This is an isolation game that you can play with seniors using home made pill bottle shakers!
To make a bottle shaker, take a small to medium sized plastic bottle of any kind (like a used pill bottle) and fill about 1/3rd of it with dry foodstuff. Ideas are using rice for a gentle sound or popcorn seeds for a harsher sound.
The dance follows the instructions given in the lyrics of the song, which may be prompted by a resident leading the group. A sample instruction sequence with sakers would be:
You put your [right arm] in,
You put your [right arm] out;
You put your [right arm] in,
And you shake it all about.
You do the hokey pokey,
And you turn yourself around.
That's what it's all about! Yeah!
Watch a video of residents doing the Hokey Pokey to a '50s version of the song.
Click here to check out the original idea.