5 Seriously Cool Kid's Party Themes
Everyone loves a good clown party, and there’s no denying the glee that a princess-themed shindig evokes, either. But if you’re looking for something that hasn’t been done a million times over, this is the party idea list for you. We’ve reached out to two experts in the event industry to not just provide seriously cool kids party themes, but to also give you tips on how to pull it off with flair!
1. Space Party
Even adults think astronauts and outer space are the coolest, so imagine the joy your kiddos will experience at their very own space-themed bonanza. Helen Holden, the founder of birthday planning website, Counting Candles, said to start with the décor. Think cutouts or paper lanterns that replicate the solar system, a lot of blue and black to replicate outer space, and posters that say things like, “BLAST OFF!” and “Out of this world!”
“For food, anything shaped like planets, aliens, spaceships, the moon, sun, astronauts and stars will work,” said Holden. “You can also make cake pops that look like planets, and label bowls of food as moon rocks, meteorites, flying saucers, moon sand, and UFOs.”
As for activities, convert traditional party games into a space theme. For example, an obstacle course where you pretend you’re walking on the moon, a scavenger hunt where you’re looking for space junk on a list, and rocket ships made from paper rolls and colored paper. You can also have a rocket ship photo booth and a bounce house if you want to…reach for the stars.
2. Hula Party
“Say ‘aloha’ to a Hawaiian themed party with hula dancers and a ukulele player,” said Alison Bernstein, general manager of GigMasters, an event service that connects party planners to vendors. She says a hula party is a great theme whether you’re celebrating summer or trying to keep warm in the winter months.
Make sure to have kids wear their favorite Hawaiian shirts (or pick some up at the thrift store for them to put on), and provide plenty of leis and child-sized straw hats, as well. For décor, decorate with surfboards, tiki torches, colorful tropical flowers, grass skirts on the tables and palm fronds or coconuts.
As for food, opt for some tropical punch, vanilla wafer cookies with frosting in the middle that look like clams, lots of pineapple, and beach-themed cookies. For activities, try seashell painting, limbo-ing, pineapple bowling, and hula hooping. You can even hire a henna artist, suggested Bernstein.
3. Science Party
Science doesn’t have to be relegated to the classroom, and a party centered around it can prove that it’s both educational and fun. Start by hiring someone – or employ a friend, family member or yourself – to be the mad scientist host for the day.
“At the start of the party, give the kids white lab coats (try painting smocks from the local crafts store), plastic disposable gloves, and safety goggles,” Holden suggested. “I like neon and florescent colors for decorations because of the likeness to mad scientist potions and radioactive chemicals, and you can also place cutouts of the items from the Periodic Table and made-up element around the room. Use a poster board as the welcome sign, and list the child’s made-up periodic element and a description of the child with scientific language thrown in, such as ‘reacts well to pink, explosive fun.’”
Some other ideas to bring it home: use plastic beakers as drinking cups, name the tables or rooms after famous scientists, use lab bottles as balloon weights, lab materials as decorations, and make sure you have plenty of fun, scientific experiments the kids can participate in.
4. Bubble Party
Yep, it’s exactly what it sounds like: a party where bubbles reign supreme.
“To set the scene for a bubble-themed party, inflate white, blue and champagne-colored balloons to various sizes, arranging them in clusters to look like – what else? – bubbles,” Bernstein said. “Add some fun into the decor scheme with rubber ducks and your child’s other favorite bath toys, too!”
Stick to the theme with bubble-esque snacks, such as rice crispy “bubble bites,” fish-shaped sandwiches, yellow duck-shaped cookies, and drinks topped with whipped cream or marshmallows.
“For entertainment, consider hiring a green screen photo booth, which you can customize with a background filled with floating bubbles, or a fish and bubble-filled sea scene,” said Bernstein. (You could also try DIYing your own photo booth.) “And if your little one’s favorite part of a bubble bath is the rubber ducks, bring them to life by hiring a duck petting zoo!”
Also make sure you have plenty of jars of bubbles on hand, as well as a bubble maker going in the yard.
5. Glow in the Dark Party
“This party theme is beyond easy, and will please kids of all ages,” said Bernstein. “Swap a few traditional light bulbs out with black light bulbs, and supply your kids with glow in the dark decor like glow sticks and neon shirts.”
They’ll also love wearing glow in the dark bracelets, necklaces, and more, and you can place glow in the dark stars around the room, as well. Protip: tonic water can be added to foods and drinks to cast an eerie glow under black light. Add it to the punch, substitute tonic water in for regular water in your Jell-O, and dip fruit into a chocolate that has a splash of tonic water. Texture-rich, pale foods also look amazing under the black light, including cotton candy and marshmallows.
For activities, a black light dance party – complete with DJ – is a safe bet, and you can also play with glow in the dark paint, water balloons, and other crafts.
Wendy Rose Gould is a writer based in Phoenix, Arizona. She covers women’s lifestyle topics for numerous digital publications, including InStyle, xoVain, Refinery29, Revelist, PopSugar and ModCloth. You can follow her on Twitter and Instagram or at WendyGould.com
