Hosting a children’s Christmas party can be stressful. The children are usually very excited at the prospect of new toys from Father Christmas. Of course excited children doesn’t always mean giggly, energetic children; it also can mean sulky children as they experience a spectrum of emotions as part and parcel of the festive excitement. The Christmas party host or hostess has to be prepared for a number of situations.
Games are a great way of breaking the ice particularly if the children are shy and don’t know each other. Always include traditional games such as pass the parcel, pin the tail on the donkey and blind man’s buff which have been passed down the generations and are timeless classics. But why not intersperse those with name badge-making, and party hat colouring for a modern twist.
In the past ideas for parties tended to be confined to the good old-fashioned games and jelly and ice cream tea-parties. Today’s they are so much more sophisticated and range from themed parties – such as Pirates and Princesses - to activities such as ten-pin bowling, laser games and cinema or theatre outings.
The date is set, the invitations are out, and now you’re preparing yourself for a house full of active, energetic children to entertain. Have no fear! With a few simple, well planned out innovative game ideas, you can not only throw a fun and memorable party, but actually sit back and enjoy the interaction and entertainment yourself.
There are several great game ideas for kids of all ages that won’t break the bank, can encourage teamwork and bonding, are exciting, challenging, and educational, and are sure to put smiles on the faces of all of your party goers, whether it be at the next birthday party, slumber party, family get-together, class party, holiday party, or other event.
To get you started on your way to hosting a great party, we have suggested just a few of our favorite easy-to-set-up and fun-to-play party games for kids…
Twirl the Trencher
This is a game which almost any number of children can play. The players seat themselves in a circle, and each takes the name of some town, or flower, or whatever has been previously agreed upon. One of the party stands in the middle of the circle, with a small wooden trencher, or waiter, places it upon its edge, and spins it, calling out as he does so the name which one of the players has taken.
The person named must jump up and seize the trencher before it ceases spinning, but if he is not very quick the trencher will fall to the ground, and he must then pay a forfeit. It is then his turn to twirl the trencher.
A very similar game to this is “My Lady’s Toilet.” The only difference is that each player must take the name of some article of a lady’s dress, such as shawl, earring, brooch, bonnet, etc.
We have all been there. The day is planned down to the final point, the picnic is prepared and the outdoor activities will be fun. Then it rains. Here is one cheap solution to that inevitable question: What do we do now?
Weather on holiday is something we cannot control and planning for unexpected days of rain can not only help relieve boredom but can also prevent a rather large dent in the bank balance. The easy option when it rains is to seek out some indoor entertainment which can, especially on a rainy holiday, add up.
So why not stay in? Spend some quality family time instead playing an enjoyable fun game. The indoor treasure hunt. Okay if you are camping this may not be the best solution and you may be best to stick with the reliable and dependable board game.
Dozens of screaming children running round and round in circles, food lying all over your sofa and carpet and toys and games scattered liberally, like wreckage from a plane crash. Yes, it’s a birthday party! What joy, what thrills - well at least the kids are having a great time!
If this scenario sounds all too familiar, then what you may be lacking is something for the kids to focus on. A lot of people, when planning for a party, consider things like decorations and food but there’s an important element which is sometimes overlooked
Place party shapes on the floor in a circle. For example if your theme is Knights the shapes could be shields, swords, and castles. Children walk around circle while
listening to music. If the music is loud the children move fast. If the music is quiet the children move slow. If the music stops, the children stop on the closest shape.
Young children like to play it this way. To make it more challenging for older children have 1 less shape than the number of children. Continue remove
shapes as the children are ‘out’.
On the command (from the list below) the children have to do the appropriate action. After a while, start removing the last player to comply, untill only one
remains.
Sit everyone in a circle. Whisper a long phrase to one person. They, in turn, whisper what they heard to the next person, and so on. The last person announces what they heard.
Wrap a bar of chocolate (or some other gift), in a layer of paper. Now wrap it in another layer and repeat until you have about 10 layers. Finally wrap it in gift paper (so it looks nice).
Sit everyone in a circle and play a short snippet of music.
When the music stops, the person holding the parcel
removes ONE layer of wrapping. Repeat until the last layer of wrapping has been removed.
The winner keeps the present.
Sit everyone in a circle and place a tray in the middle with a hat, scarf, gloves, knife and fork, die and a wrapper bar of chocolate. In turn, players throw the die. If they throw a SIX, they must put on the Hat, Scarfe and Gloves before they start
to unwrap the chocolate with the knife and fork, ad then start to eat it.
To speed up the game add a second die and require a Double SIX.
The Jelly Variation is to turn out a set jelly onto a plate and eat it with the knife and fork.
The old favourite. With one fewer chairs than people, a short snippet of music is played while the people move around the room. When the music stops everyone tries to sit on a vacant chair. (Only ONE person per chair) The person who doesn’t find a chair is out. One chair is taken away and the game continues until only one person (The Winner) is left.
On a tray, place about 10 to 15 small items (e.g. pencil, watch, comb, shoe lace, spoon, toy car, etc.) and cover with a cloth. Sit everyone in a circle. Place the tray in the middle of the circle and remove the cloth for 60 seconds. Everyone has to remember the objects. When the time is up, replace the cloth.
In turn, each person has to name an object on the tray. The first person to fail to name an object, repeat an object or name something not on the tray is out. The tray is then removed and some or all of the objects replaced, and the
game re-started with the person following the one who is out. If the game is too easy for the group, add more objects or reduce the time.
This is like Musical Chairs, but when the music stops, the players have to keep still. Anyone who moves, quivers, shakes etc is out. The winner is the last one still playing.
Children’s birthday parties have become outrageous showcases of food, gifts, and entertainment that are costing parents more and more each year. Instead of focusing on the child, parents are striving more and more to “keep up with the Joneses” and put on fantastic displays that involve a great deal of time and money for the planning and execution of the party.
Instead of worrying about booking venues packed with activities, consider throwing your child an old fashioned bash in your own backyard. For a special touch, consider hiring a magician to entertain both children and adults for the party.
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