There’s More to Throwing a Children’s Party Than Just Hiring a Clown

Children wait for what seems like forever for their birthday to arrive. Parents, on the other hand, often tend to fret over how they can make their child’s birthday as fun and memorable as possible.

Throwing a backyard party for children involves more than just hiring a clown. In fact, if you have ever hired a clown for a party, you may have found that there is, at least, one kid in the bunch that is horrified of them. This can quickly turn a party from the huge success you hoped for into a disaster.

Parents, remember that the party is for your child and their friends. The ultimate children’s party doesn’t have to be overly extravagant but does need to be fun. The first thing you want to do is be sure you are planning an age-appropriate party.

Parties for Children Ages Three to Six

Children in this age group need to be kept busy, and the best way to achieve this is with unstructured activities. A game or two where everyone is a winner is more than enough for young children.

Game ideas include:

• Fill a paddling pool with toys or candy prizes and then balls of all sizes. Let the kids wade their way through the balls looking for prizes. You can send them in two or three at a time for a few minutes each. Refill prizes each round.
• Hide prizes around the yard. Have the kids run around finding prizes and, of course, they get to keep what they find.
• Do a simple craft project:
  • A playdough station! Plus you can even make your own edible playdough to avoid worrying about the little ones ingesting any chemicals from store bought playdoughs.
  • Decorate paper plates with paint, cotton balls, straws, pipe cleaners, coloured construction paper and anything else you can think of.
  • Make animals out of empty plastic water bottles. Pipe cleaners make great antennas, construction paper for wings, markers for drawing and other materials for gluing on the bottle.
  • Make necklaces out of Cheerios or Fruit Loops. Young children love making jewellery they can eat!

Aside from a few games, have ongoing activities for guests to participate in. If you have the room and the funds, consider renting an inflatable bouncy house or waterslide. Young children can spend hours in these!

Keep it fun and simple for this age group, and be sure to recruit lots of other adults to have around for supervision. If you are hiring amusements, most companies like Monsterball can supply people to supervise these so the adults can sit back and relax.

Parties for Children Ages Seven to Twelve

Children in this age group love themed parties. Your child will probably have at least one idea for you. Whenever possible, allow them to have the party of their dream theme. At a minimum, you can decorate your backyard to fit the theme, and have the cake made to match (check out these awesome homemade cake ideas). Perhaps have the guests come dressed as characters.

This age is fun in that they love to play games. Try some games that they don’t see at every other party they attend. Here are some ideas:

• Play a game of limbo. This game isn’t new, but it’s not often played anymore. All you need is two adults and a long piece of bamboo or dowelling. Start with the adults holding the wood high enough that the kids can walk under it. Each time the group of children has passed under, lower the wood. The kids have to bend backwards and pass under without touching. If they touch the wood, they are out. Add some music that is either from the party theme or fun and upbeat.
• Using washable chalk, draw a soccer goal on your fence or other solid structure. Make it like a target with different areas being worth points. Each child gets three attempts to kick the ball. Any points scored are added together and the one with the most points wins.
• Play a game of volleyball but with balloons and paddles. Let the kids construct their own paddles out of paper plates and wooden sticks. Make the paddles at the beginning of the party so they have time to adhere. Play the game towards the end of the gathering.

Children of all ages love chalk. If you have a place where they can draw, leave some buckets of chalk out for them to grace your yard with their artwork.

Do you have some fond memories of parties you attended as a child? Please share your best children’s party tips and memories by leaving us a comment below.

Guest post: This article was written by Casey from Monsterball Amusements & Hire – Perth’s premium amusement services with everything from jumping castles to dunk tanks, obstacle courses and the super fun bubble soccer!