1. Pin the _Something_ on _Something_
Traditionally pin the tail on the donkey, this game can be changed to fit any theme. In this game, blindfolded guests try to stick a paper 'tail' onto a poster of a donkey. You can take a piece of poster board and draw anything with something missing - a nose on a clown or animal, the TY heart on a beanie baby, a spaceship in an outer space scene, and one year we gave Yoda (Star Wars) his staff. Just be sure to include an outline of where the object needs to land.
2. Bean Bag Toss
You can make an easy Bean Bag Toss using a double layer of poster board glued together and a large box. Use the large box as a base, and attach the poster board to one side of it. Before attaching the poster board, paint a design on it, allowing for one or more holes. Kids always have a lot of fun throwing bean bags. They're easy to make from fabric scraps if you sew. This
should be included in your file of inexpensive and creative birthday party games.
3. Pinata
This is a game that requires room and good supervision. The children are blindfolded (or not, if they are young and don't want to be) and they take a stick and try to break a hanging container that has candies and other small goodies in it. (Colorful Band-Aids are popular among preschoolers). To make one, you can do something as simple as decorating a paper grocery bag with paints or crepe paper and then gluing and taping the top shut once the treats are inside. Run a string along the top edge before shutting the bag. You can also make a fancier one using a balloon and paper mache. The fun thing is that these can be decorated to match any theme. This is just one of the many birthday party games that can be adapted to the ages of the attendees.
4. Make a Bracelet/Necklace
This activity can be an activity the children can go to between other activities, or the main focus. A big bag of pony beads, some elastic cord, scissors and an adult to help when needed, and they can make their own jewelry. Be sure to supervise this one, so that necklaces and bracelets are not made too tight.
5. Go on a Treasure Hunt
These are some treasure hunt ideas: You can scatter coins in the lawn and let the kids hunt for them, much like an Easter egg hunt. You can hide each child's goodie bag and then give that child a piece of paper with a hint for finding it - it could be a simple map drawing for a young child, a word or two, or a riddle for older children. You can also let the children do a paper clue based hunt as a group - with the goodie bag for the youngest being the first found, along with the clue to the next goodie bag, and so on.
6. Guess How Many
This is an old favorite on the birthday party games list. Fill a jar with candy. Have children write their name on a small piece of paper and their guess as to how many candies are in the jar. The child who guesses the right number, or comes closest, gets a sucker. The candy in the jar is then divided among the children. A variation would be that the winner takes the jar of candy home to share with their family.
7. Make Place Cards or Placemats
This activity could be as complex or simple as you want - children can decorate 3x5 cards or construction paper with a variety of stickers, cut outs (use an old beanie baby magazine for a source of a hundred or more beanie pictures, a pokemon magazine for pokemon), crayons, and colored pencils. If you have enough help to cover the placemats after they're done with clear contact paper, they will last a long time.
8. Who Am I?
When the children come through the door tape a farm animal or item/object to their backs. Through the course of the party they may ask each other yes and no questions about what they are. Explain that the first question they may want to ask is "Am I an animal or an object?" At the end of the party each child takes a turn saying what they think they are. Suggestions: cow, pig, sheep...pitchfork, saddle, horseshoe, hay, milk, barn, tractor, etc. This is another one of very popular birthday party games.
9. Button, Button, Who's got the Button
A child is chosen to be "it" and hides her eyes as a button is given to a child to hide in his lap or behind his back. "It" then has three chances to guess which child has the item. (All children hide their hands in their laps/behind their backs like they have it.) For animal themes, select an item that goes with the animal. If you're doing a character theme like Cinderella it would be "Slipper, Slipper, Who's got the Slipper".
