MenteBrillante
What each sheet works on
- The calendar: one month drawn in large print, Monday to Sunday, and six questions about it. What day of the week is the 12th? How many Tuesdays are there? What is the date of the second Thursday? You have to look, count and sometimes go back a row, which is exactly the point.
- Special days: matching days with a fixed date to the right one: St David’s Day, Bonfire Night, Remembrance Day, Christmas Eve… They are dates almost everyone has lived through dozens of times, and they bring back plenty of stories.
- The four seasons: twelve things in a box (conkers, daffodils, mince pies, strawberries and cream…) to write under spring, summer, autumn or winter. All of them are clear-cut: nobody needs to argue about where they go.
- Put in order: the months of the year, the days of the week and everyday tasks like making a cup of tea or posting a letter, each with only one sensible order.
- Orientation: the questions of a lifetime: what day it is today, which month, which season and where we are.
How to use them in a session
Reality orientation works best little and often, as part of the daily routine rather than a test. A good pattern is to start with the board (day, date, weather) and then hand out one calendar sheet for everyone. Read each question out loud and give people time: counting along the rows with a finger is perfectly fine, and so is helping each other.
- Use the real month. If you are in March, print the calendar for March: the questions then help with what is happening around people.
- Talk about the dates. The special days sheet is a great excuse for a chat: what did you do on Bonfire Night? Did your family celebrate Burns Night?
- Seasons at the window. After the seasons sheet, ask what the weather and the garden look like today.
- At home, little and often. One sheet over a cup of tea is enough. It is not a race.
An honest word
These sheets help keep track of the days, keep a routine going and get people talking, which is no small thing. But there is no solid evidence that exercises like these prevent cognitive decline, and they do not replace an assessment or a plan from a professional. We go through the sources in what the science says about puzzles.
More large-print sheets: memory activities, reminiscence activities, word games for seniors, maths worksheets and the large-print activity sheets.
