Getting Started - Generations United

1. Understand What Intergenerational Programs Are & Their Benefits

Intergenerational programs intentionally bring people of different ages together to foster meaningful relationships, share skills, and address community needs. When thoughtfully designed, these programs:

Increase mutual understanding and respect across generations.
Reduce social isolation for both younger and older participants.
Enhance well-being, learning, and community engagement.

Resources to Learn More:

Check out Making the Case for Intergenerational Programs and Fact Sheet: Intergenerational Programs Benefit Everyone to learn more about the benefits of intergenerational programs.
Check out Intergenerational Program Certification to learn about programs that meet high-quality standards.
Visit the Intergenerational Program Database for over 800 intergenerational program examples.

2. Explore Generations United’s Resources to Guide Your Work

Generations United offers several free toolkits and guides that walk you through key stages of intergenerational program development:

Toolkits for Getting Started:

Connecting Generations in Senior Housing: A Program Implementation Toolkit — Tips, templates, and activity ideas tailored for senior living communities (but useful more broadly).
Sharing Our Space: A Toolkit for Developing and Enhancing Intergenerational Shared Sites – Focused on intergenerational shared sites — physical spaces or programs where multiple age groups participate concurrently — this guide provides step-by-step planning, best practices, real examples, and operational tools.
Intergenerational Shared Site Resource List – A curated set of more than a dozen resources on funding opportunities, fact sheets, toolkits, and operation guides — especially useful if you’re thinking about shared physical sites or multi-service programs.
Youth-Led Intergenerational Toolkit – Designed to support young leaders in creating intergenerational projects, helping youth take the lead in designing and sustaining activities.
Connecting Generations, Strengthening Communities: A Toolkit for Intergenerational Program Planners – This comprehensive resource created by The Intergenerational Center at Temple University helps you plan and implement a broad range of intergenerational initiatives — from initial idea to execution — and is ideal for beginners and experienced planners alike.
Intergenerational Community Planning – This report lays out the many potential avenues that exist for planners to bring a focused and intentional intergenerational lens to local planning practices.
Promoting Intergenerational Teaching and Learning in Higher Education – This report provides an overview of how colleges and universities can expand intergenerational teaching and learning opportunities.

3. Build the Foundation: Planning & Partnerships

To start strong, focus on foundational steps:

Assess community needs and assets:
- Identify who would benefit most (schools, senior centers, youth programs, community groups), explore existing programs for partnership opportunities, and use asset mapping or surveys to understand interests, availability, and resources.
- Check out Sharing Our Space Section 2.2: Assessing Your Organization for sample tools.
Form a diverse planning team:
- Include representatives from key age groups and stakeholder areas to help share program goals and activities (i.e., youth organizations, schools, aging services, community leaders/funders, and families or caregivers). Think about what roles you will need to fill and who might be able to fill them (i.e., recruitment, facilitation, and evaluation).
- Check out the Community Mapping Tool from the Connecting Generations Toolkit (page 14) to brainstorm potential partners.
Define purpose and measurable goals:
- Setting clear goals helps guide programming decisions and evaluation efforts. Clarify what you want to achieve. Keep goals measurable for easier evaluation later.
- Check out Connecting Generations Toolkit – Clarifying Goals (Page 19) to identify possible goals.

4. Design Meaningful Activities

Effective intergenerational programs are intentional — they involve careful design, not just bringing people together. Consider:

Activities with a shared purpose (e.g., arts, gardening, mentoring, storytelling).
Opportunities for sustained interaction — not just one-off events.
Accessibility for all participants (transportation, physical space, inclusivity).
Icebreakers and structured activities for relationship-building.
Staff and participant training, preparation, and orientation.

For more on designing quality programs and activities, see the resources listed in #2.

5. Evaluate and Improve

Build in evaluation from the beginning:

Document key metrics like the number of participants and sessions
Use simple surveys, interviews, or observations to gather feedback from participants, families/caregivers, staff, etc.
Track outcomes related to your goals (e.g., reduced isolation, increased cross-age connections).
Use the Intergenerational Evaluation Toolkit to plan assessment and track long-term impact.

6. Tap into Networks & Support from Generations United

Generations United also offers:

Technical assistance and training for program planners, board, staff, and other stakeholders.
Join a learning network: Shared Site Learning Network or Intergenerational Housing Learning Network.
Opportunities to attend conferences and webinars to learn from others in the field.
When ready, apply for Intergenerational Program Certification.
Sign up for newsletters and e-alerts.
Engage with us on Social Media: LinkedIn, TikTok, Instagram, or Facebook.

7. Sustain and Grow

To sustain and grow your effort:

Document successes and lessons learned through stories, participant feedback, photos, videos, and simple outcome data you can reuse in reports and funding requests.
Build ongoing partnerships with schools, aging services, community organizations, and local leaders to share resources and stabilize participation.
Seek diverse funding sources — grants, sponsorships, local businesses, civic groups, and in-kind support.
Develop repeatable structures such as program calendars, activity guides, and training materials so the program is easier to continue and expand.
Invest in staff, volunteers, and participants through training, recognition, and clear roles.
Share your model and results through presentations, networks, and community forums to attract partners and inspire other communities.

Tip: Start small, keep experimenting, and focus on relationship-building — strong connections are at the heart of every intergenerational program.

Intergenerational Program Roadmap:

Your guide to building strong, sustainable intergenerational programs that connect generations and strengthen communities.