Oak Trees resource pack

USING MUSIC, PHOTOGRAPHY AND STORYTELLING
IN ELDERLY CARE SETTINGS
Extracts from a resource pack for staff and carers written by Ingrid Hesling, Nicola Grove and Paul Sartin
produced by Sedgmoor District Council ©Grove, Hesling, Sartin 2006
Acknowledgements
This resource pack is based on three projects carried out at Oak Trees care home in Bridgwater, Somerset, in the spring of 2006. Funding for the projects was provided by Sedgmoor District Council. We would like to thank Chris Sidaway and Catherine Beedell, who enabled the projects to happen, Jessica Zettler, who evaluated the work, and all the staff and residents at Oak Trees whose enthusiasm contributed to the success of the events. Also Ali Smith, Director of SuperAct, who was involved in the planning and co-ordination of the projects. 

REMINISCENCE THROUGH PHOTOGRAPHY IN ELDERLY CARE SETTINGS

Written by Ingrid Hesling ingridhesling@onetel.com

Why have a reminiscence session?

Why use photographs in reminiscence work?

Photographs can stimulate memories when normal, natural remembering becomes difficult. We are all used to our family photograph albums retaining our collective family memories we may otherwise forget. A picture of someone’s wedding may bring memories of ones own weddings, the clothes they wore, the reception, honeymoon etc. A picture of a child at the seaside may stir up memories of long forgotten holidays. Photographs can be useful triggers, pointers for discussion within groups.

Shared memories and experiences can promote a sense of wellbeing and validation.
It can bring a group of participants together in their sharing of experiences.

How are photograph used?

Participants can be asked to bring along albums, photographs significant to them or they could gather pictures in advance from magazines and newspapers for example. It may be worth enlarging images on a photocopier if sight is a problem for some as large images are easier to engage with.

Small groups are usually easier to work with as a single image can be looked at and discussed as a group. The facilitator can ask questions to promote reminiscence and sharing of memories asking questions such as,” Who remembers their first day of school?” for example. They should be aware however that some members may find certain memories painful and would not wish to share, yet others may find talking about painful memories a help. The facilitator needs to be aware of the group and the dynamics within it

 STORYTELLING IN  ELDERLY CARE SETTINGS

written by Nicola Grove, Director of the  Unlimited Company of Storytellers with Learning Disabilities in Somerset

Storytelling is about people sharing experiences with each other.
It might involve

The way stories are told ranges from a dramatic performance to an audience, to brief conversations between two or more people.  A story circle is a nice way of getting people to share stories together. 

Running a story circle

One or two people take responsibility for setting the circle up and telling 2 or 3 stories, songs or poems.  It’s good if residents can take turns to help do this and prepare for it beforehand with a member of staff.
The chairs are put in a circle so everyone can hear each other speak.
People often put their names into a hat if they want to tell – the leader then pulls them out of the hat in turn
For elderly people, an hour is about right, with a break for refreshments half way through for 10-15 minutes. 
You can always go on longer if people are enjoying themselves and have stories to tell. 
It may be a good idea to split the group so that one half is about personal stories and one half is about traditional stories.

The “rules” of story circles

Resources for story circles
To help people to remember stories, you can have:  sets of props and costumes; pictures of traditional stories, or photos of local events; CD’s of songs and karaoke for people to join in.

Games and puzzles can be a good way of getting into stories, and starting the group off.  We used a “superstitions quiz” to get people’s memories started.  Other games might be:

Jobs bingo – working roles that were part of people’s lives: milkman, rag and bone man; chimney sweep; bus conductor; porter.  People then contribute any memories they have about these people in their lives and talk about what they or members of their families used to do.

Sweet lucky dip – find a shop that sells old types of sweets, and put them into a  bag  People pick them out and see if they can remember the names, or match them to a list: cough candy, lemon sherbert, pear drops.

Spot that tune – collections of songs from the 40’s and 50’s that people can join in. Where did you hear it played?  Again, pictures can be used to prompt: on the radio, in a bus, someone whistling, at a dance hall, on the tv, concert.  It doesn’t even matter if people get these wrong!

Consequences.  Use pictures of prominent people or places from the past.  Each person has to write the answers to the questions, passing it on as they go. Choose a picture for the people (X met Y) then choose a place (where did they meet), then use speech bubbles for what did they say, and an exclamation mark for the consequence.  Again, these can be pre-prepared, for example “We are not amused” “ The pound in your pocket”  “We will fight them on the beaches”  “The lady’s not for turning”; as can the consequences – “England lost to Germany in the World Cup final”; “we joined the Common Market’; “we won the war”, “there was a general strike”.

Jigsaw – use photos of well known people or events and cut them up into 3 or 4 large pieces.  People have to look and see if they can find the ones that match their own.  This encourages interaction (if too difficult, start off with two sections only).

Seasonal events
Story circles can be organized around traditional festivals.  For example, in Spring,  Candlemas (Feb 2), Valentine’s Day (Feb 14), Pancake Day & Lent, Mother’s Day and Easter.
Summer;  May Day, Midsummer’s Day (June 21st),
Autumn:  Harvest, Hallowe’en, Guy Fawkes
Winter: Advent and Christmas, New Year

Other key festivals from different cultures include Chinese New Year (February), Diwali (November) Eid (varies depending on Ramadan), Jewish festivals of Passover, Purim, Hanukkah.  Even if people do not belong to these cultures, it’s a lovely opportunity to hear a story and do something a bit different – eating special food, hearing special music.

Helping people with dementia to talk

People with dementia find it difficult to recall events that have just happened, but may show good recall for events that happened a long time ago.  In terms of communication, they will find it easier to use well known phrases and sayings and quotations than to talk spontaneously.  In your storytelling you can capitalise on this by making sure you prepare some sayings for people to join in:-

• Proverbs and saws – a rolling stone gathers no moss; it'll all end in tears
• Well known parts of stories (eg. Who's been eating my porridge; Fee Fi Fo Fum)
• Jokes (knock knock)
• Pantomime conventions – look behind you

Sentence completion is a good trick to use: you start the saying off, and let them complete it.  “so you went to the ....(shops) and but on the way you saw an (accident)”

Encouraging people to talk to each other
This can be very difficult especially when people have hearing difficulties, quiet voices, are confused and are very focused on their own agendas.
Don’t aim too high: encourage any interactions, such as:

• Passing things from one person to another – eg an object, a card with a prompt on it eg.  asking people what they think it is or what they remember about it.

• Using a musical instrument or prop to join in or illustrate the story

• Holding up a picture for others to look at

• Using short games and quizzes, where one person asks questions and others answer.

• Establishing and using some conventions for working in a group: for example, one person may tell a story to a member of staff who then tells it to the whole group in a way that people can hear and appreciate; everyone then claps.  This makes sure that people are given value for what they contribute. 

• Encouraging people to say nice things about something they have just heard, getting people to clap; getting people to put their hands up or say “me too!” if they hear about an experience that they recognize.

• Using musical instruments to provide sound effects for the stories.

 Sometimes it is good to build in external reasons for talking, because for people who are very withdrawn or confused, just the social aspect is not enough.  One example might be an element of competition between two groups (as in the quiz), which is nominal but does mean that people can be egged on to join in.  Another is to record on a chart to show people who has which experiences – eg after the sweet game you might show who ate these as a child and where; who has eaten them for the first time, and what the favourites are; after the consequences game, who can remember Maggie Thatcher and how many people had positive and negative memories of her. 

Using traditional stories

Sometimes people are worried about whether it is appropriate to use stories that people heard as children when working with adults. The short answer to this is that the stories were not originally told only to children.  They are also ones that people will find familiar and will remember best. It is probably a good idea to start out your storytelling by using these well known stories. However, you can then introduce some new stories, or variants on the old ones.

Dealing with sadness or anxiety
Stories are powerful in themselves; storytelling involves a high level of engagement and emotion, and people may have sad or negative memories that are triggered by stories.  This is all part of living, but can mean that you need to manage and support people during a session.  You can reassure people that it is OK not to take part, or to sit at the side, and OK to have those feelings, perhaps taking a moment for everyone to sit quietly or to play some music or sing together.  The most important thing is not to end on negative emotions, so always have a short positive and encouraging  story up your sleeve to end with.  You can also recall together a recent happy experience and remind the person what they are enjoying in life at the moment. 

Resources
A good collection of traditional stories; Grimm's Fairy Tales, the Andrew Lang Fairy books (Red and Blue have some of the best)
Idries Shah World Tales London:Octagon Press, 1991
Alida Gersie and Nancy King Storymaking in Education and Therapy London: Jessica Kingsley 1990 (has nice ideas for follow up activities).

Workshops at Oak Trees were run by
THE UNLIMITED COMPANY, which  trains people with learning disabilities in Somerset to work as community storytellers. We are now based at Frome Resource Centre, Manor Road, Frome BA11 4BS tel  01373 456500

USING TRADITIONAL MUSIC AND MOVEMENT IN ELDERLY CARE SETTINGS
written by:  Paul Sartin 01264 860791 paul@paulsartin.co.uk

Singing

Voice = fundamental form of expression, something most people, particularly of older generations, have experienced in a social setting.

a) Rounds

We will sing together, Rain or sunny weather, It's now or never

Rounds are an easy and traditional way of creating harmony. Other traditional well-known ones include London's Burning and Frere Jacque. They may seem a little too well-known but one should not underestimate the pleasure gained from harmony singing.

b) Songs

These are with and without choruses; choruses provide strong structure and easy group learning and participation.

Traditional song - What is it?

Folk/older songs                        e.g. Lincolnshire Poacher, Molly Malone
'National' songs                        e.g. British Grenadiers, Men of Harlech
Popular repertoire                        e.g. Old Bull and Bush, Daisy Daisy, Yellow Submarine
Wartime songs                         e.g. Lilli Marlene, We'll Meet Again

Traditional song - Why use it?

1) Familiarity
2) Use aural and long-term memory
3) Structure/repetition/simplicity
4) Colourful imagery
Movement

Traditional movement - What is it?

Country dancing/ barn dancing - in schools to present day, also at socials and hops until 1960s, continues to present day at PTAs, weddings, fairs, etc
NB: In traditional English dance, all counting is in groups of eight.
e.g. Dashing White Sergeant, Circassian Circle

Traditional movement - Why use it?

1) Familiarity
2) Use long-term memory
3) Structure/repetition/simplicity
4) Keep healthy in an enjoyable way
5) Non-intrusive physical contact
6) Can be used to any piece with regular 8 counts, e.g. Birdie Song!

Adapting to needs

1) Vary length of counts, e.g. expand to sixteen per 'move'
2) Simplify moves
3) Use greater spaces, particularly if using chairs

Different formations

Circles and longways sets
R and LH stars, back-to-back, crossing over, promenade,           
chains, arches, ballroom hold, clapping

For less mobile clients, holding hands and gentle movement to music can be both stimulating and soothing - physical contact is important.

Accompaniment

1) Live music is best, if it's accessible 
2) Recordings
3) Just rhythm

Remember - you can dance to any piece with 8 regular counts.

Resourcing your repertoire
Books
National /Community songbooks, e.g. 'Community Song Book' Ernest Newton (EMI)
Children's books
'Sing Together' Appleby and Fowler (OUP)
'Rounds for Children' (Amsco)

Local material  - Somerset collections of Cecil Sharp, including Still Growing (EFDSS).

Recordings
Topic, Fellside, Veteran and WildGoose labels
Any piece with regular 8 counts works for dancing

Mudcat Cafe (song texts)                                                www.mudcat.org
English Folk Dance and Song Society                        www.efdss.org.uk

Workshops at Oak Trees were run through SUPERACT! an organisation which aims to join local communities with talented musicians for their mutual love and enjoyment of live music. Live music means so many things to different people and can provide stimulation and excitement to audience and performer alike. SUPERACT! hopes to offer opportunities to musicians to perform throughout the South West of England and to community groups in the region of all kinds who are seeking musical talent to perform for them.