Birthday Party Games & Activities Tips

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Are there any adult birthday games we can play?

Grown Up Birthday Games

You've got a whole crowd of adults to amuse and there isn't a Super Bowl game in sight. How can you find adult birthday games that will keep them entertained during the party? Actually, unless your guests are a hard core party crowd, there are plenty of games and activities that should amuse them.

  • Set up a bunch of different board games, from Scrabble to Chutes and Ladders at different tables and have a tournament. It is surprising how much fun a group of adults can have with even the most juvenile of these old favorites, but you can step up the fun a notch with rewards. Bring out another table and put a bunch of raffle prizes on it. Give each guest a ticket for the raffle as he or she arrives at the party. The winners of the different games get an extra ticket for the raffle prizes.
  • Bring the tournament into the new century with a Wii or other game system.
  • Pull out all the silly shower games, dust them off and revamp them for a birthday party. For example, give each guest a necklace. Have the guests avoid saying a birthday related word instead of the traditional baby or bride. If they say the word, they'll lose the necklace to the person who catches them saying it.

   

Kids Birthday Party Ideas To Keep Them Busy

When considering what games and activites go along with kids birthday party ideas, remember that you'll want to reward guests with prizes. Here are some kids birthday party ideas for prizes as well. Want to create an art wall? Reward the child with the best drawing with a washable marker set. For the last child sitting in musical chairs, give away a CD with popular songs. If your child is a little older and you feel you've exhausted many kids birthday party ideas, why not throw a surprise party? Because the focal point of the party will be that it is a surprise, you can worry less about a theme and pay more attention to other details, such as the best way to surprise your child. One idea is to invite a friend that may have moved away and who your child doesn't see often. Another way to create a surprise element at a kids birthday party is to hold the event at an unlikely location. The key to pulling off the surprise is to ensure the guests know not to say anything beforehand. You may inform the parents of the kids you plan to invite, but don't tell the children until the day before so they don't accidentally say anything.

   
Can you tell me some alternatives to standard birthday entertainment?

Birthday Entertainment Ideas With A Twist

Throwing a birthday party and thinking about hiring birthday entertainment? Birthday entertainment should add to the festivities of your birthday party and compliment the theme. If you're having a hard time deciding what professional to hire at your next birthday event, we've compiled a list of ideas for birthday celebrants from 5 to 105.

  1. You can bring in clowns, but why not make your kids part of the circus instead? Guests can have an action-packed afternoon where they can learn to juggle, put on clown make-up, and try out the trapeze.
  2. Birthday guests might enjoy listening to a lively band, but do your birthday entertainment one better by making them part of the band. Hire an interactive music ensemble, such as a drum and percussion group. Kids and adults will have a blast banging away at drums and shaking maracas.
  3. If you've thought about hiring a face painter for your birthday entertainment, consider going with a henna artist instead. A henna artist can create intricate designs from a paste of crushed henna leaves. It's also the perfect alternative if you're having a tropical themed party. Kids and grown-ups can sport their henna tattoos days after the actual event.

   
Do you have ideas for games to keep kids busy?

Kids Birthday Party Ideas To Keep Them Busy

Looking for kids birthday party ideas that'll keep the party moving along? If you're brainstorming for your child's next shindig, look no further. We've got kids birthday party ideas that'll lure every last guest to join in on the fun.

  1. Create an indoor play area. Collapsible tunnels, a play tent, and large yoga balls make for a fun play area for younger kids.
  2. Create an art wall. You can cover a wall with heavy-duty brown paper and let the kids draw with erasable crayons and marker or create your own large chalkboard, using a large board painted with chalkboard paint.
  3. Set aside time for simple structured games for older kids. Games like charades, musical chairs, and trivia are easy to structure and require little props.

   

How to play 'Happy Birthday' on the Piano

For a person who already knows the notes on a piano, Happy Birthday is a relatively easy song to learn with no sharps and no flats. However, for a novice piano player, simply giving you the notes, isn't going to be super helpful. So let's do a quick overview of the piano.

Most pianos are comprised of 88 notes. While looking at these notes, you might observe that the black keys are in alternating clusters of two's and three's.

Find a group of two black keys. Put your finger on the first of the two, or the left black key. Slide your finger to the left to touch the white key that is directly beside it. This key is a C. On an 88 key piano, there are eight C's.

Right smack dab in the center, is middle C. To locate your middle C, you position yourself at the center of the piano, right below the manufacturer's name, find that central cluster of two black keys, and put your finger on the white key that is directly to the left of the 1st black key. Voila! Middle C.

Okay, that was the hard part.

Going to the right or up from C you have D, E, F, G, A, B, and then C again. Go ahead and mark those letters on your piano with tape until you can remember without the tape. Going to the left or down from middle C, the notes are B, A, G, F, E, D, and C. Mark these keys as well. Usually the notes above middle C are played with the right hand and notes below C are played with the left hand. C can be played by either. So here is the actual song:

left hand: G G A G C B, G G A G,

right hand: D C,

left hand: G G

right hand : G E C

left hand: B A

right hand: F F E C D C.

   
What party supplies do I need for an underwater theme party activity?

Childrens Party Supplies For Theme Parties

Is "Under the Sea" the theme of your next kid's party? Kids will have a blast going on an ocean life scavenger hunt. For this activity, you'll need just a few children's party supplies to play the game:

  • Pen
  • Paper
  • Assorted plastic ocean life figures, including:
    • Toy boat
    • Turtle
    • Whale
    • Scuba Divers
How you play:
  • Make up a list of all ocean life items you have.
  • Plant them in various areas around the house.
  • Hand out a list of items for each child to find.
  • The person who finds the most number of pieces wins.
  • As an optional prize, let the winner keep the pieces.

   

Childrens Party Supplies For Theme Parties

To complete your sea life theme, you can also coordinate all of your childrens party supplies - everything from party plates and placemats to balloons and centerpieces. Childrens party supplies can include fun decorative pieces like fish candles. Select diving masks for favors. You can even get a stuffed clown fish costume for the birthday guest of honor to play with or wear. Although it's popular to throw a childrens party using their favorite television or movie character, why not consider a more generic, fun theme such as princesses, pirates, dinosaurs or a tea party? It's easy to find the children's party supplies because these are popular ideas and party retailers tend to have these supplies available.

   
Are there any ideas for birthday entertainers for kids?

Birthday Entertainers for Kids

You have everything for the perfect birthday party, except a way to keep the kids entertained. Your child fears clowns, so you need to find another option. Are there other types of birthday entertainers available? You'll be happy to know there are actually quite a few choices.

Build a Bear is one of the newer entertainment choices. You travel with the party guests to a Build a Bear store, where someone helps the kids create their own stuffed animal. The company also provides invitations that you can print off and a favor for each child.

Check to see if any artists in your region are willing to come to children's parties. They may teach jewelry making, basic drawing and painting techniques, or pottery classes. Some artists offer packages that include a cake and other party items, as well.

Book a puppeteer or a magician to perform for the kids. Storytellers and kids' musicians also frequently do children's parties.

No matter what option you choose, you should always make sure to check references before you book a performer. Also, many children's performers need to be booked well in advance during the summer months, as you will be competing with local library systems as they plan summer reading programs.

   
Are there any good kids birthday party games for a princess theme?

Games for a Princess Theme

Princesses don't want to run screaming about in their pretty dresses. However, there are plenty of great kids birthday party games for a princess theme that are fun for little girls who are all dressed up. Try some of these activities for a day filled with fun:

  • Play pin the tail on the donkey with a twist when you substitute a fiery charger worthy of any fair maiden for the more prosaic beast of burden.
  • Pile some blankets in a corner draped with a piece of gold netting or other shimmery fabric. Tuck a pea under the top layer and see if the princesses can feel the pea when they rest on the "bed" of linens.
  • Give them each a prop, like a scepter or a huge fake diamond ring, and then play statues. The props make the game a bit more challenging especially when the players are trying to strike royal poses.
  • Have them make their own tiaras or fancy jewelry. Other crafts that fit the theme are making hand held mirrors or barrettes. Decorating plain sneakers with glitter and rhinestones to make comfortable princess shoes that they can wear for every day is also popular with the princess crowd.

   
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