Storymaking and Creative Groupwork with Elderly People: Music, Meaning and Relationship

Paula Crimmens shows that working with older people can be made exciting and stimulating by using storymaking as a basis. Echoing the oral tradition of mankind, the book shows how to use a variety of traditional stories - including myths, folk tales and fairy stories - to work creatively with older people, particularly in groups. The book focuses around themes of empowerment and consolation, and includes groups of stories which can be used as a basis for discussion.

Adopting a holistic and person-centred approach, which incorporates emotional and social needs, the author shows how the use of creative storymaking can:

provide an experience of community for people who may be very isolated

raise self-esteem

provide contact and communication

sustain the attention of members of the group longer than would be possible in one-to-one work

provide entertainment and reduce boredom.