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Whether you are planning a birthday party or your child is having an impromptu get together with a load of their mates, keeping them all entertained is the main goal. No-one wants a houseful of bored kids so it’s always wise to have a few tricks up your sleeve.
However, even though we should be encouraging our kids to socialize a lot more – especially in an age where it is too easy to stick your face in a screen and never look up again – entertaining – and present giving – can be expensive. This is why you should have these party ideas up your sleeve.
Movie Night
This kind of party works for young kids as well as teenagers and doesn’t take much planning either. All you need to do is make sure that there are enough cushions and blankets scattered around the floor so that everyone is comfortable enough to stay still and quiet (parent points if you get them to fall asleep!).
If you have a bunch of DVDs, just get the kids to choose one, otherwise, there are plenty of films to go for on-demand TV and they can pretty much pick whatever they like. Food-wise, popcorn is an obvious choice and is really cheap for the volume you get. Pizza is another great idea and your average cheese and tomato will satisfy most tastes.
Fancy Dress Party
You would be amazed by how easy it is to get kids to have fun by letting them dress up. Let them loose on the face paints (unless they are really little, of course) and see what sort of outfits they come up with from a basket of your old stuff. Add in some novelty accessories like handbags, feather boas, and sunglasses for extra fun. Then, once they are dressed up, have a parade around the garden or hold a catwalk.
Again, food doesn’t have to be anything special here as the kids will be too distracted to notice more than a few snacks. Hold this party in the afternoon between lunch and dinner and a few bags of crisps, some sweets and a slice of cake will be all they need.
Craft Party
Teenage girls are big fans of this kind of party and if you shop smartly for craft supplies it can be a really cheap way to keep them occupied for a long time. Simple things like string, dried pasta, and colored paper can go a long way, especially when you have glue and scissors so let the kids figure out their own designs and let them get on.
This style of party is also great if you don’t really have much time to prepare as you can include the food as part of the crafting. Get the kids to decorate their own cupcakes or put the toppings on their own pizzas. They’ll love having the freedom to pile in and get involved and all you need to do is cook the pizzas and serve. It can’t get easier than that!
