JUNE 2011 - SUMMER SUN AND FUN

Bright sunshine, clear blue skies, and an occasional white puffy cloud are the ingredients for a perfect summer day. A new season officially starts on June 21, and most people are eager to enjoy the warm, sunny days ahead. Summertime is full of simple family activities, like walking the dog, playing catch, weeding the flower garden, or eating an ice cream cone. Your group of older adults will be eager to share some pleasant memories of the sunshine season. Here are some activities that will bring summer fun indoors.

Show vintage photographs of adults and children enjoying summer outdoor activities. (See Everyday Life Photos, a featured product for the month.) Ask: What do you like to do on a sunny day? How does sunshine make you feel? What's the hottest day you can remember? How did you spend summer days as a kid? Tell us about your outdoor adventures. Enjoy a sunny-day drink like iced tea or lemonade.
Listen to some "sun/sunshine" songs. Suggestions: "On the Sunny Side of the Street," "Sunrise Serenade," "Ain't No Sunshine," "Sunrise, Sunset," "Wait 'Til the Sun Shines, Nellie," "Open Up Your Heart and Let the Sunshine In," "Sunshine on My Shoulder."
Display photographs of colorful summer sunsets. Ask participants to describe the most beautiful sunset they've ever seen. Name some favorite places to see the sun set over the western horizon (ex: desert, tropics, beach). Paint a sunset with watercolors.
Discuss the meaning of the idiom "ray of sunshine." Ask: Who or what makes you happy? Tell us about a cheerful person in your life. Do you have a sunny disposition? What are some simple ways you can spread cheer or sunshine? Sing "You Are My Sunshine."
Display a large map of the United States and identify the Sun Belt states. Highlight Florida - "The Sunshine State." Gather items associated with Florida (ex: Disney souvenirs, oranges, seashells, white sand, key lime pie recipe, fishing equipment). Pass around old postcards with pictures of tourist attractions in Florida. Share memories of family vacations or trips to cities, such as Orlando, Miami, or Tampa. Sip on a tropical fruit smoothie.
Intergenerational: Read poems from A Child's Garden of Verses , a collection by Robert Louis Stevenson. Enjoy poems shared by many generations, such as "Summer Sun," "Nest Eggs," "The Flowers," or "The Sun's Travels." Color sunburst art.
Make a colorful suncatcher craft for windows. (See the ElderSong resource Crafts Through the Year for directions on making a Star Suncatcher.) Or, decorate plastic white sun visors or floppy sun hats.
Let the sun shine in. Display a cheerful bouquet of bright yellow flowers - lilies, daisies, and sunflowers. Talk about the feelings you associate with the color yellow.
Plan an old-fashioned summer picnic. Pull out the wicker picnic hamper and red-checkered tablecloth. Sample some classic American picnic foods. Talk about favorite places for a family picnic. Enjoy a group sing-along with "You're a Grand Old Flag," "In the Good Old Summertime," and "Wait 'Til the Sun Shines, Nellie." (See Sing-Along with ElderSong, Volume 2, a featured product for June.)
Invite a local speaker to talk about the uses and benefits of solar power/energy.
Show photos of a local early morning sunrise. Name some words associated with the picture (ex: morning, dawn, daybreak, sunup). Ask: Are you an early riser? How do you like to greet a new day? Did you ever have a job that required you to get up very early? Did you awaken surly or sunny? Agree or disagree with Ben Franklin's proverb: "Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise."
Unscramble words related to summer vacations (ex: souvenirs, camera, postcards, hotel, luggage, map, tickets, swimsuit, sandals, sundress, hats). Share memories of an unforgettable vacation spot. Talk about old-fashioned remedies for sunburn, mosquito bites, poison ivy, and bee stings.
Watch a favorite Disney movie from the 1960s that families may have seen at a drive-in movie theatre. (Suggestions: The Love Bug, The Shaggy Dog, That Darn Cat, Pollyanna) Ask participants to talk about the appeal of seeing a movie under the stars on a warm summer night.
Memory game: With your group, pack a large tote with beach items (ex: sunglasses, flops, suntan lotion, towel, pail and shovel, Frisbee, water bottle). Write a group poem about a trip to the ocean. Later in the session, ask your group to name the items in the tote.
Celebrate National Recreation and Parks Month in July. If available, watch some of Ken Burns' PBS series titled The National Parks: America's Best Idea. Share tips on enjoying a family outing to a national park, like Yosemite or Yellowstone.

More ideas for summer sun and fun can be found in the resources highlighted below.

Continue to look for upcoming editions of this newsletter the first day of each month. (Themes focus on the following month.) Our newsletter contains useful information to make your job of working with older adults more fulfilling. In this issue, you'll find the following:

Summer Sun and Fun
"Sun" Trivia Quiz
Featured Products for June
Thought for Month

SUMMER SUN AND FUN RESOURCES

Usher in the sunny season with nostalgic photographs of some favorite summertime games and activities. Use the ElderSong resource Everyday Life Photos: Children & Family Life . The collection is designed to help participants recall memories of everyday routines and occasions at home, work, or play. These photos from the Library of Congress highlight activities during the mid-20th century. The set includes the following items:

20 black-and-white vintage photographs on 8-1/2" x 11" card stock
Companion book with a detailed description of each photo (Things to Notice) and discussion questions on each topic (Questions to Ask)

Simply pass around the photograph in your group and ask some questions from the companion book. You can rekindle summertime memories with these pictures: Baseball, Beach Vacation, Dolls, Swimming, Marbles, or Soapbox Derby. Here's a sample:

"Monkey Bars" photograph (taken October 1942, Central Park, New York City) Questions to Ask:

Did you grow up in the city, a small town, or the country? Where did you play with your friends? What kinds of playground games did you enjoy? Was there a set of monkey bars or a jungle gym on the playground? Did you like to climb as a child? Where did you take your own children to play? Also available: Everyday Life Photos: A Grown-Up's World, (Sample topics related to summer: Picnic in the Park, Front Porch, Canning food, Victory Gardeners, Ice Cream in the Park) Baseball, the national pastime, is in full swing during the summer months. Remember the hours you spent collecting baseball trading cards? Did you ever manage to snag a card of a great player, like Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays, Yogi Berra, or Joe DiMaggio? How about getting an autographed baseball or an old jersey? Sports legends, movie stars, classic comedians, political figures, popular singers, and awesome artists - we're all fascinated with the lives of famous people. Capture some nostalgic memories of notable people of the mid-20th century with the ElderSong book Famous Folks: Trivia, Talk & Ticklers. The resource highlights key people in areas such as comedy, politics, business, music, movies, and sports. The ten-chapter book includes trivia quizzes, discussion and reminiscing questions, group activities, recall exercises, and a light humor section. You'll find ample ideas for your discussion and reminiscing groups. Here are some sample discussion questions and group activities from the chapter titled "All-Star Athletes":

Discussion: Athletes enjoy physical activity. What kinds of activity did you have in your family? Name some day-to-day chores - like running the vacuum, washing the car, mowing the lawn - which you enjoyed. Have modern appliances helped or hurt family fitness? What kinds of activity did you do in school - school yard running games, gym class, field days? How do you feel when you exercise? What are the health benefits of being physically active?

Group Activities: Read the baseball ballad "Casey at the Bat" by Ernest Lawrence Thayer or the classic baseball poem "Line-up for Yesterday" by Ogden Nash.

Hold a simple relay race. Divide your group into teams and seat each team in a row, side by side. Pass an object, like a balloon, down the row and see which team finishes first.

The weather always seems to be a favorite topic of conversation, especially when it's very hot or cold outdoors. Get your group started with Weather Talk Conversation Cards. The deck of 52 illustrated cards focuses on fun weather topics. Each card presents an interesting fact, and then poses an intriguing question for participants to answer. There are no right or wrong answers. Just pick a card and talk - no rules! Examples of questions: What do you think it would be like to celebrate Christmas during the summer? What is the longest period of non-stop rain you remember? What do you like to do when it rains? What is the strangest weather you've ever heard of? How would you prepare if you had to spend a day in the hot desert?

Summertime is full of picnics, campouts, and family reunions - all kinds of gatherings. An old-fashioned sing-along will get the gang going. Sing-Along with ElderSong, Volume 2, features recordings of 28 old songs in low, singable keys, with vocals. The set includes a large-print lyrics book (with extra books available at quantity discounts). Sing some favorites such as "The Band Played On," "In the Good Old Summertime," "In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree," "You're a Grand Old Flag," "Oh! Susanna," and "In My Merry Oldsmobile."

SUN TRIVIA QUIZ

The sun rises over which horizon? East
Which food is often prepared sunny-side up? Eggs
What kind of instrument was used to tell time before watches and clocks? Sundial
Sun Valley is a popular ski resort. In which state is it located? Idaho
Little Miss Sunbeam is the logo for which type of food product? White Bread
In which region of the United States is the Sun Belt located? South
Where is the world-famous street, Sunset Boulevard, located? Los Angeles, California
Complete the name of Lorraine Hansberry's play: A Raisin in... the Sun.
What's another name for a solarium? Sunroom
In which Broadway musical will you hear the song "Sunrise, Sunset"? Fiddler on the Roof

Featured Products for June - 17-20% off

Everyday Life Photos: Children & Family Life. - 20 large photo cards & 22-page activity book - Regularly $24.95. Online sale $19.95.

Everyday Life Photos: A Grown-Up's World, - 20 large photo cards & 22-page activity book - Regularly $24.95. Online sale $19.95.

Famous Folks: Trivia, Talk & Ticklers - 75-page book, 10 chapters - Regularly $14.95. Online sale $11.95.

Weather Talk Conversation Cards. - 52 cards - Regularly $5.95. Online sale $4.95.

Sing-Along with ElderSong, Volume 2. - 28 songs on CD with large-print lyrics book - Regularly $15.95. Online sale $12.75.

THOUGHT FOR THE MONTH

"A cloudy day is no match for a sunny disposition." ~ William Arthur Ward

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