Monday, December 17, 2018

South Africa Ambassador



Exciting news to share! I have arranged for a Puzzle Time Chapter in South Africa. Nina Phillips, my South African piano teacher, will be our South African Puzzle Time Ambassador! Springbok's PuzzlesToRemember puzzles will be brought to the Western Cape of South Africa (Pretoria) tomorrow. We are thrilled that our intergenerational program will be pairing South African middle school kids and seniors. Please stay tuned for exciting pictures!

Puzzle Time Ambassadors

Here is how our Puzzle Time Program works, in 3 easy steps: 
1) form a group of students, scouts, religious group members
2) place the group in an Alzheimer's community
3) We train volunteers to solve jigsaw puzzles with the Alzheimer's residents
We are a nonprofit organization:
- Community service credit is provided for civic engagement
- Opportunities to win Leadership and Service Awards
- Enriching and empowering the lives of Alzheimer's patients!
For more volunteering opportunities and to become an Ambassador please email us! kidcaregivers@gmail.com

Tuesday, December 11, 2018

What Is Alzheimer's Disease?

Last week I read my mentor, Max Wallack's book: Why Did Grandma Leave Her Underwear In The Refrigerator? An Explanation About Alzheimer's Disease for Children It is based on my life with grandma, and Max's life with his great grams.The age group of my audience was 6-11 years of age.  They had many questions after I read the book.  One boy, who is quite smart, asked me the simple question: What causes Alzheimer's disease. Max's book gave a good example, but he wanted more information.  I searched the web, and found a great site: https://kidshealth.org/en/kids/alzheimers.html The answer to the boy's question was found at this site. In addition there are other common questions that kids have about Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia. I will create a bibliography of helpful books for kids.  If you have a book or resource that you think is helpful please share it with me!

Monday, December 10, 2018

Alzheimer's Patients Can Help You Study For A Test!

I had a very difficult test to take on Friday.  I needed to learn all of the spanish speaking countries, their capitals, classification and location on a map.  I created flash cards to study.  Grandma came to visit me. She found my flash cards, and kept reading them to me over and over and over again. People with Alzheimer's disease repeat things a lot, because they do not remember that they already made their comment.  It can be sometimes be annoying, and it is hard to not lose your patience. In this case, grandma's repetitive behavior was so helpful for me. It was like listening to a recording with all of the facts, needed for my test. 

Tips

1. Put notes from school on index cards.
2. Keep it simple.
3. Give it to your loved one to read out loud 
4. Listen carefully, and learn the stuff you need for your exam!