submitted by Andrea Anderson, ADC of Arbor View at Willow Valley on February 4, 2000

Size of Group: 5 to 20

Equipment: House hold items that the Residents are familiar with and can use: tissues, snack foods, picture frames, perfume, greeting cards, stationary, pens, toiletries, etc

Objective: The program is designed to keep Residents attuned to the changes going on in their outside community by attempting to guess the cost of the displayed familiar household items. It encourages socialization, independent thought, reminiscing, active listening, and active participation, all of which are rewarded by whomever guesses the most accurate cost receiving the item.

Description: The selected items are displayed in front of the Residents on a table where they can examine them. The group leader will hold up one item at a time, describe it, and take it around so everyone can see it. I use a name list to record what each one believes the price to be. Once one price is given it can't be used again for the item. This program is nice to do around the holidays when you can use seasonal items that the Residents could give as gifts to loved ones. The Residents a re all asked one at a time to guess the price. Whomever comes the closest without going over wins the item. Often my Residents will trade items amongst one another and have a wonderful time trying to guess how much certain items have increased in cost. It also gives the group leader wonderful insight as to where their Residents are coming from cognitively, how good their decision making skills are, and how long their attention spans are. The larger the group the longer the activity takes.

I will often limit the number of items an individual can win and then award it to the next highest bidder, etc. My Residents are familiar with the game show of the same name and enjoy the program very much.