As soon as the boys started arriving at my son's 5th Birthday Party they started to move and run, so BE PREPARED... have a list of 10-12 games to keep them occupied.
At this age everyone wants to be running around together, squealing and laughing.
Games that worked well for my son's 5th Birthday Party!
- Construct something from toothpicks and mini-marshmallows (could be as simple as building a house or more complex like a hexagon, octagon etc)
- Straw and cotton ball race (give every child a cotton ball and straw; line them up and let them race by blowing the cotton ball along the floor)
- Pass the parcel (go round the circle, each child unwraps a layer, so that every child gets a turn) - after they had lots of fun throwing the wrapping paper around
- Duck, Duck, Goose or drop the handkerchief - kids love this game and play it at school a lot!
- Egg and spoon race (I used plastic eggs left over from Easter; after the race the child who opened their egg and found the chicken received the prize)
- Something to jump up and down on ... trampoline or bouncy castle
Games that don't work so well at this age ... anything that requires waiting or just one person participating at a time ... they all want to be doing the same thing at the same time!
We played for an hour, ending with a quiet game before eating cake. While seated at the table my son opened his gifts. Then it was off outside to play for the last 45 minutes.
