sentence. She can look at a picture and say something about it, or we can simply turn the pages.
Some children’s picture books can work very well because they have large illustrations and only a few large words or short sentences on a page. That does not mean treating an adult with dementia like a child. I am simply choosing a book that matches what my mom can comfortably see, follow, and enjoy now.
The book should fit the person, not the person’s age on the cover.
9. Familiar Music, Singing, and Simple Rhythm
Music can be one of the easiest activities to adjust. Put on a familiar song the person likes. They may sing. They may clap. They may move their hands with the rhythm. They may only listen. All of those are participation.
You can also sit together and clap a very simple rhythm or gently move to the music. There is no need to teach a sequence of movements or ask the person to remember what comes next. Familiar music does much of the work for you.
10. Play Dough or Soft Modeling Dough
Soft modeling dough can be used without asking the person to make anything complicated. Give them a piece and take one yourself. Roll yours into a ball. Flatten it with your hand. Roll it into a long shape.
Instead of explaining every step, let the person watch and see whether they begin doing something with their own piece. They don’t need to make a flower, an animal, or anything recognizable.
The activity can simply be rolling, pressing, flattening, and shaping something with their hands. For someone who may put nonfood objects in their mouth, this activity would require close supervision or may not be appropriate.
Make the Activity Easier
When an activity becomes too difficult for my mom, I don’t push her to try harder. I make the activity easier.
Use fewer puzzle pieces. Use bigger beads. Choose a simpler coloring page. Move the basket closer. Use a larger ball. Choose a book with bigger pictures and fewer words. Put out fewer choices. And when explaining becomes difficult, show the person what to do instead.
Sometimes a small change in difficulty is the difference between an activity the person walks away from and one they will happily continue doing.
I don’t look for activities that challenge my mom to prove what she can still do. I look for activities that meet her where she is now.
If something is too difficult, I don’t ask my mom to try harder. I make it easier.
This article shares my personal experience caring for my mother with dementia at home. Activities should be adapted to the person’s current abilities and supervised when there is any risk of falls, choking, swallowing nonfood items, or injury.
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