Things you like and dislike at kids parties

[icequeenelsa]

Dd turns 4 in May and has asked for a party this year. Will need to invite her pre school class and friends/family so at the moment I’m leaning towards hiring the church hall. She loves Frozen so I thought about getting an Elsa character to come and sing some songs. I think they are relatively cheap. Other than that I’m stumped.

I’ve been to a few kids parties recently and the ones I really dislike are soft play parties, I know they do everything for you but they tend to be very busy and chaotic. Also been to a few village hall ones where they’ve just hired a bouncy castle and played some music. Games and entertainers don’t seem to be a thing at this age (at least not from what I’ve seen) maybe because they are quite little and don’t have the attention span!

So if your dc got invited to a party what do you like to see there and which ones do you dread? Thank you!

Also make sure you’ve got plenty of balloons. Been to a few where there’s only a small selection and then it all kicks off. Just have a packet spare and then you can give more out if they get popped!

we did a slime party and that was really good. The company cleaned up afterwards and the children were all super focused for over an hour. Then lunch and a bit of running around, cake, party bags and good bye!

I read the thread title and immediately said "Kids" 🤣🤣

Haha, yes the one we went to only had crisps and juice, one bouncy castle in a sparse hall, and nothing else, "Uncle Eddie" was the entertainment and I couldn't wait to leave. All the dcs were bored after a bit time on the bouncy castle. Thankfully I had a bottle of water for me and some snacks for dc in my bag as there was nowhere to get a drink from.
I wish all invitations would specify refreshments/buffet for dcs is or isn't provided. We've been to afew that haven't provided anything, and gift cost more than the soft play place (we could have just bought a ticket on the door)!

Maybe a game of pass the parcel, otherwise it’s just let them tear about for 2 hours.

Action songs? Keeps them moving but with some structure.

They're a little bit young for games like musical statues and musical bumps, unless you have something going on for the ones who are 'out'.

Please don’t do party bags full of plastic tat. It all goes straight in the bin. Get some cheap colouring pads and pens, or the books you can get on offer in The Works as the gift bags.

a party at that age we went to had a bouncy castle, a colouring section with paper, pens etc, a play figure section with toy dinosaurs etc. it worked really well as the children could go and do the areas the wanted to. And music not too loud! 😂

Strong dislike for a piñata. Always a recipe for a kid getting smacked in the face. Plus 10% of the greediest / bravest kids get half the sweets whilst the more shy kids get none.

I hate it when the DJ tries to get the parents up to dance. I love a dance when I'm with my friends and I've had a drink, but not 10am in the morning in a dusty sports hall surrounded by people I have to face every morning on the school run 😂

Tea /coffee for parents is a must imo

DISLIKE

1. Parties in large public locations with minimal supervision (includes soft plays). Kids end up running feral and it's very difficult to keep tabs on them. Even worse if there are lots of parents doing drop-off so it becomes impossible for the host mum to keep an eye on all the kids. Any parents who stay are roped into taking care of other children are well

2. No party bags. Been to very few parties where this was the case but kids always love a party bag even if it's just a few piece of "tat". It's also a very useful way to get them to leave the party and unpacking the party bag in the car is part of the fun.

3. Stale cake or bad food. Been to a few parties were the cake was virtually inedible, probably bought/baked and kept in the fridge for days beforehand. It's obviously understandable that planning a party is tricky but it really makes a difference if the host made an effort to ensure the food is fresh.

4. Homemade cake. With very, very few exceptions, homemade cake always tastes awful (too sweet, too stale, too gummy or cold). Most people overestimate their baking skills and especially designs that have fancier details like colourful fondant, buttercream, fresh fruit etc are just not palatable. The storage may also be a problem as most amateur cakes don't hold up well even if kept one night in the fridge.

5. Parents bringing sick kids or siblings. Obviously the host can't do much about this but it's annoying when someone brings a visible sick and coughing child to a birthday party. Esp if it's soft play or some play where all the kids will be touching the same surfaces.

LIKE

1. A location where only the birthday children can play, either a private venue, guided workshop or hall. Far less stress having to keep an eye on them and being able to enjoy time with other parents.

2. Special tours or guided experiences as part of the party. Obviously more feasible for older children but some of the best parties were ones where they get a behind the scenes tour with a staff member. Zoo, museum, baking, chocolate making etc

3. Treasure hunt parties. Some of these parties were low budget but with a lot of attention to detail. You can find pre-written treasure hunt clues online and the kids go through different stations. Each station contains a small prize or additional clues, and it leads to a big prize at the end.

4. A fresh, bakery cake. A simple vanilla sponge or chocolate cake from a bakery is usually the best. Nothing with fruit or marzipan (most children dislike those)

5. Lots of extra paper cups and cutlery, along with a pen to mark them. This is a minor detail but cups inevitably get mixed up at some point and it's easier to grab a new one than trying to figure out which ones belong to which child.

I’ve just been to one of these parties - 10 little girls with one parent each and 1 set grandparents in village hall with an Ice princess. One poor child didn’t have an Elsa costume and I think the boys didn’t want to come because it was a Frozen party. Far and away the best, including my similar age daughter’s party. She put a glittery tattoo on each child, did frozen twisted party games (musical chairs on felt snowflakes, grabbing the birthday girls parents to be dressed “as snowmen”

It seems to be routine for kids parties around me to usually finish up with x2 adults + 1 sib for most invites. Quite a lot have invited the whole preschool class (20-30), and it is hugely noisy and the little ones (and me) got overwhelmed.

seriously tempted to do the same for next year, but I have a horrible feeling that a lot of Frozen parties lie between then and now.

Like soft play parties when the venue is small and it's exclusively hired.
Agreed. There is a leisure centre near us with a small soft play suitable for younger children and it is possible to hire it exclusively for an hour. We hired it for DDs 3rd and 4th birthday parties. They would then let you hire another room to set up for the birthday tea. One year the room they allocated is was a dance studio and the kids loved the fact that there was a mirror down one side of the room. Seemed to provide ample entertainment by itself!

I grimace at actual entertainers though. They aren’t interesting enough to deliver a lecture that keeps them entertained for 90 minutes. I’ve been to a couple parties with an actual entertainer and half the kids were just hiding behind their parents the whole time because she was so loud and over the top in your face. It didn’t really get anyone engaging and it didn’t let them just play with their friends.
@mindutopia Obviously they vary a lot. DD went to one or two entertainer parties which were a bit rubbish.

One where the entertainers were an elderly couple called something like Uncle Ted and Auntie Jean and it was so dull and dated I think most of them were bored stiff.

Another where the youngish entertainer seemed to have no real idea what would appeal to younger children. I think it was a 5th birthday and was a joint party so must have been nearly 40 kids ( probably a problem to begin with). But his entertainment seemed to consist entirely of organized party games mostly of the sort where you can be got out and then have to sit at the side until the end of the game, e.g. musical chairs, musical statues. Not much fun for a 5yo who is out the first go and then has to sit at the side and watch as the remaining 39 are gradually eliminated!

However, the entertainer we got for DDs 5th turned out to be excellent. Lots of parents asked for his card at the end. He was able to engage the children right from the start and had a mix of conjuring, puppet shows, jokes and games. I got the impression he was very experienced and knew what would work best with different age groups.

We have a local legend that does the best kids parties- he does a disco set up for little ones, really popular from about 3 up which he has games and magic tricks woven in to and he gives out many sweets and prizes. He is like the pied piper with kids, they are absolutely entranced. He also does almost all the local school discos. We all love a Disco Steve party!

What’s more he is less than £150 for 2hrs. He gets booked up so far ahead.

Other popular ones here are by companies like Froggle and DNA kids which I think cover a huge area. They are also good but pricey.

I don’t think you need an entertainer and a bouncy castle.
A tip I picked up from someone else is to put a teepee up somewhere - any overwhelmed child can take themselves there for a bit of space.

I liked bouncy castles in a hall at that age, and those little cars you ride on. A craft table is also good for children who need a break from bouncing and running around.

Personally I think an entertainer at that age is not great, not all kids have the ability to sit and listen and not all will be interested. If it's a class of 30 if you are going down an entertainer route I would look into having something available for kids that don't want to join in..

We did do a party with a bouncy castle and elsa for my daughter, as I assumed anyone not interested in Elsa would be able to continue playing on the bouncy castle. But she requested it was turned off, and this is where we lost some children's attention as they didn't want to join in the singing and games.

Best one we did was the local sports centre.

It was bouncy castle free for all but they had tunnels, hoops and other bits of equipment dotted about so there was focus other than the bouncy castle to avoid all kids on it at once.

I did the food as snacks boxes so it was easy and bought two of the same basic birthday cake so it was already cut and in party bags for kids and handed the other out for adults.

The sports centre did the set up and parents could sit behind glass in the viewing area and have a cup of tea.

If you are doing village hall style or home, an hour and a half is plenty. Two hours runs into them starting to get bored so my main tip would be shorter isn't any less enjoyable for kids or adults.

Like: It being the end of the party and going home
Dislike: Parties!

I’ve probably been to close to 100 Reception aged parties and in my experience the children love seeing their friends, running round together and they need very little actual structure to make it fun. So really it comes down to whether you want to do the party for the parents or the child.

Wow that Elsa sounds a bit of a diva 😂
I get the point that some people might not be interested in Elsa and that’s fine but as it’s my daughter’s party and I know she’ll love it I want to do something for her. It the other kids aren’t interested they don’t have to engage and can carry on running around beating each other up with balloons.

That's crap that it was open to the public! That's not how it should work. At the very least the party area should be cordoned off.

Entertainers for this age group aren’t appropriate IMO. A lot of the tinies are scared of them. Entertainers for more than about 15 children it’s just carnage. SO loud in a desperate bid to keep their attention and half of the children just run off anyway

I think it was the noise of the bouncy castle and I guess she didn't want people joining in games last minute.

I mean princess parties can be quite popular amongst nursery/reception children, but I would try to ensure there is something available for children that don't want to join in if your Elsa is doing some kind of entertainment. I guess it depends what you book and whether they just attend the party for photos and chat to the children, or the one I had doing singing and games.

Dislike: Plastic party bag crap that goes straight in the bin, food that is only healthy so nobody eats anything (let them have party food and save me making lunch/dinner!), not providing tea/coffee and biscuits or maybe wine if budget allows for adults, anything that actually involves parent participation

Like: Hiring a soft play or entertainer so everyone has a focus and something to do

Private hire can cost hundreds and is often only available at odd times. (Like 6pm on weekdays)

Party bags full of unsuitable, cheap and not sustainable shit from Temu. Honestly, I get internally enraged.

I like parties with a quiet corner for the quiet kids, usually with drawing stuff.

And checking allergies etc in advance.

There are plenty of play cafes and party rooms with a very small soft play area and/or ball pit that are designed for private hire. Kids don't need a massive area to run around, they're just as happy in a small play area with their friends.

Large public venues can become a genuine safekeeping risk. Especially when parents do drop offs and then disappear. We've been to parties where 4-5 year olds were going to the loo by themselves unsupervised which involved walking through tons of strangers also coming out of the loos. One party at crowded museum where one 5 year old girl disappeared (obviously another drop-off mum even though most parents chose to stay). Thankfully someone found her again. Another one at a busy ice rink where 5 year olds were skating alone and unsupervised and one ended up injuring herself quite badly simply because there wasn't enough adults to keep an eye on things (more drop off parents of course).