Activities at Tyspane Care Home

Suspend for a moment your disbelief and encounter once again the sense of wonder you knew when there was… magic!

They say a good magician will have guests laughing and gasping in amazement all day. Magicians perform illusions to mystify and entertain audiences, they use quick hand movements and a variety of other techniques to perform classic tricks such as pulling a rabbit out of a hat or making a handkerchief disappear. For one of our residents Tony, sharing jokes, laughing with others and playing tricks is a normal occurrence, residents, families, friends and staff enjoy his company as he brightens their day.

In order to support Tony with his passions the Activities Team surprised Tony with an afternoon of fun, tricks and wonderment provided by “The Big Foolini” who entertained everyone at Tyspane Care Home by creating a sense of wonder and amazement by performing illusions, sleight of hand, and other magical feats. He certainly left residents, families, friends and staff in awe and wanting more.

Tony stated, “Wow, that was something else, I really enjoyed the afternoon. I couldn’t stop smiling and laughing.”

David (Resident Ambassador) replied, “I thought he was going to set the room on fire!”

Gill, “That was a real treat, I was very impressed.”

Thank You Rob (aka The Big Foolini) for taping into everyone’s nature curiosity, evoking strong emotions, and offering a unique social experience.

Tyspane Care Centre supports community engagement by welcoming volunteers of all ages into the home, volunteers are special people who have exceptional qualities such as feeling comfortable working in ever changing teams, with people from all different walks of life and taking on both the leader and the follower role at different times.

At Tyspane Care Centre the Activities Team work with volunteers on a daily basis to enhance the quality of life for residents, their families, friends and staff. Only this week we have been visited by Emily and Abi (our young volunteers), Miriam (a parent of a resident) and David and Friends (professional entertainers) all who have given their time and expertise freely to enhance residents’ wellbeing through activities that support the mind, body and soul. Their input makes an immeasurable difference in people’s lives as a result of diverse backgrounds, which helps residents their social network.

Today, being especially important for one of our volunteers, Miriam. Miriam delivers our monthly faith and spirituality group “Tambourines and Choruses” which aims to support residents, families and friends to act on what they haven’t experienced yet, to believe in the promises of the Bible that haven’t be fulfilled yet and to trust in God. Her group is delivered through the medium of music and song. It is a happy group especially today as Miriam is celebrating her 80th Birthday.

Mary (Miriam’s daughter and resident at Tyspane Care Home) stated. “My faith is important to me it allows me to have hope.”

Patrick, “Happy Birthday Miriam and thank you.”

Julie (Activities Assistant) stated, “Thank you Miriam for all your support, have a wonderful birthday.”

Jacqui (Activities Co-Ordinator) replied, “A massive thank you to all our volunteers, you are simply priceless, you ignite positive change in us all.”

Telling one’s life stories is important because it allows one to share what is important to them. At Tyspane Care Home our hope is that by better understanding residents’ storytelling, caregivers may be able to listen in a different way and understand the messages they contain. Storytelling is a key method for elders to communicate what they believe to be important to their children and loved ones, it transfers values and meaning to younger generations.

With this knowledge the Activities Team at Tyspane Care Home welcomed back Nathan Rodney-Jones an exceptionally talented young adult who is currently studying creative writing at The University of East Anglia in Norwich. Nathan was challenged with listening to residents’ stories and converting them into Narrative poems. Narrative poems are stories in poem form, they are used as a means of passing down important stories. Residents shared their stories with passion, they were powerful and evoked compassion amongst other residents. It demonstrated that everyone has a story to tell, and sometimes the most amazing stories come from those who have been round the longest.

The poems were typed and presented to residents as keepsakes for their loved ones to read and share over and over again.

David (Resident Ambassador) stated, “It made me cry!”

Peter (Resident) replied, “I love my daughters very much, they will love the poem.”

Thank You Nathan for rising to the challenge and always remember the stories we love the best do live in us forever.

Activities make up the most important part of all our days and at Tyspane Care Home we ensure a variety that reflects the interests and capabilities of all the people we support. The team is trained to understand the importance of stimulating engagement as well as ensuring residents have the opportunity to enjoy passions and creative hobbies that are personal to them. All group and individual activity are designed to not only mentally and physically stimulate the people we care for but to enhance their life skills and feelings of purpose and self-worth. A weekly time table of activities is printed, personally delivered and discussed with residents each week to support engagement as well as being displayed around the home. The activities team always strive to deliver what is published on the activities sheet, however, sometimes last-minute unexpected changes can occur or in other words sometimes something good happens when you least expect it.

Today, Emily one of our young volunteers stepped bravely in at the last minute to play tunes on the home’s keyboard to entertain residents, families, friends and staff. They say good keyboard players are quiet, intelligent, inquisitive and analytical, very true.

Emily commented, “I really enjoyed performing.”

Thank You Emily, simply wonderful.

Independence Day is celebrated annually on 15 August as a public holiday in India commemorating the nation's independence from the United Kingdom on 15 August 1947, the day when the provisions of the Indian Independence Act, which transferred legislative sovereignty to the Indian Constituent Assembly, came into effect.

To celebrate Indian Independence Day, Tyspane Care Home residents, friends, families and staff  created traditional Indian paintings using paints, natural dyes and pigments made from plants and minerals. Techniques  included hand-painting and stencilling. Later that same afternoon, the activities team  performed their version of Tyspane Care Home Bhangra Dancing!  

The evening ended with a spicy, rich, flavourful meal made up of a number of different components, the spread  included flatbreads, curries, balti’s, biryani’s, rice, pickles and Tikka’s.

David (Resident Ambassador) stated, “Well, that was a bit spicy.”

James (Resident) replied, “Just hot enough.”

Lee (Resident) “You should try the Naga curry, three chilli rating!”

Residents, friends, families and staff are looking forward to discovering Indian cuisine at its finest.

A great photo album isn’t just about the layout, although that’s what we tend to focus on. It’s about so much more; the story, the theme, and the details. Photo albums make beautiful keepsakes, for one’s self or loved ones, they preserve memories easily accessible for future generations. So, imagine Tyspane Care Home Activities Team reaction when Doreen a wonderfully articulate, funny and extremely sociable lady shared her photo album of her earlier years. The photos captured her earlier years with her friends at carnivals, dances, charity events, coach trips, holiday camps and more. The pictures told many stories, conveyed emotions, moods and messages that evoked understanding that words couldn’t. Complex moments and fleeting expressions tell a story of a lady who loved life to the full, and still does. 

To keep this passion burning in Doreen residents, friends, families and staff hosted a party based on the events captured in her photo album, one of family gatherings, laughter, fun and plenty of dressing up!  Emily (Mini Concerts) performed an array of classic Rock and Roll songs for Doreen. Doreen and her daughter sang throughout the performance and new photographs and memories were made.

Doreen stated, “This has been such a wonderful surprise, thank you to everyone who made this happen.”

Patricia, “This reminds me of the old days, my type of entertainment, loved it.”

Michelle, “What a special afternoon.”

So, remember a photograph in an album keeps a moment from running away, it’s the pause button of life.