National Grandparents Day falls on Sunday, September 13, 2026. The day can be a great excuse to make plans and spend some time with grandchildren.
So, what makes for a good day together?
Ideas for Grandparents Day: Start With What You Already Know
Grandparents have an obvious resource at their disposal: their own lives.
Family photographs are a good example. Looking through an old album gives grandchildren a chance to see their parents at a different age, to hear about relatives they may know only by name. It also tends to produce better conversations than simply announcing that you are going to tell them about the past.
Children typically enjoy the visual, tactile experience of holding and sifting through physical photos, which makes it much more engaging than simply listening to old stories.
Cooking can be another multi-sensory experience. If there’s a meal your family has made for years, then make it together. Give younger children a real job where possible. Older grandchildren may be interested in where the recipe came from, particularly if it is connected to someone they remember.
Of course, the great thing about cooking is you get to sample your efforts together (if all goes well!)
Hobbies can work in much the same way. A grandchild might enjoy learning a card game you have played for decades. Or you could invite them to help with something in the garden. Whatever your interests and hobbies, encouraging their active participation in some meaningful way is key.
The point here is that you likely have interests and knowledge worth sharing. Your enthusiasm for your interest and your (hopeful) expertise can often be infectious. You don’t need to invent a special “grandparent activity” for the occasion.
A few ideas to try:
- Look through old family photographs and let the questions guide the conversation
- Make a family recipe together
- Share a hobby you genuinely enjoy
- Show them something from your own childhood that still interests you
Give Grandchildren a Chance to Be the Expert
Sometimes, the teacher-student relationship should be reversed. After all, exchanges should be a two-way street, and kids of all ages often enjoy this playful role reversal. Grandchildren spend so much of their lives being taught things by adults. It can be refreshing to allow them to explain something for a change.
That could be a game they enjoy, a sport they follow, or some piece of technology you have never quite understood. With older grandchildren in particular, asking them to show you something they genuinely care about can open up a much better conversation. It puts the power in their hands, rather than forcing you to guess what they may want to do.
You don’t have to develop their levels of enthusiasm. Being interested enough to ask questions is usually a good start.
You could ask them to:
- Teach you a game they like
- Choose the music for the afternoon
- Show you how they use an app or piece of technology
- Explain something they have recently become interested in
What Makes a Good Grandparents Day Outing?
If you want to go somewhere, think about the child in front of you rather than what children are supposed to enjoy. A museum might be perfect for one grandchild, while another would much rather see a baseball game.
It also helps to stay flexible. Boredom is possible at both museums and baseball games. If an outing clearly isn’t working, there is little virtue in sticking it out simply because it was the original plan.
This is particularly true with younger children. You may have planned a trip to the petting zoo only to discover that the puddles on the way are the star of the show. The key is to understand that it’s fine if they are having fun.
Depending on their interests, consider:
- A museum or historic site
- A local sporting event
- A walk somewhere with plenty to look at
- A farmer’s market or community event
- Lunch somewhere they help choose
Let the Relationship Change as They Get Older
One challenge for grandparents is the pace of change, as your grandchild seems to go from 6 to 16 in a flash. Even between single toddler visits, the change can be remarkable.
The child who once wanted to spend an afternoon making things at the kitchen table may become a teenager who would much rather go out for lunch.
For teenagers, trying to recreate the visits you had five years ago can make everyone feel slightly awkward. Asking what they would like to do now gives you a better idea of the person they are becoming.
As grandchildren get older, try:
- Asking what they actually feel like doing before making plans
- Letting them choose a restaurant or outing
- Making room for conversation rather than filling every hour, which can come off as babysitting
- Taking an interest in their lives
Build Routines and Traditions
Families tend to develop routines without deliberately creating them. Perhaps you always bring out a game when the grandchildren visit. Maybe you make the same breakfast or go back to a particular restaurant. Without even trying to, you often build these associations. To them, you are the grandpa who takes them bowling, plays Scrabble, treats them to pancakes, or plays a particular type of music.
A longer-term project is also a great idea. You could work through a large puzzle over several visits or put together a family tree. You could try growing something in the garden and check on it each time your grandchild comes back.
These kinds of traditions and longer projects mean you always have something to return to over several visits.
Ideas that can carry over from one visit to the next:
- Work on a puzzle
- Build a family tree
- Grow something and track its progress
- Read the same book
- Keep a running score in a favorite card or board game
What If Your Grandchildren Live Far Away?
Regular afternoons together aren’t always possible. Having family close by really helps build those traditions and relationships.
Yes, video calls have made staying in touch easier, but virtual chats can sometimes become stilted when it’s tough to go beyond “So, what have you been up to?” and young kids struggle to avoid distractions.
Having something in common to return to can help. You might read the same book or follow the same team. Finding an online game you both enjoy can be fun; there are many platforms that facilitate this. The extra activity gives the conversation somewhere to go beyond the typical “how’s school?” type updates.
With older grandchildren, texting can also make it easier to stay involved in the smaller parts of their lives rather than relying entirely on occasional long phone calls.
Ways to stay in touch from a distance include:
- Reading or watching something you can discuss later
- Playing an online game together
- Exchanging photos from everyday life
- Sending the occasional message rather than waiting for a formal catch-up call
What About Grandchildren Visiting a Senior Living Community?
Moving to senior living changes some family routines, but grandchildren can still be regular visitors to a senior living community.
At Waterstone, residents can welcome family into their apartments and spend time together elsewhere in the community. A grandchild might come for a meal, visit for the afternoon, or even join a resident for an event.
A larger community also gives families more places to spend time together. Instead of spending the entire afternoon in an apartment, residents and their grandchildren can find a comfortable shared space or head out together. All Waterstone Senior Living communities are close to thriving urban areas with plenty to entertain a family for the afternoon.
For grandparents who have moved from a longtime family home, it can take a little while for a new place to feel familiar to everyone. Regular visits help with that.
When grandchildren visit Waterstone, residents might:
- Share a meal together
- Spend time in an apartment or common area
- Head out for an afternoon nearby
- Join a community event or program
So, What Should You Do for Grandparents Day?
Hopefully, we’ve provided some food for thought, but you probably know your grandchildren well enough to narrow the field of suitable activities.
Think about what they are interested in now. Consider what you might genuinely enjoy doing together.
That might mean a museum or an afternoon outdoors. It might mean staying home and watching a movie. Either is a perfectly good use of Grandparents Day.