Intergenerational Library Programs in Nursing Homes

Grandparents can tell you about the natural bond between themselves and their grandchildren. The delight a child brings to a senior is a special joy that is one of the rewards of growing older. The unrehearsed response of a child to the world as witnessed by an older person and the child's wonderment about this different looking person with silver hair who moves more slowly and doesn't hear so well but is interested in everything the child has to say is the basis for a wonderful rapport. Given this, why not encourage intergenerational programs in nursing homes? In this article, programs now used in nursing homes involving young people presenting programs for the elderly are identified. How to enter a nursing home to present an intergenerational program is explained. Examples are given of two types of programs that provide interaction between students and the elderly. General preparation of parents, students and residents is covered and preparation tips and specific program tips are listed. The emphasis of these intergenerational programs is on interaction between young and old, with the elderly taking an active part rather than being solely an audience.

Intergenerational Programs

"Moms and Tots" was one of the first programs of this type. These programs consisted of young mothers with preschoolers coming in to visit a group of residents and being served a refreshment. Children would bring a doll or play with a big ball, but there was no planned activity. These programs were followed by scouts singing songs, reading to residents, visiting with them or sharing a treat. Of course children visiting great-grandmothers and great-grandfathers have always brought smiles.

Entry to a Nursing Home

The resident services manager (RSM) or activity director is the person to contact at a nursing home. After planning the broad aspects of the intergenerational program, call the RSM at least six weeks in advance of your anticipated performance. The RSM will expect information about the number and ages of students, the frequency of their visits, duration of their stays, supervision of the children and the type of program to be presented. Any special equipment needed also should be mentioned as well as a plan for transporting the students. Agree to talk again to discuss details at least one month previous to the first program to allow time for the activity to be properly announced at the nursing home.

During your first discussion let the RSM know that you are offering an enjoyable program with supervision, planning and entertainment — all free of charge. The program could be a good source for favorable publicity, photo opportunities and good community interaction. It will be a safe program following any guidelines the nursing home requests. It will be an opportunity to add to the variety of programs offered by the home and will not require additional staff time. The community people involved might return with similar programs or as visitors.

An Intergenerational Library Program

A library program with the theme, "One of My Favorite Things," proved to be a rewarding program for general nursing home patients and also for a group of Alzheimer and related dementia residents. Children, parents and residents participated and received satisfaction from the sessions. All requested repeat programs.

Preparation of Parents and Children

A group of parents brought their young home-schooled children for the program. Home schoolers frequently belong to a religious or secular group such as an area church or county group affiliated with the Illinois Home Educators Association. Prior to the visit, parents had a session with a library volunteer from the nursing home who told them what to expect and were given a chance to express any concerns. Residents' illnesses, disabilities, appearances and behaviors were addressed. The children's safety was assured. Actually,

*Anne M. Ring, Consultant for special libraries for older and disabled adults, Mundelein.

15

the danger is that an elderly person might catch the flu or a serious cold from an outsider. They were told not to be alarmed by screams. A scream may be the way the older person seeks attention or perhaps just a habit. Crying doesn't always mean that a resident is sad, there can be tears of joy. Our visitors were assured that our residents receive excellent care. Sometimes they have memory lapses and forget that they have just eaten a meal or received care and ask for it again. Children need some of the same advice but not as much as the parents do. Fear or concern shown by the parents is what frequently frightens the child. Children also should be told to simply say "thank you" and smile when complimented by a resident. Children and parents should smile frequently. A resident may wish to take the child's hand and hold it for a minute. Oh, the feel of that soft young skin! There is no danger to either of them.

Preparation of Residents

Residents need little advance preparation other than what the theme of the program will be, where the children are from and how old they will be. Also, when and where the program will be held should be announced on resident calendars as residents enjoy the anticipation of a program almost as much as the program itself. Alzheimer patients need only introductory remarks at the time of the program. I have found that the children will usually bring a small gift to the residents, a simple thank you is adequate from the residents, but why not furnish the residents with a piece of candy or a simple gift for them to give the children. These little gifts from the residents could be something they have made at a previous activity program.

"One of My Favorite Things"

At one presentation the librarian gave a brief introduction to the program and welcomed all attendees. Favorite toys were suggested from different decades. The children had learned several special songs that were sung at different times throughout the program. Each child brought a favorite toy or book, showed it to the group and said something about why it was special. Children were instructed to have two things to say about their toys and also two things to say about themselves. The children then visited the residents individually and showed them their toys. This provided immediate and easy conversation for child and resident. At Christmas time children used homemade drums while singing "The Little Drummer Boy." Inside each drum was a bell that they each gave to a resident and asked that they try ringing them and then keep them quiet until the children sang "Jingle Bells." After the song they allowed the residents to keep them if they did not need them for the next program. The librarian had slides of special toys, such as trains, dolls and wagons to show just in case the program dragged. As it happened, these proved unnecessary. Residents joined the children in song and then all enjoyed cookies provided by the parents. Smiles and looks of relief on the faces of the parents and obvious satisfaction of residents and children as they all asked for repeat visits was proof of the success of the program.

Partnering With a School

Partnering with a school also can be successful. Again, a teacher or librarian should contact the RSM to introduce the program. In one instance a group of selected residents who could respond appropriately and share in activities was chosen by the RSM to attend monthly sessions with an equal number of advanced students who would visit each month for six to seven months to share an activity with the residents. The program was supported by a school grant from local businesses. Each resident received an invitation from one of the student's along with a picture of the student and a few words about the student's interests. They gathered together when appropriate and divided into two sections when the activity was more easily completed in smaller groups. Preparation of the students was similar to that for the children at the other visits, but activities were worked out in more detail by teachers and students before the sessions. The children, about 10 years old, were paired with a resident. Sessions included lunch together, bingo, dancing (wheelchair-style using mostly hands), games and interviews. These activities also served as photo opportunities and information for a memory book presented to each resident at the closing session. These books with pictures representing the resident's interests and life story made a lasting reminder that someone really cared. The satisfied look on each student's face and the smile on the resident's face as the child said, "This is for you," said it all.

Preparation Tips

• Programs need to be arranged enough in advance to allow parents time to sign permission slips, etc.

• The duration of a program is ideally 30 to 45 minutes.

• Gifts and food items need to be approved by nursing home staff and parents. Suggestions from teachers and nursing home staff should be welcomed. A couple of ideas are bookmarks and soft candy.

• Someone should be in charge of the overall programs.

• Nursing home staff need to know in advance the number of ages of children participating and who will supervise them while in the home.

16

• Nursing home staff also needs to know when, how long and how often students plan to visit the home and who will run the program — an outsider or a nursing home staff.

• The nursing home needs to know what it will be expected to furnish.

• Nursing home staff also needs to know how many residents will be involved and if they need to be the same residents each time.

Program Tips

• Bi-Folkal kits, available from most nursing homes or libraries, are helpful as a basis for discussion and planning activities. These kits contain pictures and discussion of subjects of interest to residents when they were younger. They provide a good means to prepare the students on themes, such as farming, transportation or school days. The information contained in the kit would be used for a program but not necessarily the kit itself.

• It would be appropriate for the nursing home to furnish residents with small gifts to be given to the students. As coordinator of a program you might suggest this to the RSM.

• Choose a topic or program that will be of interest to young and old, both groups should learn something by the experience and leave with a sense of satisfaction and pleasure.

• Bingo is a favorite of most seniors and could be played in pairs. A child's good vision and a resident's reaching to place chips on the numbers would make the sharing worthwhile. Games such as Bingo, Wheel of Fortune and Brain Quest could be played on computers.

• Stories, greeting cards and signs are fun to create, and painting and drawing software might bring out the creativity of both child and senior. A printer to provide hard copies would add to the lasting enjoyment of the experience.

Armed with the knowledge of how to present a challenging intergenerational program in a nursing home, try one of these examples or create one of your own. You will bring immense pleasure to both young and old.

Anne M. Ring is a consultant for special libraries for older and disabled adults, and authored the book READ EASY: Large Print Libraries for Older Adults. She earned an MLIS degree from Dominican University, River Forest, IL. and she set up the Winchester House Library Libertyville, IL., under an LSCA grant in 1984, fell in love with her work and stayed more than 12 years, retiring from Winchester House in June, 1997. The library won the Governor's Award for an innovative program offering resident satisfaction. It was also the recipient of the National Association of Counties Award, runner-up in the G.K. Hall Award and was recipient of several grants. In 1996, Anne was awarded the Humanitarian of the Year Award for Illinois by the Illinois State Medical Society Alliance. Upon her retirement the name of the library was changed to the Anne M. Ring Library.

17