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Birthday is the most special day for any child. They would be looking forward to it the whole year and actually have a countdown when the big day is nearing.
The preparation for the day will start weeks before, for the parents and the child. From choosing which chocolates to buy for distributing in their class, to which clothes and shoes/accessories to wear for school and the evening party, these decisions would most likely be taken by the child.
The parents though have a bigger task at hand. Arranging the Birthday Bash and making sure their precious ones and their friends all have fun and create happy memories, that they can talk about excitedly even in the future.
1. Sports Theme
What's the best ever entertainment for a school-going kid?
It's sports.
The joy of playing their favorite sport or game is always high.
So why not turn their birthday into a fun sports-themed one?
If your child loves Cricket or Football or such outdoor sports, keep an outdoor party in a sports ground, where the kids can play their favorite sport, when they are not busy cutting cake, singing "Happy Birthday" or munching on the yummy cake, and snacks. You or some volunteers from the parent's group can be the umpire/referee.
Make sure to get the cake in the shape of your child's favorite sports ball/equipment or sports field. Also get the sport-themed Jersey for your kid to wear during the party (their favorite player's Jersey would add brownie points for you, of course), and also request the little guests to wear similar sports jerseys.
That way, you can gather all of them on the field and get a Little Sports League photo and can frame and gift this to all the little munchkins. Also, you can give sport-themed caps, milk mugs, or steel water bottles as return gifts.
2. Historical Theme
Plan a historical-themed party and take your kid and all the guests back in time, on the time machine. Dress up your little one as a famous historical figure, be it a king/queen or a freedom fighter. Request all your little guests too to come dressed in the same theme.
You can get props based on the theme. If the theme is 'Kings and Queens of India', you can get cardboard swords, flags, and wooden horses to ride on. You can keep games based on the theme, by using those props. The cake can be in the shape of a crown or the shape of India.
You can tell stories or even better, play some short video clips about historical figures. And as a return gift, you can give a book based on the same, it can be a storybook with coloring pages or stickers.
3. Galaxy/Space Theme
As kids, we all dream of going to outer space. If your kid loves everything about space, make this dream come true (well, not literally but the next best thing) for their birthday.
Get a party hall with a projector. Or this is even possible at your own home if you have or can rent a projector. Project Space and galaxy images on all the walls (put a slideshow and let the images keep changing automatically). Or get large prints of galaxy/space and hang them covering the walls on all sides. This will create an illusion of being in outer space.
There are beautiful space-themed cakes and glossy galaxy cakes. Get one that your kid prefers. You can dress up your kid as an astronaut for the party. If that is difficult, you can dress them up in white/cream tones (they can be like stars in outer space). You may request the same of all your guests.
The games can be based on astronomy and outer space, like identifying a shape in the stars or counting the number of shooting stars from a space video.
Return gifts can be books about space/coloring books of galaxies and outer space or space-themed milk mugs, stationery, and glow-in-the-dark stars (saved the best for the last).
4. Music/Disco Theme
If your kid is a good singer/dancer, then you can have a party in an indoor hall and dim the lights, hang a disco light in the center, and make it your own disco hall. And rent a Karaoke machine or there are many karaoke tracks available on Youtube, so even a laptop will suffice.
Dress your kid in a Retro singer/disco costume and request your guests to follow the same theme.
Make sure to leave the center of the hall empty for all the kids to perform. You can take videos or even stream this life if you and the guests are ok with it. The kids will have an awesome time singing and dancing and it will be such a treat to watch for all the parents.
Disco-themed cakes and music-themed cakes are available. You can get one such cake, it is definitely going to be a super duper hit. You can gift colorful/glittery scarves, bands, bracelets, sunglasses, etc to the little ones, keeping the same colorful disco theme in mind.
5. Beach Theme
The beach is the one destination that no kid will say no to. They love playing in the sand, running, flying kites, building sandcastles, and collecting pebbles and shells.
So why not keep a very different party at a beach?
Check if it is possible for you to get a separate area on a private beach to host your party or choose a restaurant right near the beach.
You can get a Sea themed cake for this and dress up your superstar in a sea/beach-themed costume. It may be Aquaman or SpongeBob Squarepants or Captain Jack Sparrow. Ask your guests to dress up in colors depicting a sea themes or even as Pirates.
The party can carry on with fun games like 'Who builds the highest sand castle?' or 'Catch the pirates', the kids will be super-engaged in the fun.
The return gift can be a set of sand castle-building tools, beach themed bracelet with shells, and other such charms with matching earrings, or a coloring book based on the same theme.
Tips:
* Please make sure to have a safe party as some of these are outdoors. Have at least two parents always on the lookout for the playing/running kids. Parents can take turns doing this duty or if there are elder siblings in the party, they can be given this responsibility too.
* Always keep First Aid kits with you. Kids would run and fall, scraping their knees or elbows. It is better to be prepared for such situations.
* If there is a lot of time for you to plan the party, based on the theme you choose, you can place the order ahead for gift bags with the same theme and place your returned gifts inside them and distribute them. You can find many themed gift bags in your nearby store or supermarket and even online.