When your parents move into a care facility like assisted living or a nursing home, it can be hard for your kids to stay connected so check out these 5 Ways to Help Kids Connect Deeper with Grandparents in a Care Facility.
Taking your kids to visit their grandparents often means taking a day trip just to spend some time together.
Even when they’re close by, you still have to be respectful of roommates, which can be difficult (and not fun) for younger kids.
Did you recently move one or both of your parents into a care facility? Are your kids feeling the separation?
These ideas will help your kids continue creating a deep connection with their grandparents.
Table of Contents
Get your kids into arts and crafts
There’s a reason why teachers have their students work on craft projects to give as holiday gifts.
Kids enjoy creating handmade gifts for people they love.
If your kids are starting to miss seeing their grandparents as often as they once did, have them create a craft project they can bring with them on your next visit.
One idea is to create something seasonal that can be tacked to the wall for decoration.
If it’s fall, gather some leaves and place them inside a picture frame along with a drawing or printed poem.
Other cool ideas include tissue paper flowers, friendship bracelets, painted rocks, and yarn hearts.
For even more fun craft ideas, moms.com published a list of fun crafts like handmade cards and crafts using handprints.
Bring blankets and popcorn for a movie day
Do your kids miss snuggling on the couch watching a movie with their grandparents, schedule a movie day and bring in the blankets!
Are they living in a luxury assisted living facility, you may even be able to use the main entertainment area so you’re not confined to a smaller room.
If that sounds like the better option, call the facility ahead of time to find out if they’ll reserve the entertainment area for your movie day.
Of course, other residents will want to watch the movie, too so make sure you bring snacks for everyone.
Get your parents an iPad to Help Kids Connect Deeper with Grandparents in a Care Facility
One of the best ways to facilitate connection is to get your parents an iPad so they can connect with their grandkids over FaceTime or similar apps.
Connecting over FaceTime isn’t the same as connecting in person, but it’s a great option when you can’t make it out to the facility as often as you’d like.
Between work and school, it’s not easy scheduling weekly visits without pushing yourself to exhaustion.
Connecting online will make your kids (and parents) happy without draining you of your energy.
When your parents have an iPad, your kids can call them anytime.
They can call on the way home from school, after they do their homework, or any other time.
Unless your kids are really young, you won’t need to connect the call, which means less interruptions for you.
You can also use it as an opportunity to teach your kids how to use an iPad if they don’t already have one.
Have your kids interview their grandparents (and vice versa)
Having your kids conduct a mutual interview with their grandparents is a great way for them to get to know each other better.
Have your kids write down all the questions they want to ask ahead of time, but let them know they can get creative if something else comes up.
For even more fun, have your kids dress up in silly clothes that make them feel more like a news reporter or someone famous.
Bring in seasonal decor for their room
Plain walls can get boring really fast and looking at the same scenery for weeks and months on end can be depressing.
Take your kids to a home decor store and load up your shopping cart with decor for their grandparents’ walls.
Get things that will make everyone smile and feel good.
However, don’t put everything up on your next visit.
Keep bringing new items in and swap them out for the old, unless your parents really like something and want to keep it permanently.
Your kids will have some great ideas, too
If you’re out of ideas or some of these ideas don’t work for you, ask your kids what they’d like to do for their grandparents.
Your kids might connect better by going for walks or going out to a movie.
However you help your kids connect, their grandparents will be grateful for the time.
If you enjoyed this article you will be sure to like 4 Things Nobody Tells you about Becoming a MOM, Why Reading Aloud is so Beneficial and What Parents can do to Help Their Kids get into College.
