Kid Birthday Party Ideas (ages 5-7)
By an Award-Winning Professional Party Planner
Get ideas for Kid's Birthday Parties
If this is the first page you've landed on, let me give you a quick introduction. I'm Matt James, a professional party planner, and the purpose of this site is to show you the most creative way you can use regular, shop-bought party supplies that can be found in most stores.
Not everyone has the craft skills of Martha Stewart or the time to spend several days with a glue gun making things from scratch. It's fine to use shop-bought decorations and
supplies—as long as you choose them carefully and know the best way to put them all together. So I'll share a few simple tips and trade secrets that anyone can use to add
some creative touches to your party—whatever your budget.
Note: This site contains affiliate links to products. We may recieve a small commission on any sales (at no extra cost to you).
The first few years of school make 5-7 year olds much more sociable, so they're mostly interested in playing with their friends and having fun. However, birthday parties start to become more important to them as they start choosing who to invite themselves—so don't be surprised if they want to invite everyone from their class at school! Just be clear in advance how many friends they can invite before they get too carried away.
Also, decide in advance if you're expecting other kids parents to stay at the party, or if you're happy for them to just drop them off and leave (I'm betting most parents will be grateful for the break). Keep in mind that you might not have met all your child's new school friends—let alone their parents—so you might want to call them in advance to introduce yourself.
Around this age children also start getting more into make-believe, which makes themed parties really popular. In fact, they'll probably already have their own favourite films, books, and characters like Harry Potter or Star Wars, so let them pick out their own theme from the list below. I've included plenty of character-based kid birthday party ideas.
Themed parties really come into their own for this age group and the kids will be more aware of and appreciate attention to detail. So be sure to apply the theme to all the areas of the party such as the invitations, food, and decorations.
Themed parties also lend themselves well to costumes and kids at this age love dressing up so think about asking guests to come in a costume related to the theme.
It's a good idea to make parties for this age group a bit more structured so there is plenty to keep them occupied. 5-7 year olds can understand rules and will have learnt to take turns so you can start to introduce slightly more competitive team games and activities.
Things like scavenger hunts make good kid birthday party ideas (for the younger ones you can use photographs to make picture clues and for the older ones you can write riddles for them to decipher) or memory games such as showing them a tray of objects them removing one or two to see if they can remember what's missing.
As it's a party, let them make a bit more noise than usual or get messy. Kids this age love things like water guns (or even water balloons if you're outside), or you could let them indulge in some balloon popping (place small gifts and toys inside before you blow them up and let them pop the balloon to get to their prize).
For the food, the same advice for toddler parties regarding sugar levels applies for this age group. Make sure there's plenty of savory snacks to balance out the sugary treats and cakes. You don't want to get them all hyped-up on sugar. So, include plenty of favorites like chicken nuggets, bite-sized pizzas, mac & cheese, and peanut butter sandwiches mixed in with plenty of healthy items such as carrot sticks and dips, cherry tomatoes, corn and grapes. Just remember that kids don't eat huge amounts at parties so keep everything bite-sized.
Perhaps bring all the sweets and cakes out after they've had something savory to make sure they don't just make a beeline for the sugary items.
If you're worried about wasting lots of food, you might want to think about preparing individual lunchboxes for each of the kids instead of doing a big spread. This is particularly good for the 5-7 age group as they can keep the lunch boxes afterwards and use them to take to school. You could even fill them with goodies and other prizes throughout the party and have them double as the goody bags.
If you've chosen a theme for your party, take a little extra time to theme the food too. Kids this age will really appreciate it. For example if its Harry Potter theme make Butterbeer using ginger ale and butterscotch syrup, or pick up a some moulds to make your own chocolate frogs.
Check out my seperate page of Kids Birthday Party Invitations for tips and suggestions.
Check out my other page of Party Drink Ideas which includes simple styling & presentation tips to make your party drinks look more professional.
I always think it’s a good idea to concentrate the majority of your party decorations around a dessert/buffet table/food station. This will create a focal point in the room. Decorations often have to compete with existing room decor so they can get a bit lost if spread too thinly. I think you’re far better off creating one really well themed feature wall—with great food presentation & styling—that everyone’s eye will be drawn to. You can then use a few general decorations around the rest of the room to tie everything together. Check out my other page of Dessert Table Ideas which has lots of different ideas for backdrops, along with tips and suggestions for how best to construct, support, display, or hang them.
Click on any of the kids birthday party themes below for complete party plans including ideas for invitations, food & drink, decorations, and party favors.
Check out my Pinterest boards for birthday party food ideas and recipes, including sweet and savory ideas both hot and cold. Remember, for a 1st birthday party you'll be catering mainly to adult friends and family.
Ever wonder why your own party food never ends up looking anything like the inspiration you found on Pinterest? Check out my Buffet Table Ideas page for a few simple food styling and presentation tips to give party food a professional look.
These silhouette style cake toppers are a easy way to personalize a birthday cake. There are lots of different styles and designs available, including ones that incorporate the birthday boy / girls's name with their favorite sports or hobbies, or you can go for a more general topper. See the full range here. Alternatively, I love these large face cake toppers (below far right), that are made from a photo of the birthday boy / girl. Check out other examples here.
Alternatively, you can easily create a beautiful photo cake, like the one below left, by using these custom edible picture icing sheets which you can then apply to any cake. Alternatively, apply them to cupcakes, cookies, or cake pops, as in the example below center. Check out the icing sheets here — just upload your photos and they'll be mailed to you.
Alternatively, you can use these smaller photo face cupcake toppers. Check them out here.
What better way to add a cute personal touch to a 1st birthday party than with these custom face cookie cutters made from a photo of the birthday boy or girl! As well as baking a batch of cookies, you could also try using them on sandwiches, cheese slices, or fruits such as watermelon. Alternatively, pop them into celophane bags and give them out as party favors. Check them out here.
Alternatively, if you're not one for baking you can buy these cartoon-style cookies made from a photo of the birthday boy / girl. Check them out here.
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Many thanks
Matt
Matt James is a professional event planner and owner of event agency Left Field Productions, which has produced events for Elton John, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kevin Spacey, Stella McCartney, David LaChapelle, John Waters, and Elvis Costello & Diana Krall. Since 2004, Left Field Productions has won 30 industry awards for excellence including Production Company of the Year. Matt is the author of the book Become an Event Planner: Secrets for Getting Hired from Employers, Recruiters, and Event Professionals.
kids birthday party ideas
by an award-winning professional party planner
