The professionals of the activity carry out group activities every day of the week. The challenge for the practitioner is to create new and innovative programs for their geriatric clients. Creative writing is a creative and mentally stimulating activity that can be used. However, creative writing presents its own unique set of problems for the business professional to handle. How do you keep it fun and creative? The technique that the professional of the activity can use is what is called free association. Free association is when you think of a word and then come up with the ones that are associated with it. You take those words to create a story.
This technique is applied to creative writing groups in assisted living and long-term care facilities. Facilitator brings together a group of residents: this applies to low / high functioning individuals and those diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. The facilitator chooses a word like “train”. The facilitator asks clients what words come to mind when they think of the word train. Associated words can spark a memory for the customer. Residents say words like “Auntie, Doll, Nickel, and Florida.” The facilitator records the words that residents suggest. The customer may have taken a train to Florida. The “doll” is a toy she had when she was little. A “nickel” was the cost of ice cream in the past. The aunt was a person who visited her from Florida or visited her in Florida. The group connects the five words to create a short story. For example, those four words are in the next paragraph, which is the beginning of a fictional story.
“Sally got on the train to see her aunt in Florida. This was the first time she was away from home, but she had her favorite doll with her. Her mom gave her a new nickel to buy ice cream. later”.
This activity can be modified for people with low functioning. The facilitator uses prompts to help the resident form a visual, auditory, and / or sensory word. The resident contributes to the plot. The facilitator writes the story, asks the group for a title, and then gives them the title.
This technique awakens creativity, memory and mental stimulation. This is a great activity that your clients can participate in because the words used during free association are unique and fun. Everyone will laugh a lot when it is complete and be proud of your accomplishments.
