Birthday parties are popular events on the busy social calendars of many teens. These festive occasions give teens the opportunity to join with their peers and engage in rambunctious fun. At these gatherings, teens enjoy kicking back and spreading the current gossip. To add excitement and create party structure, you can plan party games. Teens are a tougher audience than youngsters as they sometime delight in rebelling against structure and are often turned off by games that they deem childish. However, with carefully planning, you can woo even the most cynical teen and entice him to engage in a competitive game.
Survey Interests
Before you devote time to planning a game, determine what the potential players like. Ask your teen and a few of her closest friends about their current interests. If there is a new movie that is all the rage, consider incorporating that into the game. Likewise, if there is a current fashion trend that they can’t wait to get their hands on, purchase some trendy items as prizes.
Keep It Classic
There is no need to reinvent the wheel when picking birthday party games for your teen. Try some classic options, like Truth or Dare. Teens love the social aspect of this game and delight in making their peers perform potentially disgusting or embarrassing dares. Consider setting up a classic scavenger hunt by writing out clues and sending your teen guests around the house or even neighborhood in search of specific objects.
Go Goofy
Teens love making a fool of themselves. Give them an organized means by which to do this by engaging them in a goof-tastic game. Try the Peanut Push. Create two lines on the floor and line the guests up on one. Place a peanut in front of each guest. Tell them that, when you say go, they must push the peanut across the floor with their nose as quickly as they can. Tap into your teen’s love of fashion by engaging guests in a toilet paper dress design contest. Divide guests into teams, giving each a roll of toilet paper. Set a time limit and instruct them to craft a dress out of the provided paper. Have guests score each creation and declare the team with the most points the winners.
Provide Prizes
Entice teens to take part in your prepared pastimes by offering them desirable prizes. To capture your teens’ interests, you may have to think outside the box when selecting prizes. Instead of offering the plastic trinkets you give to younger party-goers, give teens a chance to earn things they want, like iTunes gift cards, movie ticket vouchers or trendy accessories.
Keep It Clean
Many teen birthday parties include rounds of Spin the Bottle or the perennial favorite, Seven Minutes in Heaven. While these games are a popular teenage rite of passage, parents who entrust you to watch over their teens may not appreciate these sexually charged activities. Use your planned games to steer party guests away from these less-wholesome options.
Photo Credit
- laughing teens image by Andrey Kiselev from Fotolia.com
