Anchoring for Grandparents Day Celebration

GRAND PARENT’S DAY CELEBRATION: Held ON 17TH JAN 2009.

Mrs : Margaret .Lenny. Rebello .([email protected])

Research work done through website for anchoring the program me for grandparents day celebration.

“As we seek to strengthen the enduring values of the family, it is appropriate that we honor our grandparents”.“It is important that your gift should be straight from the heart. It should convey your true love and affection for them”.

"Nobody can do for little children what grandparents do. Grandparents sort of sprinkle stardust over the lives of little children."

Grandparents are important to children in so many ways. They have patience and time when parents are too busy. They have stories to tell and interesting games to play. They are good for treats and spoiling, which we all need from time to time!

IntroductionGrandparents are our heritage and are essential members of our families and communities. That is why a special day, National Grandparent's Day, is set aside every year to honor them. & this is the special day for us to spend some time with our dear grandparent and have fun together.September 9, the Grandparents day, a special day for the aged parents who are at the final laps of the life journey. Every year the day falls in September, do you wonder why? It is to symbolize that grandparents are in the autumn years of life , and so September month was chosen for this specially for Grandparents Day. Grandparents Day is never earlier than September 7 or later than September 13.

". Grandparents are the link between the present and the near past. It is through them the national heritage and traditions are handed over to the next generation. It is the experiences and beliefs of our grandparents and senior members in society strongly affect our lives.

Grandparents day is observed to honor and respect grandparents and all senior members in the society. It is an opportunity to thank them for their service to the society and the guidance to the new generation. It is the life experience and struggles of senior members that work as the foundation stone to any society.

This day has a threefold purpose:

http://www.grandparents-day.com/



1) To honor grandparents

2) To give grandparents an opportunity to show love for their children's children.

3) To help children become aware of the strength, information and guidance older people can offer.

Brief introduction on grandparents day:

Grandparents Day HistoryGrandparents day has a history stretched log back to the year 1973. The day really began as Marian McQueen, a Virginian homemaker, began a campaign to establish a special day to honor grandparents. Her enthusiasm soon attracted people from all the social groups and in 1973 Grandparents day was announced official in Virginia. In 1978 by a federal proclamation, US President Jimmy Carter created Grandparents Day and was celebrated for the first time on September 9, 1979.

Grandparents Day Official FlowerIsn't it bewildering to know that a special flower is allotted for this particular day. The 'Forget-me-not' flower is the official flower of grandparent’s day. It is irrational to ask that why this particular flower is dedicated for Grandparents day, as the name of the flower itself is self-explanatory. As the name of the flower indicates, the memories of our grandparents are not be faded down as time passes. The flames of gratitude towards the senior people in the society should be blazing in our minds. The choice of the forget-me-not



as the Grandfathers Day flower serves not only as encouragement to create lasting memories by nurturing relationships between the generations, but also as a poignant reminder that the time to pursue those relationships is limited.

Official Grandparents Day Song: Oh Grandma, Grandpa, you know that I love youI love all those little things that you say and doThe stories you tell, things I never knewOh Grandma, Grandpa I love you

“A Song for Grandma and Grandpa," by Johnny Prill, is the official song of National Grandparents Day. U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow said about the Grandparents day song that "You have put into words the unique relationship between grandparents and their grandchildren."

Ways to celebrate Grandparents DayGrandparents day is mainly a family celebration. There are several ways to celebrate this day and make it an unforgettable occasion for your grandparents and senior people. Grandparents day is also celebrated in public forums through honoring senior people. The most common way of grandparents day celebration is family gatherings. You can go beyond your imagination and creativity to make this day special for each one in your family. Make a plan for the entire day right from the morning breakfast to lunch to dinner. Prepare their favorite food items. Arranging games that are easily played by young and old, creating an opportunity for story



telling in which you can listen to your grandparents life experiences and past incidents, or planning an outdoor cooking etc... can be done effectively on Grandparents day to spice up the mood of celebration

Most important, Grandparents Day can signify a loving spirit that lives winin us throughout the year--a spirit of love and respect for our elders.

Shut-Ins and Homebound Elderly

Along with Grandparents Day, we should not forget shut-ins and those in nursing homes who are unable to be with their families or have no families. Every effort must be made to include these people in the mainstream through cards, community projects and visitation at times other than just holidays.

There are many, many elderly who are not fortunate enough to have family nearby. The need is increasing every day to fill the void of their loneliness. In every neighborhood, there are elderly who would love an opportunity to be a Foster Grandparent. Parents, churches, schools, and senior organizations, help children to adopt a grandparent!

Do you know, what the word grandparent mean, let me tell u:Greatly appreciating from their heart , really kind & generous, a great couple, never mean to others, deeply loved by family, perfect in every way ,always



admired ,ready to help, every day is a new day for me by them, not hurtful, terrific & smart & that is our dear GRANDPARENT.

Song:

Hello, Grandma Hello, grandpa

How do you do? How do you do ?

You are very special. You are very special.

& we love you.& we love you.



Hello, Grandpa Hello, grandma

How do you do? How do you do?

You are very special. You are very special.

May god bless you May god bless you.

Song: Action song: when your happy

Send along grandparents photo with the grandchild and write behind it With permanent marker the child's name, the name he calls that grandparent and the date when the photo was clicked.

End note : With each grandparents day we should grow more and more

respectful to the elderly of our society. Forget them not, because they are the foundation stones of our lives. Ignore them not, for they need our special care and affection as they have spent their life and energy for us. Dishonor them not as with each heart beat everyone is moving towards old age and thus towards the graves.

Games:

1) Sponge bob: soak the sponge in water, and then squeeze it in the bottle the maximum filled bottle with in the given time limit is the winner.

2) Kneading dough : let grand pa knead the dough

3) Putting straw in the hair of grandma, maximum straw holder will be the winner, within the given time limit.

4) Musical chair

5) Making grandma ready keep chunni, bindi, bangles, comb,

6) Tying turband for grandpa.

7) “Newspaper costume parade” Grandparents day party game: Each child and their grandparent receive a newspaper, a pair of scissors and a roll of sticky tape. In 15 minutes, each team’s task is to create an outfit – consisting of 3 items eg hat/top/pants or hat/dress/over-shirt – for each member using only the newspaper, scissors and sticky tape. Afterwards, teams parade their creations and teachers can hand out a series of prizes for the neatest, messiest, or most creative outfit.



8) Fashion show of grandparents of the grandchildren:Invite grandparent's to a fashion show. Featuring their grandchildren dressed in their grandparents clothes of occupation. The children can show off and tell everyone what it is their grandparents did or do for a living and what their favorite thing is to do with grandma&/or grandpa.

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10) Hearty Laugh: “He who laughs last” Grandparents day party game: This game is hilarious to watch, and even more fun to play. It’s a real challenge, especially for people who can’t keep a straight face. Players have to sit in a circle (on chairs if necessary), facing each other. The player who starts says “ha!”, the next player in the circle says “ha ha!”, the third player says “ha ha ha!” and so on around the circle. As soon as someone says the wrong number of “ha”s, or starts laughing, they have to leave the circle. Once a player leaves the circle, they have to try and make the rest of the players laugh or make a mistake. The person who makes a mistake or laughs last is the winner.

11) PEAS: The peas - are ping-pong balls of different colors. 2 players take part in this game. Their task is to gather as many peas as possible. The peas (about 15 pieces) are thrown about the room (hall). There are 2 chairs with the little buckets on them. The players gather the balls with the help of the little scoop and put them into the buckets or baskets.

SOME GAMES FOR KIDS AND ELDERS TOO :

12) CHINESE WHISPERS GAMESit everyone in a circle. Whisper a long phrase to one person. They, in turn, whisper what they heard to the next person, and so on. The last person announces what they hear

13)

DUCKY DUCKY KIDS GAME

Everyone sits in a circle except one who is given a pillow and blind-fold. They then go and place the pillow on a persons lap, sit on it and say ducky ducky. The person should say "quack quack" this can be done only 3 times. If the blind person guesses the name the person, they should now be given the blind fold and the game run over again - after everyone has changed their places.

14) LISTEN & MOVE PARTY GAME

Place party shapes on the floor in a circle. For example if your theme is Knights the shapes could be shields, swords, and castles. Children walk around circle while listening to music. If the music is



loud the children move fast. If the music is quiet the children move slow. If the music stops, the children stop on the closest shape. Young children like to play it this way. To make it more challenging for older children have 1 less shape than the number of children. Continue remove shapes as the children are 'out'.

15) MEMORY PARTY GAMEOn a tray, place about 10 to 15 small items (e.g. pencil, watch, comb, shoe lace, spoon, toy car, etc.) and cover with a cloth. Sit everyone in a circle. Place the tray in the middle of the circle and remove the cloth for 60 seconds. Everyone has to remember the objects. When the time is up, replace the cloth. In turn, each person has to name an object on the tray. The first person to fail to name an object, repeat an object or name something not on the tray is out. The tray is then removed and some or all of the objects replaced, and the game re-started with the person following the one who is out. If the game is too easy for the group, add more objects or reduce the time.

16) THE CHOCOLATE GAME

Sit everyone in a circle and place a tray in the middle with a hat, scarf, gloves, knife and fork, die and a wrapper bar of chocolate. In turn, players throw the die. If they throw a SIX, they must put on the Hat, Scarf and Gloves before they start to unwrap the chocolate with the knife and fork, ad then start to eat it. To speed up the game add a second die and require a Double SIX. The Jelly Variation is to turn out a set jelly onto a plate and eat it with the knife and fork.

17) TOY WALK PARTY GAMEHave numbers on the ground equal to the number of children. Walk on the numbers until the music stops. Have numbers on some small toys. If a child is standing on the number of the toy, they win the toy.

18) STATIONS KIDS PARTY GAME

Everyone stands a circle (except one who is standing in the middle) and has been told to remember a different station name. The person in the middle calls out two names. The stations have to change places quickly, before the person in the middle can get to one of the empty spaces. Who ever is left without a place is the person in the middle for the next game.

19) PASS THE PARCEL GAME

Wrap a bar of chocolate (or some other gift), in a layer of paper. Now wrap it in another layer and repeat until you have about 10 layers. Finally wrap it in gift paper (so it looks nice). Sit everyone in a circle and play a short snippet of music. When the music stops,



the person holding the parcel removes ONE layer of wrapping. Repeat until the last layer of wrapping has been removed. The winner keeps the present.

20) POSTMAN'S KNOCK

All the boys gather in a group and each takes a card with a sequential number (One, Two, Three etc). The girls do the same. The boys then form a line (shoulder to shoulder) facing the girls who are in a similar line. (Players should NOT stand in order. First a girl calls out a number and the boy with that number goes across to kiss her. The a boy calls out a number and the girl with that number goes and kisses him.

21) BALLOON POP PARTY GAME

Place notes inside un-inflated balloons,1 or 2 of the notes should indicate that this balloon is a winner. Inflate the balloons and hang them around. Let each child pick a balloon then pop it to see if their note is a winner.

22) BALLOON RELAY PARTY GAME

Divide the children into 2 or more equal teams and stand them in a line. Give each team ten balloons in a basket. The first in each line takes a balloon and runs to the other side of the room/yard/area and sits or stomps on the balloon to pop it. After popping the balloon they run back to the line and tag the next person who does the same thing. The game goes on until one team has popped all of their balloons. The winning team gets a small prize (like a ribbon) while EVERYONE gets a small toy.

23)

CAN YOU GUESS?

Put several small items into a brown paper bag. Blindfold one person and hand them one of the items in the bag. Give them a few seconds to guess what the item is. If they are unsuccessful they are out. The last one wins.

24) BRITISH BULLDOG GAME

Caution: This game can get rough.



All the players (except one) line up at one side of the playing area. The remaining player (The Bulldog) stands in the middle. When he is ready, he shouts "Go" and all the other players have to get to the other side without being caught. Any player the The Bulldog can lift off the ground while he shouts "British Bulldog", joins him in the middle as a Bulldog. On subsequent runs, the Bulldogs may work together. The winner is the last one to be caught

25) MUMMIES FREE PARTY GAME

Split the party goers into teams of three and give each team a toilet roll. Two persons then wrap the third in the toilet roll so that they look like an Egyptian Mummy. The winning team is the one who in a set time (say 2 minutes) have the neatest and most covered Mummy.

26) MUSICAL CHAIRS

The old favorite. With one fewer chairs than people, a short snippet of music is played while the people move around the room. When the music stops everyone tries to sit on a vacant chair. (Only ONE person per chair) The person who doesn't find a chair is out. One chair is taken away and the game continues until only one person (The Winner) is left.

27) MUSICAL STATUESThis is like Musical Chairs, but when the music stops, the players have to keep still. Anyone who moves, quivers, shakes etc is out. The winner is the last one still playing.

28) PASS THE ORANGE

Arrange for teams of about 8 to stand in a line, one behind the other (arranged boy, girl, boy,...). Give each team an orange which the first person should tuck under his chin. This should be passed to the person behind. When the orange gets to the last person, they come to the front of the line and start again. The winning team is the first one which gets their starting person to the front again.

29) PORT AND STARBOARD

On the command (from the list below) the children have to do the appropriate action. After a while, start removing the last player to comply, until only one remains.

Port (run to one side to the area)Starboard (run to the other side)Captains Coming Aboard (Stand to attention and Salute)Submarines (lie on the floor)Hoist the Mainsail (run on the spot - like climbing the rigging)



Mess Deck (Sit cross legged on the floor - ready for lunch)Davey Jones (Climb a tree, stand on a chair - anything so that you are not on the floor)Up Periscope (Stand up straight and old hands to eyes as though looking through binoculars)

30) WHISTLING CRACKERS

You give every child 3 soda crackers. When you say "GO" every child puts all the crackers at once in his/her mouth. The first one to whistle wins. (You can also substitute the soda crackers with peanut butter but make sure there are no Allergies).

31) STUCK IN THE MUD

One person is 'IT' and has to run round touching as many people as they can. When they have touched someone, that person has to stop and stand with their legs apart and their hands out stretched, until someone crawls through their legs. If you've been caught three times, then you are out. The game ends when everyone left is standing still.

32) SLEEPING PIRATE GAME

All the children (except one - The Pirate) sit Cross Legged on the floor in a circle. The pirate sites Cross-legged in the middle of the circle, blind-folded, with a large bunch of keys on the floor in front of him. A child is nominated to creep up and take the keys and then return to their place, without the pirate hearing them. The Pirate has three goes to point to where he thinks the raider is. If he is successful, the raider becomes the Pirate



We know an old lady, she tells great stories,She's seen things you've only read about in books.

She gets such joy, from filling us upWith her love and with the great food she cooks.

And after we've eaten, we sit by the fire,She hums a song that's from a far-off land.

I notice a photo of her as a child,Imagine all that's happened since then!

CHORUS:Older people have so much to share,

Look in their hearts for the treasure waits there.The key to unlock it is show them you care...

Older people have so much to share,So much to share, they have so much to share.

The old man next door, he lives all alone,He's traveled through life many a mile.

It feels so good, when we visit him,To see his face light up with a smile.

CHORUS

The hands of the young, the hands of the old,Reaching out for hands to hold.

Love is a feeling between two hearts,Age can't keep us apart.

CHORUS

So much to share, they have so much to share.



Love makes a familySo many ways that we can beI want the whole world to seethat love makes a family

Documents

Anchoring for Grandparents Day Celebration