Our first Intergenerational Art activity as a CIC

"Sometimes, you don't need to change the person. You just need to change the environment around them and give them the right people to connect with."

We recently led our very first intergenerational art activity, bringing together ten Year 6 children from a local primary school with around eight or nine older friends from a local care home.

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The children are currently learning about World War II, so Amanda planned an art activity that would give them the opportunity to create alongside their older friends, using the topic as a starting point.

Before anyone even picked up a paintbrush, something incredibly special happened.

As Amanda introduced the theme,she had hoped that some of our older friends might share memories or stories from their childhood -  and they absolutely did.

A couple of gentlemen talked about their experiences of using air raid shelters. One lady told us how her mother had built their own shelter inside their house because they didn't have one in the garden.

Another gentleman described what it was like being inside an air raid shelter -  the damp, the cold - but also the comfort he found there because his mother would sing songs and nursery rhymes to him. He remembered songs such as ‘Baa Baa Black Sheep’.

For the children to hear those memories directly from people who had lived through that period was incredibly powerful.

And that was before the artwork had even begun.

But there were three people in particular who really stood out.

Bobby, aged 10

At school, Bobby is one of the quieter children. The school told us he is probably one of the shyest and most introverted members of his class, so we certainly wouldn't have predicted what happened during the session.

Bobby was absolutely wonderful.

He was working with a lady called Anne, and he barely left her side. The only time he moved away was to go and collect resources for her.

He spent the rest of the session sitting alongside her, communicating with her, helping her and making sure she was included. He would bend down to speak to her so that she could hear him.

It was beautiful to watch.

Amanda recalls:

At the end I asked him:

"Have you got on with your artwork?"

He looked at me horrified!

I quickly reassured him that it was absolutely fine.

Then he said:

"I haven't got it. I've done it with Anne. This is our piece that we've done together."

I thought that was even more magical.

It wasn't his artwork.

It was their artwork.

I loved that.

We’ve since asked the teachers to make sure the headteacher and Bobby's parents hear about how wonderfully he supported Anne because we think they should know just how fabulous he was.

An older gentleman

Then there was another gentleman from the care home who produced the most beautiful piece of artwork.

What makes this remarkable is that staff told us he is usually someone who doesn't pick up a pencil and has very little motivation or drive to engage in any activities.

They weren't expecting him to participate.

But something changed during the session.

With the children around him, busy creating, talking and working, he became engaged. He sat there and produced this stunning piece of artwork.

He was always physically capable of doing it but that day, something gave him the enthusiasm and spirit to want to do it.

An older lady

There was another remarkable story of a lady who the staff had positioned close to the door because she can sometimes become argumentative or shout. They explained that she isn't physically aggressive, but her tone can become challenging, and they wanted to be prepared to support her if she became distressed.

But we saw absolutely none of that.

She sat calmly and painted.

She didn't initially follow the activity the children were doing. Instead, she created her own beautiful piece of free painting.

And then something lovely happened.

A child who was working beside her asked: "Do you want to do this with me?"

And together they created another piece.

The girl, who was eleven, adapted the activity herself. She shortened it, simplified it and created a smaller version that they could complete together.

It was absolutely beautiful.

The care home staff were stunned.

Not only had she stayed in the room and remained calm throughout, but she had then engaged with a child-led activity and followed a series of instructions from an eleven-year-old.

Why it matters

These are the moments that remind us why intergenerational work matters.

The session wasn't really about producing perfect artwork.

It was about connection.

It was about children discovering that older people have stories, experiences and memories worth listening to.

It was about older people finding new reasons to participate, create and communicate.

It was about children discovering strengths in themselves that they might not normally show in the classroom.

It was about patience, kindness, communication, adaptability and companionship.

And it was about seeing people differently.

Today gave us some incredibly special memories and moments.

And we could talk about so many more beautiful things that happened.

But perhaps the most important thing to take away is this:

Sometimes, you don't need to change the person. You just need to change the environment around them and give them the right people to connect with.

That day, those people were children.

And what they created together was so much more than art.