No matter the age of the children, there are often one or two that arrive at a birthday party feeling a bit nervous. Children can feel like they’re walking into the unknown and, as the host, you want to make them feel comfortable as quickly as possible so that they can enjoy the party.

I’ve learned that the best way to get them settled in is with a ‘warmup game’. It is not a physical warm up, it is a social warmup.  It gets them involved straight away and distracts them from saying goodbye to mum and dad for a few hours. A warm up game signals to them that the party is going to be fun and ensures they are ready to fully participate in and enjoy the party. 

If you want everyone to have a wonderful time at your birthday party, try one of these games at the start.

Cookie Face

Standing in a circle, each player is given a cookie that they place on their forehead. On the word Go, players wriggle their faces until they get the cookie to their mouth. If the cookie falls off their face, they have to start again. You can have a time limit on the game or keep going until everyone has finished.

All you need is cookies. Allow at least 2 cookies per player in case of breakages. Oreos are a good size to use.

Quick Quiz

A fun stand-up quiz with multiple choice answers for children to choose from. They get eliminated when they get the wrong answer and the winner is the last child remaining. Make sure your questions start easy (you don’t want children to be out with the first couple of questions) and get more challenging as you go so that children get eliminated.

The quiz questions can be facts about the birthday boy or girl; facts relating to the theme of the party; or any fun facts that are relevant to the age group. Funny or ridiculous answers make the quiz more entertaining.

There are 2 ways that we play:

4 alternative answers – a, b, c, or d. Players move to the corner of the room assigned to each letter.

2 alternative answers – true/false or heads/tails (hands on heads or hands on hips). 

Guess the number of sweets in the jar

All you need is a clear jar, sweets (or an alternative) and pen and paper.

When children arrive at the party, they have a guess at how many sweets in the jar. They write their name and answer on a piece of paper.

Once everyone has arrived and had a guess, the winner is announced and wins the jar of sweets.

Some alternatives to sweets are stationary, art supplies, jewellery beads or lego pieces.

I hope you have a great party!

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