Party Games and Activities.
I know that the idea of keeping a group of kids entertained for a couple of hours or more can be a pretty daunting thought! So, I wanted to share some top tips with you for planning party games.
If you are planning to host your child’s birthday party yourself, the chances are you are going to want to organise some party games to keep the children occupied and having fun. Firstly, I’d recruit some help. Whether you have an older child that can help out, family members or friends; you will definitely appreciate the extra hands. Secondly, make a plan of the games and activities in advance, write them down and work out what props and accessories you will need, so you are fully prepared on the day. If you’ve managed to recruit some help, it might be a good idea to divy up the games between you, so you can share the role of ‘ring master’ for each of the games.
Depending on the age of the children and whether you are hosting the party at home, in the garden or at a local venue, you’ll need to choose the most appropriate games; is there enough space, are they the right games for the age of the children, do you need additional adult supervision, is it too noisy/messy for the venue, do you have the right props? For most party games the children will need to be old enough to understand the ‘rules’ in order to play along, so for very young children (under 2 or 3 years old, although it will of course vary from child to child), you’ll need to choose games/activities where there are very little rules or no rules to follow, such as soft play and tuff trays.
If all the kids don’t know each other then it’s great to start with an ‘ice breaker’ game that helps the kids learn each other’s names. For example, you could put the children into teams and ask them to draw round one of the children (lining paper or the rolls of paper for kids easels work well) and then decorate it and then the other teams have to guess which child it is. If the games involve the children needing to pair up or be in teams, then it’s a good idea to choose the pairings and teams rather than let the children do it, as it often ends up with one child feeling left out. If you play more than one game that requires the children to be in a team then mix the teams up for each game.
Even when children are at an age where they can understand the rules of a game, you should consider how to handle games where children are ‘knocked out’ eg. musical statues, sleeping lions etc. As these can be difficult concepts for some children to grasp and you don’t want any tears at the party! Perhaps once the children are knocked out of the game you could have an alternative quiet activity for them to get involved with on the side to distract them and keep them entertained eg help referee, do some drawing, get their face painted, help put out some snacks etc . And for games such as pass the parcel, it’s usually a good idea to make sure there are enough layers to unwrap and enough prizes for all of the children at the party.
I’d recommend having a couple of extra party games planned, just in case! There are loads of traditional (English) Party games that have stood the test of time and are still as good today as they were when we were kids. If you need a quick reminder of the rules, then head on over to my blog Children’s Party Games – Oldies but Goodies. You can also find lots of other party game ideas on my blog More Children’s Party Games. It’s also good to have a mix of energetic games and slightly more quiet games. Have breaks/food/cake in between the games to break them up and give kids a chance to rest.
If you are hiring some kind of town/sports hall or are hosting the party outside, then you will have an even wider choice of games and activities – just be sure to have a backup plan if you are having the party outside in case the weather turns…. For ideas on games to play if you have more space, then check out my blog Outdoor Party Games for Children.
It can also be fun to adapt our much loved party games to suit the theme of your party. For example, if you were hosting a Toy Story themed party you could adapt pin the tail on the donkey to pin the sheriff badge on Woody. Or if you were hosting a Peppa Pig party, you could change Simon Says to Peppa Says.
