Planning the party, part 2 02/07/2010

Other issues to take into consideration as you plan a party that are also important.

Prepare the party’s host:

Talk to the birthday boy or girl so you can prepare him/her for the role he is going to play in the party. He/she may expect to be the center of attention all day.

You can make him/her see the importance of being a host, how to behave and explain that even though it is his/her special day, all the other children will be there to have fun with him.

Jealous siblings:

Siblings can feel excluded during the days before the party. It is important to make them aware that when their birthday comes, they will be the center of attention, and that this is their sibling’s moment.

Nevertheless, in order to not make them feel excluded, it is important to give them special tasks during the party like helping to give away the prizes or taking the birthday cake to the table

Good Manners:

Parties are a great opportunity to teach your children some good manners. Remind them of the courtesy that an invitation implies. If some school mates are not invited due to the restriction in the number of guests, it is better to give the invitations outside the classroom or send them by mail to avoid hurting someone’s feelings.

Parties are also an opportunity to teach children what to say when they open their presents. If the present is duplicated say “look, now I have twins”. Or if they don’t like a present teach them some appropriate words like: “this is great because I don’t have one”.

A good idea for children (and adults) is to learn to read the card and thank before opening the present. Remind your children that they will have to write and send thank you notes or make a thank you call after the party.

If they are too young to write, make them sign with their name or make a drawing on a thank you note. They must never forget to thank appropriately.