The activities you choose will be the highlight of your party and should provide your guests with entertainment and fun.To choose the best activities for your party it is important that you consider the age of the children and plan accordingly, kids aren’t going to enjoy activities that are too easy or that are too difficult.
1 year old
At one year of age children don’t understand the commotion and will not appreciate it.When planning your celebration you should keep in mind that the day is about you as the parents and those close to your child.At such a young age children are too young to participate and engage in activities and may quickly become overwhelmed with too much stimulation.Consider having a small scale party with people your child is familiar with.If other children will be attending provide age appropriate toys, coloring books and crayons work great for older children.
2 years old
At two years old, choosing party activities can be difficult.Children love to be the center of attention but do not play interactively with one another.Keep activities very simple and choose activities with little structure, young children have very short attention spans and are not good at following directions.There are some games and activities that children of this age group enjoy such as Follow the Leader, music and dancing, bubbles and circle activities.If your child attends a daycare the teacher may be able to provide you with some ideas that are fun and familiar.
3-5 years old
When children are preschool aged they are better able to follow simple directions and play simple games with a little bit of structure.Children of this age will begin interacting with one another and are curious of their surroundings.Activities that allow children to explore and dress up are favoured; let their creativity loose by planning a simple craft.The key to success at this age level is to keep the activities simple, eliminate competition and award each child for their participation.
5-7 years old
When children become school aged they are getting better at following directions and interacting with one another and team based activities can be introduced.Choose activities that are simple to understand and easy to play.Competition should still be avoided as children of this age don’t always understand the concept of winning and losing and feelings can get hurt, if your activities have a competitive nature make each child feel like a winner and reward each one equally.Crafts, simple cooking parties, treasure hunts and relay games are a few suggestions that can be used at this age and you should plan a few extra activities.Your child may also begin wanting a gender specific party.
8- 10 years old
By eight years old, kids want to be treated like adults and begin thinking about the future. At this age you should start planning more time consuming and complex activities as attention spans aren’t as short as they used to be. Competition can often be introduced by this age and many kids crave it.Complex treasure hunts, mysteries and crafts are some ideas.Planning new and different activities will prove to be a success.Your child may be able to help provide activity ideas and help host their party.
10- 12 years old
At this age kids are becoming more independent and you should expect to have only a very minor role.Your child may want to plan and direct their own party activities.Sleepovers are a common request at this age and are often very successful.
At one year of age children don’t understand the commotion and will not appreciate it.When planning your celebration you should keep in mind that the day is about you as the parents and those close to your child.At such a young age children are too young to participate and engage in activities and may quickly become overwhelmed with too much stimulation.
At two years old, choosing party activities can be difficult.
When children are preschool aged they are better able to follow simple directions and play simple games with a little bit of structure.Children of this age will begin interacting with one another and are curious of their surroundings.Activities that allow children to explore and dress up are favoured; let their creativity loose by planning a simple craft.The key to success at this age level is to keep the activities simple, eliminate competition and award each child for their participation.
When children become school aged they are getting better at following directions and interacting with one another and team based activities can be introduced.Choose activities that are simple to understand and easy to play.Competition should still be avoided as children of this age don’t always understand the concept of winning and losing and feelings can get hurt, if your activities have a competitive nature make each child feel like a winner and reward each one equally.Crafts, simple cooking parties, treasure hunts and relay games are a few suggestions that can be used at this age and you should plan a few extra activities.Your child may also begin wanting a gender specific party.
By eight years old, kids want to be treated like adults and begin thinking about the future. At this age you should start planning more time consuming and complex activities as attention spans aren’t as short as they used to be. Competition can often be introduced by this age and many kids crave it.