Exercising your brain can have an amazing impact, and this is especially true when you are advancing in years. Trivia for seniors in nursing homes can give their brains a workout and keep them sharp. Try easy trivia questions for seniors with dementia to help keep those neural pathways moving.
Trivia Board Games
Board games are a popular pastime for senior citizens. Some fun trivia board games that will appeal to seniors include:
- Trivial Pursuit Master Edition: This popular board game includes 3,000 questions that will challenge the mind. Questions cover an array of subjects, so the game will appeal to almost anyone.
- Boom Again Board Game: This '50s, '60s, and '70s pop culture and music trivia game includes 2,244 trivia questions as well as six authentic Baby Boomer game tokens.
- American Trivia Game: This USA-themed board game offers five categories to choose from and 1,000 trivia questions that are made for ages 14 and up. This is an especially thoughtful choice if your senior happens to be a veteran.
- Bible Trivia Game: Seniors who enjoy participating in regular Bible study will be thrilled to play this trivia game with over 700 questions relating to scripture, inspirational messages, and prominent biblical figures. In addition, this family-friendly game can easily be played with visiting relatives.
Online Trivia Games
Seniors who are comfortable using computers will find that there are many online sites that offer trivia options as well. Some sites that are suitable for seniors include:
- AARP Trivia Games and Quizzes: AARP, the leading non-profit organization for senior citizens, offers a wide range of online quizzes covering topics such as entertainment, food, health, money, politics, technology, and travel.
- Lumosity: This popular site asks participants to get a baseline score on three games and then compare the results to others of the same age. The goal is to improve your ranking by building five core cognitive abilities.
- Suddenly Senior: This fun site is filled with trivia quizzes and nostalgia. You can find trivia games such as Welcome Back to the '50s, Stars In Your Eyes Trivia Quiz, and Maggie Von Ostrand's Movie Quiz.
- Fun Trivia: This site is jam-packed with trivia, entertainment games, and more. New games and quizzes are added daily, so you are sure to find a great mix of trivia to challenge your mind. The "Who Am I?" historical figures game is particularly interesting for seniors.
Printable Trivia Games
Printable trivia games work well as group activities, especially when the senior who gets the most questions right is offered a small prize. Some printable trivia options for seniors include:
- Senior Trivia Questions: Download a challenging trivia quiz with questions from the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s.
- Printable Bible Trivia Questions: Use this printable trivia game as an introductory activity at a senior Bible study meeting.
- General Knowledge Quiz: This general trivia quiz covers topics relating to science, government, art, and more.
- Christmas Trivia Game: Get excited for the holidays with a fun printable Christmas trivia game.
Trivia Books
There are plenty of books filled with trivia on subjects such as movies, sports, geography, and more. Some trivia books tailored to seniors are:
- I Remember That! Captivating Stories, Interesting Facts, and Fun Trivia for Seniors: This customer-favorite book is more than just trivia; it's also filled with fascinating info that will take your favorite senior for a walk down memory lane while expanding their knowledge of the era in which they grew up.
- Memory Games for Seniors: This activity puzzle comes in large print for easy reading and is filled with fun, funny, and challenging puzzles that will keep them on their toes.
- TMC Classic Movie Trivia: Perfect for senior film buffs, this fascinating trivia book covers key genres, behind-the-scenes facts, quotes, and more from classic films that seniors will remember from their youth.
- The Old-Time Television Trivia Book: Fans of shows such as The Texaco Star Theatre, Your Show of Shows, and The Honeymooners will appreciate this trivia book filled with questions about their favorite television shows from the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s.
Benefits of Trivia Games
Trivia games require memory and stimulate the pathways through the cerebral cortex required to link the question to the image or to the answer. Studies confirm that exercising the brain does offer benefits for the elderly.
For example, a study conducted by Frederico Emanuele Pozzi, MD, a neurology resident at Fondazione IRCCS San Gerardo dei Tintori in Monza, Italy, assessed the impact of board games on older individuals at risk of, or with cognitive impairment, or those with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) at any age. The results found that playing board games in a social context appeared to be especially good at boosting brain power and staving off the symptoms of dementia.
Having Fun While Exercising the Mind
Trivia games are a great way for the elderly to exercise their minds. Questions about various subjects will get their minds thinking and give them a way to stimulate parts of the brain that otherwise may not be used. These types of games are also the perfect way to spend the afternoon while enjoying the company of others.
