The Grandkid Investigator Program at WinterGrowth Columbia

In Fall of 2025, we held a six-week Grandkid Investigator program at WinterGrowth Columbia (https://www.wintergrowthinc.org/) where we offered guided intergenerational connection between homeschoolers and older adults! 

Highlights…Genuine Connection!

Over the course of six sessions, kids partnered with assisted living residents at WinterGrowth Columbia using Grandkid Investigator missions. Sometimes meeting new friends can be hard and awkward and that’s why our Grandkid Investigator programs make a point to guide youth participants through interaction. How? Every session, we assign at least one Grandkid Investigator mission to youth participants so that youth participants learn about their older friend every session. 

Truly, our Grandkid Investigator missions helped kids connect quickly with their resident friends and helped them develop a stronger bond week after week. At the end of six-weeks,  according to parents, our youth participants truly looked forward to GKI each week! Now that’s a success!

Feedback from Kid Participants

Despite starting with a larger number of registered children, illness and scheduling conflicts resulted in only two consistent participants this fall. This smaller group allowed for deeper one-on-one engagement, which proved to be a strength rather than a limitation. We were able to provide even more guidance each week and both children repeatedly expressed how much they enjoyed the program. 

When sharing that we only had a few more weeks left of our six-week program, our 12-year-old participant, Jonathan, asked, “Why can’t you just add more weeks?” while our 7-year-old participant questioned why the program had to end at all.

Feedback from Our Older Friends

After the very first session, one resident had tears in her eyes as her young partner gave her a big hug goodbye. From that day forward, the child ran to greet her resident partner with embraces at the start and end of every session. This same resident recommended her peers participate in Grandkid Investigator interviews too since she enjoyed it so much. “It’s nice to have something different!” she had said.

Smiles and handshakes and laughs made every Tuesday so very special. 

What Type of Activities Did Kids and Older Friends Engage In? 

For every session, youth participants were assigned missions to complete. The activities that they engaged in after they completed missions, however, varied from week to week. Board games like checkers, Trouble, and UNO were regular favorites. Other weeks we made beads, cards, and even did some singing!

One 12-year-old boy started bringing games of his own to play with his older friend. The day he brought his automatic card shuffler from home was exciting and definitely amused WinterGrowth staff, adult day participants and residents! 

Our younger participants really enjoyed playing games and truthfully weren’t as focused on completing missions. Their parents, however, were able to use missions to prompt interesting conversation throughout play! With Operation Make-a-Map, one mom and her daughter were able to learn where their older friend lived throughout her life… all while playing a game of Monopoly! 

Reflections

The emotional impact on residents was immediate and lasting. Staff consistently shared that residents “lit up” when they heard the children were returning and often asked about their Grandkid Investigators between visits. One Life Enrichment staff member shared that residents felt remembered, valued, and genuinely seen something that is deeply meaningful in later life.

For our youth participants, the program fostered empathy, adaptability, and a realistic understanding of aging. Participants learned that older adults have different routines, needs, and abilities. They observed memory loss, mobility differences, and the use of assistive technology like walkers to balance.

In one moment of beautiful awareness, one youth participant realized that his resident partner could not compete with him in checkers. Instead of continuing to dominate the game, he adjusted the rules to give her two turns for every one of his. This simple act reflected growing compassion and respect. 

When completing missions, there were so many playful moments like misspelling “Mississippi” as “Mrs. Sippy”. That sparked real laughter and connection. 

What We Learned & Reflection

The WinterGrowth Columbia Grandkid Investigator program reaffirmed a core truth: when children are given structure, purpose, and encouragement, they are fully capable of forming meaningful, compassionate relationships with older adults. While on their own, disasters could have occurred, with guidance, our Grandkid Investigator youth participants lit up the room week after week and saw how their presence really made a difference in the lives of their older friends. 

While we would have liked to have a larger consistent group of youth participants at this session, we realized that impact isn’t about how many people show up, it's about how deeply they connect.

We’re looking forward to our next GKI session at WinterGrowth in 2026. To learn about upcoming Grandkid Investigator programs, visit our Upcoming Grandkid Investigator Programs page HERE.