You'll need someone from a different generation to complete this crossword

All our actions to help you Spend Time with Somone From a Different Generation. Colour in a smiley face every time you've done an action.

A3 or A4 colour poster of the Knit with someone action

Get a granny to knit you a hat.

Age Exchange works with older people to improve their quality of life by valuing their reminiscences and giving them opportunities for wider appreciation.

Register for newsletters then attend weekly knitting groups in locations around London, to share gossip and patterns.

A club, shop and sanctuary for knitters in London.

Free patterns, knitting forums, workshops and shop on line for Rowan yarn.

Grandparents Plus is the national charity which champions the vital role of grandparents and the wider family in children's lives.

Stories collected by the V&A

Organisiation connecting the generations

Classes around London

Run in London

Spend time with someone from a different generation

US based campaign to bring generations together

• One of the earliest known examples of knitting was finely decorated cotton socks found in Egypt in the end of the first millennium AD.
• As the demand for knitted garments grew, the first knitting machine was invented in England by William Lee. His first machine was a simple frame for reproducing stockings, but it revolutionized the knitting industry. The principles of Lee's design remain the basis for the modern machine-knitting industry.
• The Guinness World Record for Knitting with the Largest Knitting Needles is held by Julia Hopson of Penzance in Cornwall. Julia knitted a square of ten stitches and ten rows in stockinette stitch using knitting needles that were 6.5 centimeters in diameter and 3.5 meters long. Have a look at her picture. 
• Longest scarf knitted whilst running a marathon was an impressive 1m 20cm and created by Susie Hewer, who was raising money for dementia research and thought running a marathon wasn't enough of a challenge.
• The word "knitting" is derived from knot, thought to originate from the Dutch verb knutten, which is similar to the Old English cnyttan, to knot.
• As a society we are spending less time with our families, communities, sports teams, or faith groups than we used to: In the early eighties, more than 60% of people then in their thirties were active members of local community organisations.  Twenty five years on across a similar section of society, active membership has dropped to less than 10%. Church attendance across Europe halved over a similar period and political party membership in the UK once nudged 3.5 million but now struggles to reach half a million.
• The benefits of spending time with someone from a different generation include: The transmission of useful life-skills, values, moral codes and social norms, culture, history and identity both up and down the generations. The prevention and reduction of age-based prejudice and discrimination. (ILC-UK 2008)
• The fastest growing age group in the population are those aged 80 years and over who currently constitute 4.5 per cent (2,749,507) of the total population. This age group has increased by over 1.1 million between 1981 and 2007 (1,572,160 to 2,749,507), from 2.8 per cent to 4.5 per cent. It is projected that by 2031, the UK population will include 3 million people aged over-85 
• 1.2 million people over 50 in England (i.e. 7%) face severe‚ multiple exclusion. 
• Around half of people over 50 suffer disadvantage with respect to one aspect of their life. 
• 1.3 million people over 65 have clinical depression. 
• 2.5 million people over 50 have little social or family contact.
• 82% of people agreed that older people can learn from the young. 
• 96% of people agreed that young people can learn from older people.
• More than 60% of people agree that outside of their families, a natural part of the ageing process is for older people to become disengaged from younger people. 
• 55% of people agree that outside of families, people of different generations generally find it difficult to communicate. 
• 83% of 16-24 year olds agree that outside of their families, it becomes harder for older people as they age to relate to younger people. 
• 67% of people agreed that old and young people today live in separate worlds. 
• 67% of people agreed that relations between old and young in society today are worse than in the past.
• Amongst the very old, social contact with non-family members has a greater impact on mental well-being than their health status. (ILC-UK 2008)
• For many individuals, especially men, retirement is synonymous with loneliness, and ultimately depression, as they are removed from the social structures and networks that provided them with social contact during their working life. (ILC-UK 2008)
• Nine in ten older people believe the 'make do and mend' mentality could help younger generations weather today's recession. Younger people share the same belief with 84% of people aged 18-24 thinking they could benefit from skills handed down from tough war and post-war years.
• 'Respect for the aged' day is held in Japan the 3rd Monday of September.
• Grandparents Day is celebrated in England on the first Sunday in October and the first Sunday after Labor Day in the US.
• 'The intergenerational transmission of human capital within families has been found to be a key factor in explaining entreprenueurship... The workplace is a crucial site of intergenerational relations and exchange of human capital... The continual transmission and 'passing down' of human capital between generations is clearly vital for economic growth, and in fact the functioning of society'. (ILC-UK 2008)
• In Japan, 2 thirds of pensioners live with their children
• There are 14 million grandparents in the UK 
• 1.5 million grandparents in the UK are under 50 
• 7 million grandparents are under 65
• The proportion of single grandparents has doubled from 8% to 15% between 1998-2007. This does not include widows. 36% of single grandmothers are aged under 55. 
• 1 in 3 families depend on grandparents for childcare.
• The value of the grandparental childcare contribution has been calculated at £3.9billion. 
• 3 out of 10 (31%) grandparents put money aside to help their grandchildren get onto the property ladder. 
• 1 million children lose touch with their grandparents as a result of separation or divorce. 
• National Family Week 2012 is May 28th