In March, I started bringing more interactive cognitive games to the senior center. After spending the previous month talking with seniors and noticing how differently they remembered things, I wanted to try activities that gave them something specific to respond to.
Some of the games were based on lists. I would read several items and then ask the seniors to remember certain things from the list. For another game, I read a short story and asked questions about it afterward. I also changed the difficulty as we went instead of using the same level for everyone.
A typical session involved moving between tables and playing with small groups. I would explain one game, give them time to answer, and then move into another round. The seniors had a lot of fun with it, but what interested me most was what started happening between them.
Before I began, two tables were full of seniors mostly doing their own things. Once the games started, the tables became much louder. People discussed possible answers, helped one another remember details, and corrected each other when they disagreed. Sometimes they even argued over the correct answer.
That was honestly one of the best parts. I had expected the activity to be mostly me asking questions and the seniors answering. Instead, one answer could turn into a conversation between several people. Someone would say what they remembered, another person would disagree, and then the rest of the table would start trying to decide who was right.
Not everyone answered every question, and some people needed easier rounds before they became comfortable. Still, the games gave the tables a reason to interact in a way that was not happening when everyone was sitting there separately. Even when someone did not remember the full list or story, they could react to another person’s answer or help with one part.
The manager also told me that the seniors enjoy these kinds of interactions and like playing games. That matched what I was seeing. The energy did not come only from getting an answer right. It came from having something to work on together and someone else to talk to about it.
By the end of the sessions, the games felt like they were doing two things at once. They gave the seniors a chance to practice remembering information, but they also changed how people at the tables interacted with one another. I originally brought them in as cognitive activities. After watching the room, I started thinking that the conversation around the game might be just as important as the game itself.
