How to Get Money To Fund Your Projects

Fundraising for AC's seems to be a remit for the job, we are always fundraising for this or that for our homes and residents.
I recently have started down this road too. Although I am freelancer I do a lot of community based projects and collaborations with other organisations and have always funded them myself.

I began to look into fundraising   and to see what is out there for the taking and this is what I will share with you in this blog.

Grants- 

These are grants -money given for a project that you maybe planning or doing. This link has an amazing array of  different organisations that give out grants to people who work with those who have dementia. (copy and paste this link) 

http://involve.community/wp-content/uploads/sites/108/2017/01/Funding_for_Dementia_June_2016.pdf

Also if you are a freelancer and run  your own business you can apply to your local chamber of commerce for community grants to get funding for projects.

Go Fund Me Page-

Go fund me page is a world known website that you sign up to raise money for your projects and that great thing about this is you can link it with your social media and share it.

You can withdraw the money at anytime but do have to pay 5% charge to the Go Fund Me page for using there site , so I suggest  you ask for what you need plus 5% more to cover your project. There are no penalties or time scales either on this. 

A Bake-athon Baking can never go out of the British hearts, and so, a bake-athon is never a NO. The fact that most of the senior citizens have a rather good experience and the best kept secret recipes for cakes and bakes makes it a marvellous way to involve them, and raise funds with both sponsorship and sales. Abseiling It is certainly not as dangerous as sky-diving or paragliding. Abseiling is quite common as an adventure sport, and can be used as a fundraising idea simply by adding some level of difficulty to it. Get your friends to sponsor you. Sponsorship from an adventure sports store or company is not a bad deal either. Alumni Networking Luncheon Okay! No matter how similar it sounds to the previous idea, and no matter how high brow it sounds, it is actually worth it. Networking is absolutely good among the newer workforce. An alumni networking luncheon or dinner is conducive enough for alumni who work in the same or related fields. A rather engaging idea is to invite a speaker that interests the guests. You can ask for donations or voluntary involvement of any kind for the cause. Animal Dress-up Well, this is just a cousin of the ever so popular fancy dress. Not only do the children love it, the adults might find it amusing too (just don’t overdo it). You could get sponsorships easily; the registration fee will also add to the funds. If it is a success once, make it an annual feature. Animal Show You can’t miss on this one if you are supporting this type of cause. And, you can do it with the help of the charity that you support. Organise a show that brings the public, especially children closer to these animals, and teaches them about the challenges they face. Just make sure that the animals don’t get distressed. The tickets will help you fundraise with ease. Annual Collection It is like a piggy bank thing. You can either do it on an individual or familial basis, or on community basis. Just devote a donation box, and keep making donations every now and then when you come across an unspent pence or a pound in your pocket. Encourage your family to do the same. Arm Wrestling Competition No matter how much of an anachronism it sounds, arm wrestling competitions are still something that the pub goers may interest themselves in. So, get some sports buffs who support different teams. Charge them for competing with one another. Bands’ Battle for Charity This is one of the most fun and popular ideas.Not only does it raise funds in the most interesting way to do your bit for charity, but also gives a chance to the local artists to present their talent to the public. Wait! What’s the best thing about this one? Since so many groups of people are involved, it is easy to get more sponsorship. All you need to do is make arrangements for venue and logistics. And you are good to go. The tickets, along with donations will fetch you enough funds. Book Sale Ask your school, your family, your neighbour, and friends to donate books that they no longer read.These can then be sold to raise funds for education. Want to know the best part? It not only raises funds, but also fosters the habit of reading. Bring and Buy Sales Well, if you can gather enough of sellable things from your attics or from your neighbours’, you can do some good charity fundraising by putting up a sale.You could invite others for a stall at a minimal charge. Buddy Nights At a buddy night, you invite a buddy or friend for interacting and playing with the team that you support. If so many like you can do this, the funds thus raised can be remarkable. And it gets even better when the support increases this way. Busking Do you play an instrument, sing, or can you entertain? Then this could be for you. You only need to find a well populated area, make a sign, and start fundraising! Cake Sale Yes, you read that right! Its for a reason that we use the idiom “sells like hot cakes” because cakes definitely do sell. With just a pinch of decoration, and some delicious homemade cakes, some good cash is flowing your way. Choose a festive time of the year, for people are likely to buy more at such times. If not that, candies, crafts, etc., also make for great sales. Charity Auction Here’s the deal!Get the local businessmen to make donations to support you; garther a lot of goodies, arrange for an event, sell tickets, get refreshments in place, and auction. It may be a lot to do, but when you see the amount of donations that pour in, it is certainly worth it. Charity Car Wash If you like to have a little fun with water, you will certainly find this idea the easiest way to fundraise. Along with many more volunteers like you, choose a community place, a parking lot, or a door to door option, offer to wash cars for a reasonable charge, and you will see people flocking to get it done. Not a very novel idea, but a lucrative one indeed. Charity Film Night Organise a location, get a projector, and have a movie night! Fundraise via entry donations and selling movie snacks; popcorn, sweets and drinks, will go down well too. Christmas Card Sale Nothing beats this one when it comes to Christmas season. As an annual fundraising idea, it really works. You can either get the cards online for very cheap, or let your creativity loose, and go for making them on your own. But, there is one thing for sure – these will sell. Christmas Carols Despite the fact that the tradition of singing carols to spread the spirit of Christmas is age-old, it never fails to work. And it can work for your favourite charity too. And you can make it hi-tech this time. Instead of taking donations from door-to-door in cash, you can just ask them to do it online there and then at you charity’s website. It certainly sounds more authentic than cash donations and, thus is likely to get you more funds. Collect Some Jewellery Involve your neighbours, friends, and family – everyone you can – and get them to donate old jewellery that they no longer wear. You surely will get some stunning pieces for which you can hold a car trunk auction. But wait, don’t just sell the jewellery as you get it. Package it well, and make it look like new before you auction it. Come dine with me for charity Everyone has seen the TV programme so why not invite a group of friends to set themselves against each other in a Come dine with me competition. Get 4 groups of 4 to compete, with everyone putting in £25. The winner from each group of 4 then plays in a grand final with the winner receiving £100 and the rest going to charity. Participants can create a blog and give weekly updates on the competition, including photos and any kitchen disasters or triumphs! Competitions for Easter Festive times are a good for setting up fundraising events. There’s a range of options and you can actually let your imagination come up with some great fundraising ideas. You could have the local school engaged in this; you could choose from Easter egg painting or bonnet making. Simply make a budget that will go into the making, levy an entry fee, and arrange a donated prize for the winner. If you have the knack, you may as well go for a raffle, to keep the expenses low and profits high. Customised Wristbands Colourful wristbands that have people’s names on them are a fun and interesting way to collect funds. The best part is that these also create awareness about your religious cause. You can buy those at local stores for a pretty reasonable price when you buy wholesale. So, every Sunday, you can have people buy these with their names on it. Dancing Lessons You can really find something good in people who have two left feet. You will also find people in your religious group who like to put their boogie shoes on. Rope them in for instructing, sell some tickets and let the learners mingle with the dancers that you chose. Charge a registration or a lesson free from the learners, and voila! You will be fundraising in no time. Darts Match All you need is a dart board, darts and some space. You may find these at a local pub, and they might be willing to sponsor it, as its likely to help with drink sales too. Or, if you find your own place you could raise further funds by charging for drinks. Denounce a Vice May it be alcohol, or smoking, or junk food, or whatever you think is bad for you, convince the people of your community to sponsor you, and the ones who are with you in this, to denounce a vice. You could have one sponsor each day for giving it up for a certain period. Displaying BMX Bikes You’re sure to find a sizeable number of local kids with BMX bikes in the parks around you. Get them around to organise a display of their bikes, and maybe some tricks. Make it a fundraising event; market it; put a ticket for people to see it; and see decent funds coming in. Dog Walking Talk to your neighbours and see who you can help for a small donation. As well as fundraising for your cause you would be helping your neighbours, and is a great chance to foster community relations, catch up or meet new people. Dog Wash Dogs are by far the most popular pets in the UK and world over. If you support a cause that cares for dogs, you can organise a dog wash. Do it for a small charge, and dog owners will rush to you. If you could get sponsored by a pet shop, you can also add dog grooming to your service. Easter Egg Delivery Fundraiser If you wish to do something novel this time; something more than just painting Easter eggs, you can take orders for painting the ones filled with sweets to be delivered at clients’ doorsteps for an Easter morning surprise for their children. It doesn’t take much more effort than painting, but does fetch more donations. Eco Fines This one you can do at work as well as at home. But make sure that you have supporting people around your before you do this. Every time someone does something that is not eco-friendly (leaving the lights/computer on, leaving the taps running, printing unnecessary emails, using fresh papers for rough drafts) you could give them a small fine, which you can donate at the end of the month. Egg Painting You can put up a stall pre Easter, selling painted Easter eggs. People love buying those. You could even get sponsored from a local bakery or a restaurant. All you need is the raw material and a creative idea. Extreme Fundraising This is one for the thrill seekers. Take a favourite leisure activity to the extreme, or try something you haven’t done before – all in the name of raising funds for your favourite cause. There is quite a lot of choice – although this may come down to what you can do near you. Have a look online and start fundraising! Get Your Silence Sponsored Get your teachers, or some other organisation to sponsor an hour or more of silence. If you usually make a lot of noise, it could make others happy and you will do your bit for your cause. Getting an Idea Sponsored Well, it may be a more difficult choice than raising funds with other methods, but if you have the conviction it can work out pretty well. The pro is that you can be imaginative. Getting sponsorship for a walkathon, a flash mob, or a silence march, whatever you think best conveys your message can work well. One point to watch out for, you will have to be really good with selling skills so that you can get a sponsor. Give Away the Best Seat in the House When your team’s next match comes up, you can get one of the local stores or an acquaintance to donate a comfy couch. Now put up a raffle for this best seat in the house. This is prize that students will never want to lose. This can be a regular fundraising idea each season. Happy Hour for the Alumni It can really pay off to have contacts with the alumni from school and college. If you have lots of alumni you are in good terms with, send out invitations for a happy hour. Make sure that the word is spread as far and wide as possible. Since the pub that you choose as the venue is going to see tremendous sales for the chosen evening, ask them for a sponsorship. If the gathering is small, it is a good idea to ask for donations. But, if it is a large one, tickets and raffle is going to be lucrative as a quick fundraising idea for schools. Jog-athon Jog-athons work with sponsorships. Get each covered mile sponsored from different sponsors. That makes getting sponsorships easy. Doing this by convincing a gym, or shoe store is a unique fundraising idea. Jumble Sale A jumble sale can be done on any Sunday. All you have to do is inform people about the event. On the day of the event, you just need a few tables and a few people who can manage the money. People are usually generous at doing this, so you can turn this fundraising idea into a regular feature. Karaoke People of all ages love karaoke. All you have to do rent a karaoke machine, and hold a fund raising event in a local pub, or even in your backyard. Sell tickets for people to enter the contest, and see how you can have hearty fun while fundraising. Lawn Mowing If you can do it for your parents, you can do it for some charity cash too. Just make some fliers to let people know that you can mow their lawn for a tiny charge which goes for the environmental cause. People are likely to pay generously. Marathon Events for All This one has never been beaten. Marathons for football, tennis, table tennis, badminton, or any sport that interests a lot of people can work for you. Get sponsorships from sports related sponsors, hire a place, and get ready for raising some massive funds. Nature Trails Ever discovered the nature trails in your area? Well, you could be a guide for a good reason. Charge a nominal amount from people who wish to go for treks or nature watch. Surely a good way to support your cause. Obstacle Course Event This one here is much more interesting than any race. It is a race, but at the same time it is much more than that – a real test of talent and timing that is much more exciting and rewarding. Also, as far as the psychological reaction of the public is concerned, it is more so the case that the more special the task, the higher the willingness for participation. Not only can you charge a registration fee, but also bag sponsorship. Tickets for those who wish to see the match will raise a lot of revenue. A bonus? The refreshments that you can sell during the event. Old Book Sale Throwing away old books is never great for the environment. What you can do instead is collect old books for sale– literature, science, magazines, comics – and sell them. Repair the ones that have turned shabby; recycle the ones that cannot be used. This will help you raise some good funds for your cause! Packing at the Supermarket This is a fundraising idea that does involve some labour, but it can be done nonetheless. Contact one of your local supermarkets prior to Christmas. They see a lot of business at this time of the year, so an extra helping hand is always welcome. You cannot only donate the money thus earned but can also ask the customers for donations for your charity, with the employer’s permission of course. Paint Me Pretty If you wish to take painting a notch higher, face painting is what you do.Children love it, and it is much more interesting than painting the canvas. Just a little creative effort in marketing the competition, and participants will be swarming around you. You can easily convince a local art and crafts store to sponsor you. You can also levy an entry fee, add in some snacks and beverages to the event, and funds are what you are going to raise. Payroll Donations An incredible fundraising idea fosters the spirit of donating on an organisational level. If you own a company, a store, or any business that involves employees, you can float a program that lets them donate via payroll. As soon as their salaries are credited, the donations will be legally transferred for charity. The best part is that they do not have to pay taxes on it. Pet show Pet owners love to show off here, and win some accolades for their cherished pet. Chances are, if you try approaching a local pet shop for sponsorship, the results would be positive. Just do some brainstorming for finding unique ideas for titles – like the laziest dog, or the heftiest cat, and the show is sure to get popular as an annual fundraiser. Photography If you have the affinity for shutters and lenses, you can raise some good charity money out of it. Make yourself useful in the holidays; click those who would like an instant photo; and raise your funds. Plant Sale Make sure that you do it in is a season that is ideal for planting. For that, you will have to sow a variety of seeds in advance, and prepare the saplings in time. Not only will it help you fundraise, but it will also help the environment in the long run. Race for Funds Races – you could craft any kind with your imagination. If sack race and egg race are too old for you, try wheelchair races, or stiletto races, or slow races or any ingenious race that comes to your mind. The point is that they are amusing, easy to do, take very few resources, and attract a lot of people. Charge a registration fee, get prizes sponsored, and you are good to go. Recycle Recycling cans can be a good idea. Most recycling units pay for the cans; just pick up the cans littered around in your area, and turn them in for recycling. One more thing, it will help make your surroundings cleaner. Runathon How about an annual school runathon, when all the children head outside with scorecards round their necks and they run laps set up by teachers. They run as many laps as possible in 45 minutes, and no matter what the weather is, they run. Thanks to John Quinn from Nathan Timothy Foundation ‘The Songwriting Charity’ for submitting this idea. Running Challenges You stay fit when you run alone; you feel close when you run with company. So, a sponsored community run could be the fundraising idea that you need to bring the community closer together. Scented Pencils Sometimes known as smencils, these scented pencils are pretty popular as a fundraiser. You can buy these wholesale for a cheaper price, and then sell them for a reasonable price to students. Not only are these attractive but also eco friendly. As an idea for charity for education, this is a quite favourite one. Scrip It simply means substituting money, and this kind of charity fundraiser works very well for schools, non-profit organisations and religious causes as well. It usually goes something like this – churches, schools, and other non-profit organisations buy vouchers from certain retailers at a discount. These are then passed on to supporters at a little higher price for buying services or goods from those very retailers. As the charity bought it for a comparatively lesser price than the one it is sold for to the supporters, this can be quite a great source of funds for charities, and is almost an offline version of TheGivingMachine! Sell Your Skills The best part of this is that the work involved is varied. Just convince people to stay one extra hour, or to come in early and teach one special skill like cooking, baking, knitting, playing guitar, dancing, or whatever talent you can find at work. Colleagues who wish to learn can pay a nominal fee each week, and that is the amount that goes for charity. There are so many things you can do. You can even have collection tins dotted around the building throughout the year to collect for your residents fund.  Until next time keep shining and remember your worth. Do you like what I have shared?   Let me know and also I have created an online AC Academy that gives you support with all the challenges you face. www.actasticacademy.com. Don't Be Alone! Come connect with me on FB and be part of my online community of fellow AC's at  www.facebook.com/groups/lovejoycentregroup Sign up  to go on my mailing list and get my FREE  ebook: "10 Top Tips for Engaging and Stimulating Activities With The Elderly"  Please click below: http://eepurl.com/Iw9p1 Until next time, keep shining. Love, Ann Marie x p.s I have a Go Fund Me page as I am raising money  to provide dementia therapy rabbits if you could  donate or share my page  I would be grateful - www.gofundme.com/dementia-therapy-rabbits-bunnery Source of blog content taken from https://www.thegivingmachine.co.uk/fundraising-ideas

Ideas For Your Busy September and October Activity Schedule

Hello, I just can't believe how quick this year is going and how quickly we are entering into the busiest time of the year for AC's  worldwide. So as I was  sharing with my online community of wonderful AC's  this morning , I thought why not help everyone out and do this as a blog.

Here are some key dates that you may wish to cover and ideas of what you can do. I must say don't always feel compelled to cover every date or feel discouraged if your home activities schedule is different to everyone else's. You have to remember every care home is unique and different, has a budget, or has no budget and  every AC has their own personal flare and style.

Make sure you use your notice boards to display your work and keep it looking up to date and fresh, as this is what visitors and residents first see in the home.

 

Key Dates For September

International Talk Like A Pirate Day - Tuesday 19/09/17

You can have lots of fun for this one . You could have a competition to see who sounds like a pirate the most. You could use the following list  for phrases.

Pirate Terms and Phrases

If you think that there are only a few pirate terms and phrases to learn, you are absolutely mistaken! After reading this list, you will see that there is quite a bit more to speaking pirate than running around and say "Aargh!"

All hands hoay=Everyone get on the deck

• Avast ye=Pay attention
• Black spot=Death threat
• Dance the hempen jig=To hang someone
• Dungbie=Rear end
• Hempen halter=The noose used to hang people
• Hornswaggle=To cheat
• Shiver me timbers=An expression used to show shock or disbelief
• Abaft=Back area of the boat
• Binnacle=Where the compass is kept on board the ship
• Cackle fruit=Chicken eggs
• Coaming=A surface that prevented water on the deck from dripping to lower levels of the ship
• Duffle=A sailor's belongings
• Head=Toilet on board the ship
• Holystone=Sandstone that was used to scrub the ships
• Jacob's Ladder=Rope ladder that was used to climb aboard ships
• Monkey=Small cannon
• Monkey jacket=Short jacket worn by some of those aboard the ship
• Orlop=Deck where cables are stored away
• Poop deck=Deck that is the highest and farthest back
• Cockswain=The helmsman
• Flibustier=Pirates of the Golden Age
• Freebooter=Refers to an actual pirate
• Landlubber=A person who is not incredibly skilled at sea
• Powder monkey=A gunner's assistant
• Black jack=Large drinking cups
• Davy Jones' Locker=Refers to death
• Ahoy=Hello
• Ahoy, matey=Hello, friend
• Batten down the hatches=A signal to prepare the ship for an upcoming storm
• Blimey!=Something said when one is in a state of surprise
• Blow the man down=A command which means to kill somebody
• Booty=Treasure
• Buccaneer=Name for a pirate
• Crow's nest=The place on the ship where the lookout stand is built
• Cutlass=Type of sword used by the pirates
• Feed the fish=Meaning that an individual or group of individuals will soon die
• Heave ho=Instruction to put some strength into whatever one is doing
• Jolly Roger=The famous pirate flag with a skull and crossbones on it
• Man-O-War=The name used for a pirate ship that is all set and ready to go to war
• Old salt=A sailor that has a great deal of experience on the seas
• Privateer=Pirates who are sponsored by the government
• Scallywag=A name that is used as an insult to someone
• Scuttle=To sink a ship
• Seadog=An old sailor or pirate
• Shark bait=Going to die soon
• Thar she blows!=An expression used when a whale is spotted from the ship
• Son of a biscuit eater=An insult
• Three sheets to the wind=Someone who is quite drunk
• Walk the plank=A punishment which entails someone who walks over the side of the ship off of the plank. Their hands are often tied so that they cannot swim and they drowned.
• Yo Ho Ho=There is often used to express some sort of cheer but also can be used to call attention to the speaker.

You might be surprised to see some of the items on this list. In fact, certain expressions have made their way into every day life. For example, people often say "Three sheets to the wind" about a drunk person at a party or they will call a rascal a "scallywag." Learning about how languages blend into each other is extremely interesting.

Have a fancy dress competition or if you work in a large facility have a competition to see  who could do the best pirate display on the notice board on their floor and get the residents to judge.   

Use this link for loads of wonderful ideas that you can easily adapt to use with your residents.

http://fun-a-day.com/activities-for-a-preschool-pirate-theme

International  Peace Day 

 This maybe a day you wish to observe with your residents , it is actually a wonderful topic that you can use for a reminiscence session and derive lots of conversation threads.

What is International Peace Day?

 The International Day of Peace, sometimes unofficially known as World Peace Day, is a holiday observed annually on 21 September. It is dedicated to world peace, and specifically the absence of war and violence, such as might be occasioned by a temporary ceasefire in a combat zone for humanitarian aid access.

It is a day that the United Nations celebrate to also honour the achievements of those whose accomplishments helped to bring peace to the world. 

Activity Ideas-

You could create a peace collage  featuring a dove.

Plant a peace garden with your residents.

Plan a reminiscence session talking about how life was after peace when WW2 ended.

Have a coffee morning and sell cakes to raise funds for your home to celebrate world peace day.

Print off  pictures to colour .

Make a peace tree and get the residents to write their thoughts or wishes on the leaves and then stick those onto your tree you make.

International World Alzheimer's  Awareness Day 21/09/17-

This really should be celebrated especially if you are a dementia home and it is a day to raise the profile of Alzheimer's Disease, awareness and raise money for research.

Activity Ideas

 Download for FREE resources you can use and put up in your home , use the link below to print off posters and information  from https://www.worldalzmonth.org

Talk to your local Alzheimer Charity  worker to arrange for them to come in and give a talk.

 Invite the community into your home to a Dementia Friends talk,  again contact your local Dementia Friends group to arrange a Dementia Friend to pop along to give an informal chat about dementia and Alzheimer's Disease. 

Definitely do a reminiscence session with your residents on any topic they want  or what you think would suit their needs.

Contact your local library or museum for a loan of their reminiscence boxes and there is a low cost for these, in some cases the library staff will come out to do a reminiscence session.

Make  cup cakes by doing a  baking session and have a coffee morning and raise funds to donate to the Alzheimer's society and your care home too.

Harvest Festival  23-29/09/17

I have prepared a cheat sheet for you to help you out as you enter September-

Interesting Facts To Share To Create Reminiscence  Discussion Threads-

Harvest festival use to be celebrated on the 1st of August and called Lammas meaning loaf mass, Farmers made loaves of bread from the new wheat crop and gave them to the local churches who would use them as communion bread during a thanksgiving mass.


The custom ended when King Henry VIII  broke away from the Catholic Church, and nowadays harvest festivals are done at the end of the season.


Traditionally the end of the harvest was celebrated with a big meal , harvest supper, which would be eaten on Michaelmas Day.

At the start of the harvest, villages would appoint a strong, respected man of the village as their 'Lord of the Harvest'. He would be responsible for negotiating wages and providing workers to work in the field.And the 'Lord of the Harvest' would sit at the head of the table.


Michaelmas Day-

Michaelmas Day is the feast day of Saint Michael the Archangel, who threw the devil out of heaven.
He is also regarded as the saint of the sea, maritime and horses and horseman. the day is celebrated 29th of September which is harvest festival day.

Michaelmas day is also known as goose day. Goose fairs are still held in some English towns, but geese are no longer sold.A famous Goose Fair is held in Nottingham on the 3rd of October each year.
Goose was the main bird to dine on on Michaelmas day and was a custom.

It is said that Queen Elizabeth I was eating goose when news of the defeat of the Armada was brought to her on Michaelmas day and she declared she will henceforth  would always eat goose on that day and everyone followed suit.

Superstitions

It is believed that when the devil was kicked out of heaven he fell on brambles and cursed the fruit of the plant and it is believed to be bad luck to eat blackberries after Michaelmas Day.

Also it is believed if you eat goose on Michaelmas Day you will not lack money  all year.

Also if the breast bones of the goose are brown after roasting the following winter should be mild, but if the bones are white or have a slight blue hue  then the winter will be severe.

In Ireland if you find a ring  hidden in a Michaelmas pie it  is meant that one would soon be married.

Corn Dolly

A corn dolly  was supposed to be have been the spirit of the corn goddess and dates back hundreds of years.It is believed in order to keep the spirit of the corn goddess alive and have a harvest next year they would keep back some corn.
Hence corn dolls where created with this belief.

Some Activity Suggestions For You-

Make A Michaelmas Pie!

If you happen to live where blackberries grow wild, why not take advantage of their abundance at this time of year and gather as many as you can for making crumbles, jam....and Michaelmas Pie!



Ingredients:
12 oz plain flour, sifted
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
3 oz white vegetable fat or lard
3 oz chilled butter, diced
3 fl oz chilled water
pinch salt
2 lbs cooking apples
2 oz sugar
1 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground nutmeg
12 oz) blackberries
1 egg, beaten



Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 180 C, 350 F, Gas 4.
1. Prepare the pastry. Place the flour in a large bowl and stir in the cinnamon and salt. Rub in the butter and white fat with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Make a well in the centre and add the chilled water. Bring the mixture together using a round bladed knife. Once it has come together, knead for a brief moment and place in a plastic bag in the fridge. Leave to rest for 30 minutes.

2. Peel and core the apples. Cut them into large chunks and place them in a saucepan with the sugar, cloves and nutmeg. Cover with a lid and gently cook for 5 minutes, until the apples have softened. Fold in the blackberries and remove the saucepan from the heat. Cool completely.

3. Remove the pastry from the fridge and roll out two thirds on a lightly floured surface. Line an 8-inch metal pie plate. Prick the base of the pastry with a fork. Strain the fruit, reserving the juices and spoon the fruit mixture over. Roll out the remaining pastry. Lay the pastry over the fruit. Lift back the edge and brush the base with a little egg and seal the edge. Trim and crimp the pastry edges. Brush the surface with the remaining egg and make a couple of slits in the top. Scatter a little more sugar over the pastry and bake for 35 minutes. Serve hot or cold with ice cream or fresh double (whipping) cream.



Create your own Harvest Festival Display-

Ask your residents, their family, staff and friends to create your own Harvest Display by donating   vegetables, tins of food, corn etc.
Once you have finished displaying it you can donate it to the local church or local food banks for distribution.


Make your own Fab Wall Display-

Make something like this picture example, using leaf prints, paper, paint etc. This could be done over a few sessions with your residents.

Make your own harvest wheat sheaf !

YOU WILL NEED:

A large baking tray ( the biggest your oven can take anyway)

A pair of scissors

That is all

INGREDIENTS

700g strong white bread flour

10g instant dried yeast

10g salt

5g sugar

450ml cold water

3 egg yolks ( for glazing and sticking)

METHOD FOR DOUGH:

Mix all the dry ingredients together, then gradually beat in the water until you get a nice firm dough and the bowl is clean with no dough sticking to the sides, if your dough feels too wet or tacky add a touch more flour, if it’s too dry and not very malleable add a bit more water.

Tip onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a couple of minutes until you have a nice clean ball of dough. Leave to rest for 10 minutes somewhere cool, then split the dough into two, keep one-quarter for the base and three-quarters for the decoration on top.

Thanksgiving Service-

Hold your own thanksgiving service with hymns and share poems and get the residents to share why they are thankful.

 October- Halloween

The main theme day for October is Halloween. A lot of elderly people do not want to celebrate this and some people find it frightening .

All be it, it can be a very scary time with the costumes and scary masks that will be about , especially for people with dementia.
So bearing this in mind, I would suggest that you can include some nice interactive activities that mark the occasion in a befitting manner and gets everyone involved.
Please do not put up grave yard pictures or back drops very in appropriate or scary costumes or masks.
It is of great importance that people in care homes are aware the seasons for their orientation of time and seasons, and that they know where we are in the year.

Here are a few suggested ideas-

Traditions

Share the origins of traditions of Halloween, do your research on the internet.
This is an excellent resource  http://projectbritain.com/Halloween/history.htm

Food

Halloween-themed food is fun, easy to make, and perfect for entertaining groups of elderly people, large or small. Bake cupcakes and have them decorate them with orange and black icing. Provide sprinkles and candy corn for decoration as well to make the project even more festive! You could also bake sugar cookies and have the group cut out the dough with Halloween-shaped cookie cutters before baking and decorating them. Candy apples are even easier; just melt caramel, put some apples on sticks, and dip.

Games

There are plenty of game options for seniors that are amazing for Halloween. Halloween Bingo is a great choice for the elderly. You can cute out Halloween themed pieces and use them for the Bingo card. Memory games are another great option for the elderly. Have you ever played games of concentration with a child? Kids seem to be better at recalling matching cards than adults, and games of concentration can be exceptionally challenging for the elderly. The suits, numbers, or colors can be declared as matches to make the games easier, and an entire deck of cards or partial decks can be used, depending on the difficulty level desired. Two decks of matching cards can be used together to create exact matches and larger memory games. Obviously, the fewer number of cards used in conjunction, the easier the memory games for the elderly players.

Craft Activities

There are numerous activities the elderly community may partake in during the Halloween season. Pumpkin painting is extremely fun and interactive for seniors. Pumpkin painting is a classic Halloween activity for all ages. It works well for the elderly because there is less need to use fine motor skills.

Cards and card making is another great Halloween activity. Set up a Halloween card-making craft activity. Making Halloween cards allows the seniors to connect with distant relatives and friends. Provide card materials in black, orange and purple. Include decorative scrapbook papers with a Halloween pattern along with Halloween stickers, ribbon and scrapbook embellishments.

Providing pre-cut Halloween shapes is a good idea if the participating seniors aren't able to cut easily with scissors. The elderly participants glue the shapes onto the card stock base to create the cards.

Halloween Reminiscence Mat Game

Last year I created a Halloween friendly reminiscence game mat which you can use with groups, each persons has a go at throwing a bean bag onto the mat and it has very non scary questions on it, like did you ever go trick or treaty?

I have a few in stock if your interested email me at lovejoycentregmail.com

Pumpkin Carving

You can get a few pumpkins and get the residents to help scoop out the insides and draw on the front of them and then you cut out either a face or a pattern.

Also I have created a reminiscence mat that can be used at Halloween that talks of old traditions and historical facts , this is a good resource to use. If you would like one to purchase email me at  lovejoycentre@gmsil.com.

Until next time keep shining and remember your worth. Do you like what I have shared? 

 Let me know and also I have created an online AC Academy that gives you support with all the challenges you face. www.actasticacademy.com.

Don't Be Alone!
Come connect with me on FB and be part of my online community of fellow AC's at  www.facebook.com/groups/lovejoycentregroup

Sign up  to go on my mailing list and get my FREE  ebook: "10 Top Tips for Engaging and Stimulating Activities With The Elderly" 

Please click below:
http://eepurl.com/Iw9p1

Until next time, keep shining.
Love,
Ann Marie x

p.s I have a Go Fund Me page as I am raising money to provide dementia therapy rabbits if you could donate or share my page  I would be grateful -

www.gofundme.com/dementia-therapy-rabbits-bunnery

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What To Do When You Run Out Of Ideas

What To Do When You Run Out Of Ideas 

So your thoughts of themes and activity ideas for your residents  have ran out  and you scream what do I do? Not to worry help is at hand. 

Firstly, you need to plan. I mention this a lot in the AC Tastic Academy, if you have a plan you will always win and succeed. So the first thing is go with the themes of the year, public holidays and special days. Sit down and plan in advance for the year, yes, the WHOLE year. Because that way you can see the up coming national holidays and themes that maybe of interest to your residents, book any entertainment in advance and plan your sessions you are facilitating and what items you need in advance. So now is the time to go buy your 2018 diary.

Use your diary or year planner to plan also to find out international celebration days use https://www.daysoftheyear.com

 Refer to your AC  wall planner if you have one that I created, I done the hard work for you and listed the main days of interest that you and your residents can celebrate. Also take time to talk and ask your residents what they like both as a group and individually. Incorporate this into your weekly or monthly activity schedule. 
So for example, if they like gardening you can plan some plant potting activities for them to do or those who are mobile could take part in an outdoor garden project like planting vegetables and herbs. 

Outside Entertainment 

Do some research and go by recommendation when asking various people offering entertainment for your residents , check them out online, read reviews and check they are DBS Checked. 

You have singers, pet therapy groups, reminiscence, art, pottery, a multitude of people offering activities that your residents would enjoy, contact local groups in advance like dance schools, brownies etc to come in and spend time with your residents and it's FREE. 

Research the Internet, look at Pinterest for inspiration, sign up for newsletters that give you activity ideas, look for freebies of information online. 

Look in my Face book group files section for tons of information and activity ideas! If your not in my group join, it's free and there is tons of FREE activity information available to you. www.facebook.com/groups/lovejoycentregroup 

It's all in the planning and booking in advance for your activities and not leaving it to the last minute. 

Plan outings- either monthly or quarterly as a group and those who can access the community with you take them out regularly, even if it's just a walk to the local park. Finally make sure that all activities planned are stimulating, enjoyable and person centered. 

Your  Action Plan 

Plan, Plan,Plan!!!! 
Use The AC Tastic Academy Year Planner for ideas. 

Make good use of your notice boards to create effective display that showcase your resident's work.

Interact with others online or local to you for inspiration. 
Most importantly engage with your residents and find out what they want. 

Whatever your resident's resonate with as an activity, incorporate it into your schedule regularly. 

It's autumn now so we are getting into a great part of the year nature provides lots of activity materials and inspiration for you to do activity sessions with your residents. 
Here are a few ideas-

Go out gather  up beautiful leaves use them as templates for leaf rubbings.

Make a wall tree picture and the leaves could represent something to each resident.

Make leaf wreaths.

Pick blackberries and raspberries and make crumble or jam.

Start to prepare for Christmas  as we go into the last quarter of the year .

It is always vitally important to ensure that residents are oriented by what season we are in by the activities we do , it helps to orientate them and trigger memories.

Lots to be getting on with.

Until next time keep shining and remember your worth. Do you like what I have shared? 

 Let me know and also I have created an online AC Academy that gives you support with all the challenges you face. www.actasticacademy.com.

Don't Be Alone!
Come connect with me on FB and be part of my online community of fellow AC's at  www.facebook.com/groups/lovejoycentregroup

Sign up  to go on my mailing list and get my FREE  ebook: "10 Top Tips for Engaging and Stimulating Activities With The Elderly" 

Please click below:
http://eepurl.com/Iw9p1

Until next time, keep shining.
Love,
Ann Marie x