Planning for Activities

• Match the person's strengths.
• Match the person's level of ability.
• Accompany the person during the process.
• Give encouragement and praise.
• Provide proper cues or assistance only when needed, so that the person will have more initiative and satisfaction.
• Schedule activities at the same time every day to build up a habit for the person.
• Show respect and appreciation for the person's effort by putting away or disassembling the person's work only after he or she leaves.
• Keep the person safe. Avoid activities that involve vigorous movements, small sized material, and sharp tools.

Catch the person's attention

1. Make sure the person can see your face.
2. Make sure the person is feeling well.
3. Do reality orientation. Introduce yourself and say the date, time, and place first.
4. Example:
   • "Mom, I am looking for you. I am your daughter, May. It is two o'clock in the afternoon."

Take care of the person's concerns

1. Use the validation approach to make the person feel calm and relaxed (introduced in "Verbal Skills").
2. Example:
   • The person says, "I have to make dinner."
   • The caregiver could reply, "Are you thinking of you granddaughter, Mary? You love her so much. She will have dinner with friends, so you don't have to cook for her. She just wants you to stay here and enjoy yourself."

Invite the person to join activities

1. Invite the person with friendly phrases, such as "Can you join me?, " "Can you do it with me? " and "Can you help me? "
2. Introduce the activity with simple words.
3. Calm the person down first, then give a reason and persuade the person to join in.
4. Example:
   • "She will be back at seven o'clock. I am looking for somebody to sing with me. Can you join me?"

Provide appropriate assistance

1. Do not correct, judge, or criticize the person.
2. Accompany the person and give praise and encouragement.
3. Encourage the person to finish each step independently. Provide verbal cues first if needed, and help the person only when it is necessary.

Give positive feedback

1. Praise the person appropriately when he or she finishes the activity.
2. Do not overstate the effort put forward by the person or offer praise as if he or she is a child.
3. Encourage the person with body touches, such as holding his or her hand or patting his or her shoulder or back.
4. Example:
   • "It looks great! I like the red here most!"
   • "You really worked hard on this! See how straight this line is!"

Invite the person to join another activity

1. Invite the person to join another activity if the person is feeling good and has enough energy.
2. Take a break or suggest a snack or a visit to the toilet if needed.
3. Example:
   • "Mom, let's have some tea and a snack before we do something else."
   • "Are you feeling a little tired? Do you want to take a nap first?"

Utilize things that the person is familiar with

Example: Cloth, knitting wool, paper, food, music, and proverbs.

Arrange activities the person can understand or is familiar with

1. Utilize the abilities of the person to make an activity interesting.
2. Follow procedures the person is familiar with to avoid confusion.
3. Provide minimal cues and assistance to increase initiative and satisfaction.
4. Examples: Calligraphy, sorting, stringing, and using fortune wheels.

Arrange activities that the person can solve on their own

1. Allow the person to correct himself or herself.
2. Example: Puzzles.

Arrange activities that have repetitive steps and can continue with incorrect steps

1. Avoid confusion.
2. Prevent frustration.
3. Example: Knitting.

Avoid the use of written words

1. Use materials that can provide different sensory stimulations.
2. Examples: Drawing, cooking.

Display materials clearly

1. Lay out the materials from top to bottom and left to right as a cue.
2. Let the person see the material to raise their interest.
3. Example: Use transparent plastic boxes to hold materials.

Be careful with the size, shape, and colour of materials

1. Be concerned about safety issues when choosing materials.
2. Use size, shape, and colour to help the person identify and use the correct materials.
3. Example: Use bigger and more colourful materials.