How to 'Theme' Your Kid Party

Planning a children's party can be a little overwhelming... even scary. After all, throwing a great party is something your child will remember for a long lime. On the other hand, if the party bombs they will NEVER forget it.

The easiest way to ensure a successful party is to build it around one central theme.

A theme will allow you to integrate all the different elements of the party, it will point you in the right decorating direction, and it will help you plan your activities. Having a theme is essential.

How to Choose a Theme

Choosing a theme for your child's party depends on three key factors:

- The age of the child

- The child's interests

- The time of year or reason for the party

The Age of the Child - The age of the children who will attend the party will have a lot to do with the party theme you choose. Blue's Clues might be great for a pack of three year olds, but a seven year old birthday boy would be mortified! By the same token, Harry Potter might serve you well for a group of pre-teens, but a group of kindergarteners just wouldn't get it.

The point... be sure your theme is appropriate for you child's age.

The Child's Interests - What is your child interested in? Some kids love particular sports like gymnastics or soccer, while others have a keen interest in super heros or science. Just about anything that a child is really interested in can be transformed into a great theme for a party.

Book characters, television shows, special hobbies, sports, animals, fantasy stories, heros, historical genres, cartoon characters, etc. all provide excellent theme possibilities.

The Time of Year or Reason For The Party - A halloween party has a built in theme, so a birthday around that time of year might have a Halloween or costume theme. Summer parties are often 'pool parties' or outdoor themed parties. Obviously, you wouldn't have an outdoor pool party for Christmas if you live in Canada... it just wouldn't make sense.

The 'Best' Way to Choose A Theme...

Talk to your child and get them involved in the planning!

Most kids have a pretty good idea of what kind of party they want. If you fail to talk it over with your child, you might both be disappointed.

Children often have unrealistic expectations. A lot of kids have a whole scenario layed out in their head -- they've imagined every little part of the party and they expect you to deliver. Talking it out can help you both find a realistic common ground.

Sometimes it also helps to provide a younger child with two or three theme choices and let the child choose his/her own party theme.

Once you've decided on a theme, it becomes fairly easy to plan the party. The invitations, decorations, food, favors, and activities will all be based on your theme. Choose a theme that truly fits your child's personality and you'll be sure to create an awesome party experience for both of you.

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Crafting with young children really isn't about creating something in particular. Most young children don't have the foresight to see what a project is going to be.

For young children it's more important that they have the opportunity to play and experiment with art. Kids need to use as many of their senses as possible to get the most out of crafting. This allow them to try new sensory experiences, as well as learn causal relationships.

These are my 10 favorite crafts for little kids based on all that AND the 'fun factor.'

1. Finger painting: Finger painting is a wonderful activity for kids. It lets them 'feel' the craft as well as be creative. You don't have to have finger paints to do this activity with kids. You can finger paint with homemade paint, watercolors or even mud. You can also experiment with adding other things to the paint such as sand or glitter. 2. Yarn Painting: Dip pieces of string or yarn into paint and then drag it across the paper to paint with it. It's a good experience to paint with something other than a brush and you can just throw the yarn away when finished.

3. Q-Tip Painting: Use Q-tips to create a painting. There are lots of ways to use a Q-tip - scrub, dot, or use it like a brush. It's a good coordination exercise because Q-tips are small around, but it also provides a lot of interest for the child.

4. Glue Art: Draw squiggle lines on a piece of paper or let the child use their finger to make random glue spots or patterns on a piece of paper. Experiment with adding different objects to the glue. Sand, glitter, cotton, yarn, feathers, and tissue paper all work well.

5. Salt Dough Sculpture: Make a batch of salt dough and turn the kids loose with it. You don't have to worry about them eating it (it's safe and tastes terrible) and clean up is easier than play dough. If you want to keep their creations, let them dry overnight and then paint them the next day.

6. Toe Painting: If it's a warm summer day, put on the swimsuits, put some finger paint into pie tins, lay out large sheets of poster paper, and let them 'paint' all afternoon. They will have a ball and all you have to do is hose them off when they are done (that's my kids' favorite part actually!)

7. Found Object Art: This project is always a sure thing because kids love to 'discover' things. Let your child gather up leaves, sticks, flowers, etc. and then glue them onto a piece of paper. When they are done, let them tell you about their collection.

8. Peanut Pictures: Every kid loves to play with packing peanuts -- but it makes such a mess. Let them create pictures with them instead. Kids can draw on them, glue them to a sheet of paper, or glue the peanuts to each other to make a sculpture. The kids will love it!

9. Sticker Play: Turn your child loose with a bunch of stickers, markers, and a sheet of paper and let them create. It's good for little ones to work on their coordination, and it's fun!

10. Stamping: Kids love to use any kind of stamps. My favorites are the self-inking stamps or the double-sided markers with the stamps on one end. This may sound like pure play, but is also teaches young children cause and effect.

Chris Yates makes it Easy to craft with Little Kids and Create a little Magic Time with Hundreds of Project Ideas. Visit Little Kid Crafts Now!

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Modified on September 9, 2005 at 6:18 AM