Cancer support activity for children of a parent with cancer by Bear Essentials

Missouri Baptist Medical Center, St Louis, Missouri, 63131

Activities For Children

Quiet Time

Suggested Items

Balloon
Sealable freezer bag
Seven dry navy beans
Marker
Empty six-ounce frozen juice can (with lid removed)
Deck of cards
Board games
Read-aloud books or storybooks for younger children, chapter books for older children
Cassette recorder
Blank tape

Information for Parents

Information for Children

Activity

Resources

Parents:
Radiation, chemotherapy and surgery can leave you tired and overwhelmed at the thought of active play with your children. These activities allow you to have quality time with your children without adding to your levels of stress and fatigue. Suggestions are included for younger and older children. If reading sounds appealing, pop a tape into a cassette recorder and record stories or make a tape of you singing your child's favorite songs.

Children
Do you remember the last time you didn't feel well? You probably didn't feel like doing anything, or eating anything, or sometimes even talking to anyone. The treatments for cancer can make adults feel that way too. Sometimes when you are ready to play, mom or dad just doesn't feel well, but they still want to be with you. Here are some things you can do when mom or dad needs quiet time.

Activity: Balloon Game
Blow up a balloon and toss it into the air. Pass it between two or more players by tapping it with your hands -- don't let it fall! See how long you can keep it from touching the ground. One minute? Two minutes? Five? Try to set a new record every time you play.

Activity: Bean Game
You can make your own bean game. Use a marker to draw moons on one side of five beans and stars on one side of two beans. Now decorate an empty juice can with your marker.

How to play:
Put all of the beans inside the can and shake them up. Empty the can on a table or on the floor. You get points for each bean that lands with a shape showing -- one point for moons and three points for stars. Each player takes three turns, and the player with the most points wins. This is a really fun game to play with your parents, brothers and sisters, or your friends.

Activity: Card Games
What is your favorite card game? Hearts? Spades? Poker? Grab a deck of cards and ask your parent what they feel like playing. Even a simple round of Go Fish or Old Maid can be fun - no matter how old you are.

Activity: Board Games
This could be a perfect time to play a board game. Scrabble, Sorry, Battleship, Clue and Jenga all can be completed in short time. Risk, Monopoly, Life and others can be continued from day to day.

Activity: Become a Writer
Quiet time is a great opportunity to be creative. Ever thought about writing a story or a play? Trade ideas and thoughts with your parent about events in the news, situations at school, families facing an illness or inventions you think will happen in the next century.

Resources
Book Suggestion: Miss Rumphius