The prospect of entertaining a large number of children can be a daunting one for parents when it comes to organising a party. Of course, creating a fun and exciting atmosphere will be the main consideration when it comes to planning the day, although you must also ensure the environment is safe to avoid potential accidents. If thinking of hosting a children’s party but are short of ideas, here are 5 ways to help you out.
Pick a Theme
One good way to get going is to choose a certain theme for which the party can be based around. This will also help when it comes to choosing the appropriate decorations, games and food. For example, you could organise a pirate themed party for young boys, or princess themed party for young girls.
As children get a bit older, it can be more difficult to implement this idea so perhaps think of holding a sports party, either in a local sports centre or in the back garden if big enough. A mini football tournament can be a great way to keep youngsters occupied without too much exertion on your part.
Hire a Children’s Entertainer
Some adults may not be too confident in dealing with large numbers of kids and keeping them all happy at that. Help is on hand with professional and experienced children’s entertainers who can be hired for their service over a number of hours, leaving you to deal with other aspects of the party such as preparing the food.
As well as being friendly, funny and arriving with props to keep kids content, many children’s entertainers come in different guises such as clowns, magicians, puppeteers, jugglers or balloon artists. These themes can be used to tie in with a certain theme or child’s interest if applicable.
Pick Appealing Food
Think back to when you were a child and all you wanted to eat was sweets, chocolate and cake, especially at a birthday party. Bear this in mind as a way to attract kids to the food table, but don’t go too heavy with the sugar. Try and implement some healthy options also within the menu.
Choose simple but effective foods such as pizza, burgers, chips and sandwiches to go along side the traditional jelly and cakes. Try decorating deserts with small toys, icing and hundreds and thousands.
Throw the Party at Home
Although it can be tempting to hire out a venue for the party, there is no reason why you can’t use your own home instead. If there is enough space inside, prepare a room downstairs for the influx of kids by using the appropriate decorations and also childproofing any possible harmful areas.
Weather permitting, holding the party outdoors is more preferable with the added space for children to play and less chance of accidents. You can play small sporting games such as rounders and bowls or more traditional games such as pass the parcel and musical chairs.
Hire Games and Activities
Following on from the outdoor theme, you can always rent certain activities as a way to ensure children have a fun and enjoyable time at the party. Bouncy castles, climbing frames, sumo wrestling suits and large outdoor paddling pools are fantastic ways to give your child and their friends a day to remember.
As well as providing the necessary entertainment, also make sure to reduce the chances of safety hazards causing distress. Careful planning is key although there is no harm asking for help from friends or neighbours. Ask other parent’s if they can help out when it comes to organising the food, games, toilet runs and present collecting also.
A guest post from Cristina Martin, a blogger at SplashAbout.com.