Life story, career and skills
Why we ask: Familiar places and lifelong roles are the heart of Montessori-based dementia care. A retired mechanic may enjoy sorting nuts and bolts; a homemaker may enjoy folding and recipe cards. Skills learned over a lifetime often last the longest.
Region where they grew up (optional)
Work it out from the town
Midwest (for example, Ohio, Iowa, Minnesota)
Great Plains (the Dakotas, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma)
Northeast (New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania)
New England
South (for example, Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama)
Appalachia (West Virginia, Kentucky)
Texas and the Southwest
Mountain West (for example, Colorado, Montana)
Pacific Coast
Canada
Another country
Reminiscence cards use it, with the hometown above, for the brands, radio and places of their own years, such as “Rural Midwest” or “Urban Northeast”.
Primary occupation
Choose one
Homemaker, raised a family
Farmer or rancher
Mechanic
Teacher
Nurse
Doctor or other health care
Secretary or office work
Bookkeeper, banker or accountant
Factory or mill work
Construction or building trades
Carpenter or woodworker
Electrician or plumber
Truck, bus or delivery driver
Railroad worker
Postal worker
Shopkeeper or sales
Business owner
Engineer or scientist
Cook, baker or restaurant work
Seamstress or tailor
Police officer or firefighter
Military career
Clergy or church work
Other (type it in)
Choose the work they identify with most, even if they had several jobs.
Type the occupation
Primary vocation, for reminiscence (optional)
Follow their occupation
Mechanic
Teacher
Military
Culinary
Nursing and health care
Farming and ranching
Homemaking
Office and bookkeeping
Building trades
Factory and mill work
Railroad
Driving for a living
Postal service
Shopkeeping and business
Sewing and tailoring
Police and fire service
Engineering and science
Ministry and church work
The work their reminiscence cards talk about. Usually their occupation; choose another when a different role meant more, like a homemaker who ran the church kitchen (Culinary).
Work-related skills
Check everything they were good at, at work or at home.
Mechanical and repair
Cooking and baking
Carpentry and woodworking
Medical and caregiving
Farming and animals
Gardening
Sewing and needlework
Typing and office work
Numbers and bookkeeping
Teaching and explaining
Driving
Electrical and wiring
Housekeeping and organizing
Music or singing
Art and crafts
Selling and customer service
Other skills (optional)
Military service
Branch
Choose one
None
Army
Navy
Air Force (or Army Air Forces)
Marine Corps
Coast Guard
National Guard or Reserves
Merchant Marine
Another country's armed forces
Not sure, or prefer not to say
Era
Choose one
World War II (1939 to 1945)
Korean War (1950 to 1953)
Peacetime or Cold War
Vietnam era (1964 to 1975)
Gulf War (1990 to 1991)
Another time, or not sure
Talking about their service is
Not sure yet
A welcome topic: they enjoy sharing it
Best handled gently: some hard memories
Best avoided: it can cause distress
Some veterans carry painful memories. When in doubt, choose "Not sure yet" and let family or the care team guide you.
Clinical profile and abilities
Why we ask: The right print size, amount of reading and line thickness let a person succeed on their own. Avoiding painful topics protects their comfort and dignity.
Reading level
Choose one
Independent: reads sentences and short paragraphs
Short sentences: single words and short phrases
Cannot read independently: pictures and read-aloud
Vision
Choose one
Standard print
Large print
Extra-large and high contrast
Motor skills (hands)
Choose one
Normal
Mild limitation: stiff or slow
Tremor or significant limitation
Support tier for printed books
How much each page of the Life Planner and Life Journal asks, and how large it prints. Choose the tier that lets them finish a page on their own.
Tier 1 · Mild · GDS 3–4 full detail: multi-step planning and open questions, 14 to 16 pt text
Tier 2 · Moderate · GDS 5 guided: sentence starters and choices to circle, 18 to 20 pt text
Tier 3 · Advanced · GDS 6–7 simplified: one word or picture at a time, large boxes, 24 pt and larger
Suggested from the reading level and the difficulty in Step 5. Choose another tier if it fits better.
Visual needs
Line thickness
2 pt: standard
3 pt: bolder
4 pt: boldest
Writing lines, borders and drawings. Text size follows Vision above.
Suggested from vision and motor skills until you change them.
Avoidance Protocols & Triggers
Anything that could upset them. Every word list, prompt, trivia question and picture made for this resident leaves these out, and the page is drawn again if one slips in. Kept only in this browser.
Topics
War and combat
Death and loss
Illness, hospitals and medical
Religion
Money and finances
Politics
Driving and cars
"Going home" and their old house
Divorce or family conflict
Babies and children
Water, boats and the sea
Storms, fire and disasters
War and combat was checked because Step 2 says talking about their service is best avoided.
Military conflict eras (tick any that were theirs, or that cause distress)
World War II (1939–1945)
Korean War (1950–1953)
Vietnam War (1955–1975)
Gulf, Iraq and Afghanistan wars
Cold War and the Cuban missile crisis
Places or regions (optional)
Anything else to avoid (optional)
Anything else, then save
Why we ask: The small, specific details (a job they were proud of, a pet's name, what frustrates them) are what make an activity feel personal instead of generic.
Activity Director: one-click emergency activity
No custom choice — use fine-motor line tracing
Fine-motor line tracing
Soothing shadow matching
Trace letters in their name
The Instant Soothe / Print button opens two quick choices (care level and theme) and prints a fresh calming packet. With this resident active, it also offers this activity as a one-press alternative. When unset or unavailable, that alternative prints fine-motor line tracing.
Tell Us Anything Else About This Resident
What would help us create activities that feel like they were made specifically for this person? (e.g., "Betty was a hairdresser for 45 years, loves 1960s styles, Elvis, and her poodle Princess, but gets frustrated with math.")
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At a glance
Something wrong? Click any step above to change it.