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Things You'll Need:
- Party Decorations
- Blow up pool, fish, sea creatures,etc
- Water Balloons
- Beach Balls,assorted balls
- Sand Box/Pit
- Sand toys
- Cd player/themed music
- Cake/Cupcakes
- Kids Food
- Adult Food
- Miscellaneous items
- musical instruments
Planning the party:
A
great theme for this age group and one that works well with the
backyard is Creatures at the Ocean. This theme delighted my son as it
gave him the opportunity to have his friends play in the pool and in
the sandbox.
There are wonderful free ideas on the internet that will guide you through an entire party from start to finish.
Invitations: We chose to make one that had a beach theme. A large ziploc bag served as the house for a printed paper that said:
A day of sun and sea
Charlie is turning three
Will we SEA you there?
(variations on this theme courtesy of some of the wonderful ideas on the internet)
We
put our own signature on the invitation by filling a smaller ziploc bag
with silver glitter (sand) some fish themed foam stickers and assorted
mini seashells which we picked up in a craft store. For the water we
crumpled blue tissue paper and strategically placed in the bag so that
a diorama of sorts was created.
It was wonderful being able to share this project with my child and the kids loved playing with the invitation!
Feel free to play with this idea to suit your needs/age of your child.
Creating a menu:
Using
the ocean theme we chose to serve to the children fishsticks and shells
and cheese. We purchased blue colored juice in boxes and made mini
water bottles available as well. We knew this menu would be well
received as it was a favorite among the preschool crowd.
For
dessert I highly recommend 'glued cupcakes'. "Glue" being the icing
that holds the cupcakes together. Either store bought or home made this
ingenious idea eliminates the messiness of cake, enables portion
control and is downright adorable. Baking is not my strong suit so I
ordered from Costco (saving time and money) and had a beach theme. The
cupcakes were a huge hit as the children pulled the 'cake' apart by
themselves.
Adult menu:
This is purely optional. I happen
to feel better when I feed people. Still I kept it simple as I didn't
want to lose the focus of the party.
Chips,dips,crackers,platters
of fruits and vegetables, cheeses and breads satiated the adults and
required minimal preparation. Bottles of water, a pitcher of ice-tea
and lemonade rounded out the menu.
Be as elaborate or simple as
you like. You might even make it potluck and have adult family members
bring a cold pasta dish as well.
Creating an ambiance:
Search
on the internet for websites that sell party supplies in bulk. I am
pleased that I was able to spend under $50 on ALL the
paper/decorations/balloons etc. Using a little creativity and buying
items that are discontinued, I was able to keep my cost down.
I
chose a color scheme as opposed to random colors and kept to these
colors throughout. I created bunches of balloons in divarying shades of
blues and greens, keeping with the ocean motif. I complimented the
balloon groups with streamers in similar colors and had them hanging
around the yard much like seaweed. A few ocean themed happy birthday
signs and that was it!
I rented a helium tank the day of for
$20.00. Check around your local area for best rental deals. It is NOT
worth it to purchase a tank.
Activities for the party:
The
parents couldn't stop raving about the activities I provided. I happen
to be a party planner/entertainer, but anyone can provide the right
activities and have fun with the kids!
The key to planning the
activities is timing and the age of the children. In the case of the
toddler/preschooler providing opportunities to acclimate when arriving
is key to the success of the party and sets a tone for what follows.
This can be accomplished by creating 'centers' for the children to
explore. By setting up areas in your party space that are thematically
related and offer different activities, each child can wander freely
from one activity to the next.
For our party we set up one area
with the sand and sand toys, another area had the water balloons and
blow up toddler pool which we filled with assorted balls, an area for
simple craft making, and an area where the children went "fishing". An
infant pool purchased at the 99 cent store, some dowels with yarn and
magnets and blow up fish made this center a favorite.
Depending
on the mood of the youngsters this could be plenty of excitement and
could very well last the entire time you had allotted for the activity
portion. I gauged the groups energy level and decided to include some
directed activity involving ocean themed songs and the distribution of
some toy instruments. I tried to follow my teaching philosophy of
passive -active , active-active and during the eating portion read an
age appropriate interactive book relating to the theme.
The
children then returned to the activity centers. It was such a joy to
watch each child explore in their own way. The way I structured the
activities enabled the parents to spend some quality time with their
children and still had time to mingle with the adults
Going Home-the party gifts:
I searched the internet for something theme related and inexpensive. I came upon a teaching supply site that offered mini buckets/shovels. I
truly detest the party bag. Children certainly don't need the added
sugar and it usually winds up on the floor of the car on the way home!
This
parcel was well received by the parents as they concurred with my
feelings as well. The gift rounded out the day and was something the
children could use as well.
All in all a day worth repeating!
A
successful party should run approximately an hour and a half. 45min for
the entertainment and the remaining time should be used for food cake
and going home gifts.
- Adjust your menu according to the time of day that you host the party.
- Serve
youngsters drinks in boxes/bottles. This eliminates the need to
purchase cups and is easy to clean up. Added bonus children can help
themselves.
Try to buy in bulk-it's less expensive. Children under the age of 3
should have adult supervision. Include in the invitation adult presence
required. The added security of having extra adults on hand means you
can spend more time enjoying your own child. Moms/Dads know how to work
with their child's personality; very helpful when dealing with party
tantrums,shyness, sharing issues etc. Your focus should be hostess.
Annette
Simmons, aka Ms "K" has an extensive resume in the Arts She holds
several degrees in childhood development including a Masters in Early
Childhood Education. Ms K currently has embarked on an entrepreneurial
adventure teaching Kindermusik to newborns through 7 year olds. She
offers a diversified program including ASL with babies and is
spearheading a program this summer 2009 Sign to Read- using Sign
Language to improve reading skills. Ms "K" has classes in Teaneck and
Hackensack NJ
She is also a mother to a precocious toddler.
To enroll in one of her classes or schedule a party: http://www.teachkids.kindermusik.net
Read more at the blog: http://www.kindermusikkids.wordpress.com |
