Should you have a party at home or at some unique location? Well, maybe these ideas can help you decide! Birthday Party Ideas provides a place where everyone can come and share ideas for children’s birthday parties in a very simple and organized format.

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Your child has been invited to yet another birthday party. Gone are the days when he/she required you to stick around for the entire party and now tells you that you can leave the second you drop her/him off at the door.

You secretly hope he/she remembers her manners and doesn’t take over the gift opening from the birthday child. The only thing you can really do though, is to go over a few basic rules, maybe engage in a bit of role play and then let her go!

Here is a basic list of manners your child should know when attending a birthday party:

1. Make sure your child says hello to the parents as soon as she’s arrived. That way, they know she’s there and may not have to wait for anyone else in order to get the party started.

2. Have your child take off his or her shoes when entering the house.

3. If there is no designated area to put the gift, your child should ask where he could place it.

4. Remind your child that she is to be on her best behavior when she’s a guest at another person’s home. She should use her inside voice if indoors and not yell, scream or be obnoxious.

5. If your child becomes ill at a party, have the host call you and immediately pick your child up. Make sure you write down your phone number and put it in your child’s pocket or on the counter near the telephone.

6. Tell your son that just because some children may start jumping on the couch or bed that it is not ok for him to do so unless he has permission from the parents. Sometimes children behave at other people’s homes as they do at their own and may not realize their actions are inappropriate.

7. Tell your son or daughter to remember their manners. “Yes please” and “no, thank you” should be the polite answer to “Would you like something to drink?” or “Would you like a piece of cake?,” instead of a nod or a shake of the head.

8. When it’s time to open presents, under no circumstances is your child to lay a finger on the birthday child’s gift, even if she is struggling to open it. Maybe your child could ask the parent for a pair of scissors to help snip a tight ribbon instead. Nothing spoils the birthday child’s special day more than having to fight other children for the right to open her own gift. Remind your child that she too will have, or already has had a birthday where she opened all her gifts without any help from her guests.

9. Make sure your child knows that once the gifts are opened, they belong to the birthday child and it is up to them to decide when they will be removed from the packaging. Think of how the birthday child might feel if after the party, all of his gifts have been taken out of their boxes and are left strewn around the house. The gifts have suddenly lost their newness and appeal.

10. When being served food that your child might not be familiar with, teach him to say “no, thank you” instead of “yuck!!!” Not only will he seem rude, he may hurt the parents’ feelings. Much planning and preparation goes into organizing a birthday party, and parents usually rack their brains thinking of food that will appeal the majority of children attending the party.

11. At the end of the party, make sure your child thanks the parents and the birthday child for inviting her. Pick her up at the appointed time and make a quick exit. The parents will surely be exhausted. They may also have a family party planned for that evening.

One of the ways you can ensure your child remains on everyone’s guest list is to teach her how to be a good guest. You will know how your child has behaved by what the host tells you at the end of the party. If they sing your child’s praises and are impressed by his behavior, then you have done your job. If not, then it’s back to the drawing board!

What you’ll need:  spoons, ping pong balls, string (optional), prizes

How to play:  Create a starting line using some string, each child balances a ping pong ball on a spoon and has to go from the starting line, around the course and back to the start line.  Here are some ideas to vary the game.  The kids can hold the spoon in their dominant or non-dominant hand, depending on how hard you want the game to be and the age of the kids.  Various obsticles can be put on the “course” like having to crawl under a chair or table, or having to do things like turn around 3 times when you get to a certain point or even having to pass the ping pong ball from one spoon to another in team relay play.   You can create various penalties for dropping the ball such as singing a song, saying a nursery rhyme or having to start again.

Who ever (or whichever team) wins the race gets a prize, or maybe everyone gets a prize!  Have Fun!

Things you’ll need:   Ping Pong Balls, a plastic cup, permanent marker,paper,  a small prize

Preparation:  Write each child’s initials on a ping pong ball.  Place cup (opening up) on floor.

How to play:  Each player gets a to toss their ping pong ball towards the cup, if they get it in the cup it’s a hole in one and worth 3 points!  Note who’s ball is closest to the cup they get 2 points and the next closest gets 1 point.  Play to whatever score you desire.  Move the cup each time a round is completed to create variety.  Keep score and good luck to the winner who gets the prize!

Supplies Needed: A small Gift, a box, wrapping paper, slips of paper for writing on, tape, scissors.

Wrap a mystery gift in multiple layers of wrapping paper. Play music and have the kids pass the parcel until the music is randomly stopped. Who ever is holding the gift when the music stops gets to unwrap a layer of paper. In between each layer of wrapping paper, tape a note to the paper that describes an activity that the person who unwraps that layer has to do. for Example, jump on one leg 20 times, say a nursery rhyme, blow up a balloon and pop it, answer a trivia questions, or tell a funny joke.

The person to remove the last layer of wrapping paper wins the prize!

As an alternative you can also include small prize giveaways on some random layers too, this keeps the kids interested in getting to unwrap a layer!