Celebrations

It’s always time to celebrate something, right? Here are some ideas so you aren’t stuck doing the same old thing year after year.

Birthday Party Ideas
Ideas for the Room Parent
Anywhere, Anytime Celebrations

Birthday Party Ideas

We know there are a million-and-one birthday party ideas out there, so here are just a few that are fun, simple and sure to please the birthday gal or boy!

Home on the Range
Pizza! Pizza!
A Day of Beauty

Home on the Range

A perfect backyard bash for the cowboy or cowgirl in your life.

Menu: campfire carrot sticks and red bell pepper star cut-outs, Chuckwagon beans, mini burgers or mini hot dogs, corn-on-the-cob, and for dessert, serve Brown Cows (root beer or chocolate milk over vanilla ice cream)
Decorations: red-checkered tablecloths, bales of hay, bandanas, cowboy hats and boots, cutouts of horses and cows
Activities: Square dance, cactus piñata, water gun shootouts (on targets, not each other!), licorice rope tying contest, boot toss, horseshoes
Party Favors: wrap up wild west-themed trinkets, homemade trail mix and a personalized sheriff badge in a bandana

Pizza! Pizza!

Let kids be chefs for a day with a make-your-own pizza party.

Menu: Have a wide assortment of toppings – pizza sauce or chopped tomatoes, chopped bell peppers, broccoli florets, meats, different cheeses, Italian seasonings – along with ready-made crusts. Keep the pizza theme going for dessert with chocolate cookie pizza pies.
Decorations: Transform your kitchen into an Italian pizzeria with hanging vines of grapes, checkered tablecloths and candles. Make sure to designate a specific prep area with all of the toppings ready to go.
Activities: The main activity is the pizza making, but while it bakes have kids play “pin the pepperoni on the pizza” or head outside for a pizza dough-tossing contest – whoever gets it the highest wins!
Party Favors: Personalized chefs hats or aprons (available online at www.chefwear.com)

A Day of Beauty

For the princess in every girl.

Menu: This party is all about being pampered, so serve elegant party food – and we mean serve; the partygoers should be catered to. Use cookie cutters to cut finger sandwiches into fun shapes, chocolate-covered strawberries, sparkling grape juice.
Decorations: Set up a mock salon. Big comfy chairs, lots of mirrors, their favorite music.
Activities: Enlist the help of other mothers to act as stylists, or call your local beauty school who may have professionally trained students that will offer their services for less. Offer manicures, pedicures and hair up-do’s.
Party Favors: A small cosmetic bag filled with nail polish, a nail file and a fun hair accessory.

For the Room Parent

End of the Year
Teacher Thank-You's
General Classroom Activities
Go-Green Tips

End of the Year

Keep kids motivated and out of the “spring slump” by treating them to small, simple rewards. Some ideas include dropping by with fruit popsicles, ice cream sandwiches, fresh fruit kabobs or fresh-baked cookies. (Just make sure to get the teacher’s approval first!)
Coordinate an end-of-the-year picnic (outdoors if the weather is nice, indoors if it’s not!) A burger and hot dog bar is easy-to-eat and easy-to-serve; then add on simple side dishes and desserts like veggie dippers, pasta salad and make-your-own ice cream sandwiches. Have the kids play fun games.
Offer to organize an end-of-the year dance, or offer to chaperone if one has already been planned.

Teacher Thank-You's

Surprise the teachers with breakfast! Have coffee, fruit, yogurt, cheese sticks, muffins and bagels waiting when they arrive at school.
Have the kids treat their teacher to a “random act of kindness” – wash the classroom windows or the teacher’s car out in the parking lot, clean the classroom, or offer to help pack up the classroom for the end of the year (including helping the teacher schlep all the materials to/from their car!).
Have each child bring 1 or 2 single flowers to create a large mixed bouquet.
Print out these teacher thank you cards and have each child sign it and present it to the teacher (cards can be left flat or folded).

General Classroom Activities

Need a uniquely creative idea for your next classroom activity? Instead of celebrating a holiday or an event, try an educational learning activity centered on their lesson plans like “Food In Space” or “Candle Making” for students studying colonial times.

Anytime, Anywhere Celebrations

Backyard Campout
Drive-In in the Driveway
Report Card Reward

Backyard Campout

This is a really simple way to make staying home feel like a vacation. All you need is a tent pitched in the backyard (or even the family room). Kids can play games, tell ghost stories, make crafts, or even just enjoy the thrill of “camping solo.”

The Basics:

Tent
Sleeping bags
Flashlights
Easily portable food (gorp or trail mix, beef jerky, sandwiches, pre-packaged treats)

Ways to Kick It Up:

Two-way radios/walkie-talkies
S’mores over a campfire (requires parental supervision)
Supplies to make “camp crafts” (beads, popsicle sticks, yarn for friendship bracelets, etc.)

Drive-In in the Driveway

Or in the backyard! Either way, turning your place into a personal, exclusive theater for a bunch of kids is loads of fun at any age.

Rent a projector that can be hooked up to your DVD player.
Create a movie screen using a white sheet hung from a clothesline, on a wire or over a fence (just make sure it’s flat and can be kept taut).
Set up your backyard with blankets, pillows, lawn chairs – anything comfortable.
Have plenty of snacks on hand … popcorn, pretzels, movie candy, beverages
Choose a lighthearted, fun, age-appropriate movie … or show a B&W classic for something different

Report Card Reward

It’s important to recognize your child’s school achievements, but it doesn’t always have to involve buying them something. Instead, try one of these ideas to reward a job well done:

Plan an outing of their choosing – the park, the zoo or a movie
Let them choose a special dinner or dessert made in their honor
Give them a week off chore duty
Agree to one extra hour of TV-watching, video game-playing, etc.
Take them out for a special feels-like-a-weekend breakfast before school