 I can't tell you how proud I am of taking a residents' French Day idea and filling every second of the day with French activities. If you plan to do a French Day after reading this, I will tell you that it is a lot of work and most residents will not thank you for your efforts but we expect that in the recreation field and you just have to know in your heart that you made a difference, even if some residents may forget all about it by tomorrow. I love when I got an idea and turn it into reality. I also loved making two residents from France feel very special today. One was in charge of the morning French lesson, with sheets I made and the other was in charge of the art program. Of course, neither one of these people can really teach, but I made it as if they were in charge.
My art lesson was in the style of Henry Matisse. He did a mix of large collage and painting. I precut hand shapes from lots of colored construction paper. Residents glued the hands as a mosaic on a colored sheet and then painted it. It was a simple, yet effective project and perfect for French Day. Mattisse was a very famous French painter and it was a great activity teaching about his life and showing them the technique, they came out amazing.
Music is a big part to create an atmosphere of being in France, so I purchased a few songs from itunes after I only found romantic, slow French music at the library, I like lively, upbeat danceable music! It makes everyone happy. Of course, playing Cabaret or a Maurice Chevalier cd would be fine, too. Music makes a great atmosphere surrounded by easy to make French flags while they are coming in for lunch. I also love to dance so I dance as they walk in and while waiting for enough people to start the program. What I also found at
the library was a video visit to France. I played it while I was making and serving the French toast I made while dressed as a scaled down version of a French maid! Did you know that French toast was not originally French! The Celtics would take stale bread and dip it in the mixture of egg and milk and bake it so they would not have to throw away food. I demonstrated making French Toast and had my special French resident break the eggs, like a co-host on a t,v, show. It made her feel so special.
 It was my second costume of the day. That's a first, 2 costumes in one day. I started out as an artist, which was quite easy to make. After hunting for a beret, I saw a resident wearing one who lent it to me for a day. I also took a big smock kind of shirt and did a French knot in a scarf around my neck. I also demonstrated different French scarf ties, which I found on YouTube. There was also plenty of trivia all over the internet. Search for trivia of the Mona Lisa, the Louvres, Arc De Triumph or just French or France trivia. I highly recommend this day. It was full of learning and music and laughter and love, my special four ingredients, and it was absolutely free!
Merci! Bon Soir! Happy French Day!
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GINGER'S CREATIVE COSTUMES AND ACTIVITIES