Bocce Ball

A while back our facility started a program called "Activity Nights."  Basically, we had a "fun" group with each unit where we would play games board games, do puzzles and word searches, go to the gym, etc.  One of the activities we did was Bocce Ball.

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Materials: 

Bocce Ball Kit

Procedure:

Divide the group into two teams and so each player gets 1 ball (if there is enough for 2 balls each then do that). Throw the white ball out anywhere on the court. The first player will throw one of their balls and try to get as close as they can to the white ball. Each person will throw one ball alternating teams (i.e. red team throws then blue team etc.) After everyone has thrown their ball, the ball that is closest to the white ball wins that round (if it is a blue ball, blue team gets a point and vice versa). The player who threw the winning ball gets the throw the white ball.  You can decide how many rounds you are going to play. 

Change

I loved this when I saw it on Pinterest!  I feel like almost everyone can relate to it, whether it be the patient or the therapist.  What is holding you back??

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Drawing in the Dark

Here's an art activity from the rec therapists at Provo Canyon Behavioral Hospital.

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2 or more players

Ages: 6 and up

Need pencils (or crayons) and paper

Go!

Begin by turning the lights out. An adult then starts telling a story.

The kids have to draw, in the dark, what the adult asks them to draw.

This is a lot of fun for the kids to do! Since they can't see, you can expect some pretty funny pieces of art to come about.

Example, an adult says, "There was once a rabbit named Randy. Draw Randy." The kids then draw a rabbit on their papers.

The story continues, "Randy had a friend named John, who was a horse. Draw John." The kids then draw a horse.

"Randy and John liked to play in the lake. Draw the lake." The kids draw a lake.

"They like playing with Tommy, a turtle, when they are at the lake. Draw Tommy". And the kids draw a turtle.

"The turtle had a friend named Buddy. Buddy was a bird". The kids then draw a bird.

"Buddy had a nice birdhouse that his family lived in". They draw the bird's house.

Try to keep the story to 5 or 10 minutes. It's not easy to draw in the dark!

After the story is finished, the lights are turned on. The kids show each other their drawings.

Get ready for a lot of laughs with this activity!

A rabbit may look like a snowman! A lake may look like a rock!

A turtle may look like a dinosaur!

Processing:

·Talk about the frustration of drawing in the dark; did their drawings turn out the way they expected? How can this relate to your life? Do things always turn out the way we plan? What coping skills can we use to overcome the frustration you may feel when things don’t turn out the way you plan? How can you get “more light” on your situation so you are not “drawing in the dark” or living unexpectedly?

Straw Blown Paintings

Here is an activity submitted by Heidi Bolster, CTRS.

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Materials:

·         Paper (preferably thicker paper for painting

·         Acrylic paint

·         Water mixed with acrylic paint to thin the paint for the straw-blowing portion of the activity

·         Paint brushes

·         Drinking straws

Description

·         Patients will paint a background using whatever creativity they like onto the paper until the whole page is painted

·         Patients will use straws to blow the “water thinned” paint across the background painting

·         Patients can create trees with this technique, or they can make spiders/monsters, etc. for a Halloween activity.

Processing questions:

·         How well were you able to control the paint when you were blowing it with the straw? Was it frustrating when it didn’t go the way you wanted? Were you able to create the image in your mind, or did it turn out different than expected? Was it frustrating, and how did you deal with those emotions?

·         Does this happen in life sometimes? (When things don’t go as planned?) How do you deal with this in your life? What are emotions you feel when things don’t go as planned? How do you deal with those emotions? How do you want to deal with those emotions? What can you do right now, while you are in the hospital, to help you manage your emotions and choices when life seems to go a different way than planned?

Got Rec

This is an activity that Brinda Green, CTRS found but was originally posted by Shari Burshytn, CTRS of the Children's Village.

Group Size: 2-20

Equipment:  Construction paper, pens, markers, colored pencils, glue, paint, etc.

Objective: Leisure education, teamwork, leisure skill development, increasing repertoire of leisure skills

Description:
1. Have patients brainstorm together about the benefits of recreation and leisure, and who can benefit from it

2. Break the group into smaller groups of 2-3 depending on the size of the group.

3. Have each group create a public service announcement exploring the benefits of recreation and leisure for THEM PERSONALLY  It can be a print ad or a commercial.

4.  Have the patients share their finished products with the entire group and have staff vote on the best public service announcement.  If possible, give the winning team a prize (i.e. candy).

Building Bridges

This is an activity submitted by the Activity Therapists at Provo Canyon Behavioral Hospital.

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Materials:
Newspaper or Magazines (LOTS!!)
Tape
Something heavy (i.e. textbook)

Tell patients that they need to build a bridge taht will hold the heavy object.  The specifications for the bridge are that it needs to be at least 6 inches tall and 10 inches long.

The rec therapist can add variations as needed, for example:
   -If a person is bossy, tell him he can't talk anymore
   -Give a time limit to create tension
   -Tell someone she has to say "banana" in between each word she says

Processing:
Talk about the experience.  What went well?  What was frustrating?  Consider the following questions:
   -How do you react to stress?  Is that healthy or unhealthy?
   -How do you react to success?  Failure?
   -How do you treat people under pressure?  Is there anything you need to change?
   -How can you diffuse a stressful situation?

For a large group, you can also make it into a competition.  Which team can build the tallest bridge that holds the book?  The most aesthetically pleasing bridge?  Etc.

How to Overcome Perfectionism

I feel like this is a topic that is relevant to many of my patients.  I found this on Pinterest, but it was originally posted here.