Parties and Creativity

The Gremlin attended a party the other day that was Star Wars themed. It was one of the most creative and best-planned events I've witnessed.

Props were well-created and dispersed. Each child was given a lightsaber in the form of a foam swimming pool noodles (green, blue, and red) that had been taped on one end with duct tape and electrical tape; they also received Jedi robes that had been fashioned out of a few well-placed cuts in a collection of brown sheets purchased from the local thrift store; and finally there was a pinata that had been made out of a balloon to be in the shape of the Death Star.

Once through the door, the armed padawans were made to take the Jedi oath - that they promised not to hit anyone who did not want to be hit, and thus started the Jedi training. Between the attempted relay that turned into each child honing their lightsaber skills by bouncing a balloon on their lightsaber, to the competition to see who could balance their lightsaber on their finger (which was sold to the kids as the precursor to both remote training and standing on your head levitating Yoda) there were timed events that not only broke the kids into manageable groups, but also kept everyone moving and involved.

When the cake came out - it was a sheet cake with two Star Wars action figures stuck into the frosting - additional gifts to the birthday boy.

The final key was that the party itself - for four year-old kids - was given a time limit of two hours. This ensured not only that the children were involved, but that they didn't get bored or have time to break down into sugar overloaded terrors before it was time for them to head back out - meaning their parents picked the kids up in good moods too.

Just an idea for those people looking for good ideas or good ways to try to adapt other ideas.