

We’ve made everything from monkey masks to pineapple pen holders to paintings of the Eiffel tower and festive hair ties. If the kids are really little, the parents may help with this step. Kids will love making something to take home. Why First? The great thing about starting with the craft is that if kids are late, it’s easy for them to just sit down and start on the craft with the others while it may be harder to join in a game that has already started. If you have help (even your hubby or an older child) have them be the craft table monitor.Ī craft can be as easy as coloring sheets for the younger ones or something much more involved for the teenagers. It’s best to have one of everything for each child.

Set up a table with everything they need.
#Kids birthday party planner checklist movie
You can do Duck Duck Goose or coloring when they are young, or a “Guess the name of the movie on your back” game with older kids.įind an age-appropriate craft in the theme of the party. It’s also good to have a game ready for the kids to play. If the parents are staying you can direct them to the treats that you have prepared for them and encourage them that you have it all under control and that they should have a good time. Like, “You must stay outside”, “Upstairs is off-limits”, “You can eat or drink anything you want on the table except the cake”, “We will be starting a craft soon”, “Only 4 people at a time on the trampoline” etc… While all the kids arrive, you should give each of them, and/or their parents, some direction. Let’s take the birthday party timeline one section at a time:
#Kids birthday party planner checklist how to
Now it doesn’t mean that I stop a great game to take a group picture, but it gives me a sense of where I am and how to adjust as the party goes on. Keep your list available and an eye on your watch. Think of yourself as the Master of Ceremonies. Ultimately this is only a guideline but just writing down your plan for the 2 to 3 hours will ease your mind. If they don’t, just plan for more activities. Older kids, like teens, may want to open the gifts with their friends.

They opened all their gifts after everyone was gone and I used the handy dandy guest list in my Ultimate Birthday Party Planner to jot down everything they’d gotten and who they’d gotten it from. What I did when mine were young was to pour a cup of my favorite tea, gather the kids and sit down after the party was over for a little record keeping. Either sit down before the party and teach your children how to graciously open a gift that they don’t want or skip opening gifts during the party and do the training a day or two later. I understood early on that my kids wanted to play at their birthday parties, not sit and open gifts. I’ve seen young kids open present after present, throwing them over their shoulders without a second look and never thanking anyone. Kids, when they’re this young don’t care about their friends opening their gifts and it’s hard for the guests to stay still that long. There is no gift opening time in this schedule and that’s on purpose. 10-15 mins “Free play” or short game – kids leave.30 mins games (2 or more depending on the number of kids and the game).The Perfect Birthday Party Schedule for a 2-hour Party So I came up with a party schedule, one for a 2-hour party for when the kids were young, and as the kids became tweens and teens we expanded to a 3-hour party schedule. I need an order of events party schedule so I can keep things moving and on track, AND I need to train my kids better. My 7-year-old daughter gets a popcorn maker and says “I don’t like popcorn.” Time had gotten away from me and we hadn’t sung Happy Birthday or eaten the cake! I apologized to the parents, furiously got the cake, we sang, I cut it as fast as I could and offered it to the kids and parents as they were going out the door. As soon as I saw them I started to panic! We’d had a fun tea party with the kids and the parents started showing up for pick up. The unpleasant reality is that the inspiration for my perfect party schedule and timeline came from several party fails:
