Girls and boys are different. While there are always exceptions to the rule, it’s almost a given that a little girl’s birthday party is going to be different than a little boy’s birthday party–right down to the decorations and the games. Think about what your daughter loves to do, and choose birthday games for your birthday party that will delight the birthday girl and her female friends.
Ages and Stages
Consider the ages of the girls before planning the party games. Preschoolers, for example, have short attention spans, according to the National Network for Child Care, and will not be able to wait patiently for a turn for long. In addition, young girls may not understand complex rules or be able to lose gracefully. Games for young girls should be simple, and should allow for everyone to have an equal chance to win. Older girls can handle more complex games that involve both strategy and luck.
Size
Think about the size of the group of guests. A large number of guests means you should plan games where the girls can be divided into teams, such as relay games and charades. Smaller groups can play games where the individual girls compete against each other, such as board games or trivia games.
Considerations
Many girls love to do games that involve creating something, such as decorating something, or even dressing the birthday girl up in a glamorous birthday outfit. Before you plan such a game, make sure you are able to afford, or acquire, all the necessary supplies. Consider the temperaments of the girls as well. While most may love the idea of a “pretty pink princess” game, there may be one or two girls who can’t stand anything pink. Try to choose games you think will appeal to every girl.
Types
Often, a birthday party will be of a certain type, or held at a certain venue. Try to match the games to the type of party. Pool parties, for example, lend themselves to specific games, such as diving for toothpicks. Most girls love slumber parties, because they love to stay up late and share secrets with their friends. Provide the girls with some games that will play on their love of communication, such as a Truth or Dare board game. You might want to preview the questions first, however, just to be safe. Or, create one yourself for the girls to play.
Ideas
Put an innocent twist on Spin the Bottle by spinning a bottle of nail polish. Use several bottles. When the bottle stops spinning, the girl who is closet to where the lid is pointing must paint one of her fingernails or toenails that color. Then, do it again with a different color of nail polish. At the end of the game, the girls will have very colorful toenails. Divide the girls into two groups and put on a fashion contest. One girl from each group must be the model, and the other girls must make her a dress out of aluminum foil, paper plates, toilet paper, or whatever else you have handy around the house. A good sharing game would be to blow up a beach ball, then write a question on each color section. Have the girls sit in a circle and throw the ball to each other. When a girl catches the ball, she has to answer the question her left thumb is touching. This is a good game for those slumber parties.
Photo Credit
- birthday cake image by Cherry-Merry from Fotolia.com
