Birthday Party Ideas for Your 4 and 5 Year Old

“Birthday Party Ideas for your 4 and 5 year old.”

Photo by paparutzi. Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0).

Preschool birthday ideas for your 4 and 5 year old. Themes, crafts, games, food ideas for kids and adults, gifts and preschool birthday party locations.

Wow! Think of the amazing strides your 4 or 5 year old has made since that first birthday party. He can now:

• Feed himself
• Dress himself
• Comb his hair
• Wash her hands
• Brush her teeth
• She has achieved dynamic balance for running and walking and static balance for standing on one foot!
• And, what about that phenomenal growth in language!

Lastly, it may not have escaped your attention that she can now open and close every manner of door and drawer — not at all put off by safety latches. And if you can’t figure out your remote control? Ask your 4 or 5 year old.

Yep, by this or next year your baby will be ready for kindergarten.

Now that our little guys and dolls have had 3 or 4 birthday parties under their elastics, the anticipation of their party is just about as fun as the party itself! Involve your child in every aspect of planning his party. To build decision making skills, let him decide on: theme, location, food, games & whom to invite.

Preschool Birthday Ideas to Getcha Goin’

1. You’re looking at a 2 to 2 1/2 hour party with this energetic and enthusiastic bunch therefore, as the “Party Parent” assist your junior guests in maintaining their enthusiasm and party mood by planning plenty of activities with smooth and quick transitions between each. To this end, it is helpful to have all your games set up the day before (or at least a few hours before show-time).
2. 6 to 8 games will be about right; one or two of which could be substituted with a craft (particularly for a girly party). Games should last 15 to 25 minutes each (1 1/2 to 2 hours’ worth). But, let’s be flexible . . . if the game is going off well, let ’em play to their heart’s content.
3. By now, your child’s social circle has expanded. Consider an invitation list of up to 10 children. Plan for more than you invite for the extra sibling that may need to come along for the ride.
4. Be sure to enlist the help of parents, friends or family a week before the event. A four to one child-to-adult ratio is ideal for these rambunctious munchkins.
5. Don’t feel pressured to have a theme but if your child is going through a craze at the moment, indulge him! Themes give you a focus making it much easier to decide on decorations, food, and games (if a specific theme is not forthcoming I’ve put together a printable, “Theme Brain-stormer Planner” for ya, over on my Birthday Party Planner page).
6. In your invitations ask parents of their child has any food allergies you need to be aware of.
7. Kid-proof the party area making sure breakables and pets are out of harm’s way. For outdoor preschool birthday ideas, ensure hazardous yard equipment and/or decor are not within party parameters.
8. With fine motor skills on the rise they are able to cut, paint, color, glue with adult assistance, so bring on a craft or two.
9. Your child has made the leap from being ego-centric to sociable, realizing playing with others can be kinda fun. They begin to form friendships now (isn’t that fascinating to watch develop?). So when it comes to choosing party games think “team games” and “taking turn” games from here on out.
10. Ensure your camera and video cameras are charged up and ready to go. And remember to send me some pics so I can share them with the rest of our visitors.

Preschool Birthday Ideas: Food

Eats ‘n’ Treats for Hungry 4 and 5 Year Olds

FIRST: Be aware of and accommodating to any food allergies a guest may have.

Four and five year olds still have small appetites but are drawn to fanciful (but familiar) food so creativity in this department will be a big hit whether you’re serving just cake and ice-cream or a light meal.

The most creative preschool birthday ideas include a connection between birthday cuisine and your theme.

1. Make (or order) a fish shaped cake.
2. Cup-cakes either you or the kids decorate with theme decorations (have a contest)
3. Make a heart shaped pizza
4. Use theme shaped ice-cubes for drinks
5. Serve or have kids decorate their own ice-cream clowns/
6. Let kids create their own “dirt and worm” pudding dessert in a flower pot
7. English muffin pizzas are just the right size and shape for 4 and 5 year old hands Hamburgers
8. Hot dogs or corn dogs
9. Sliced veggies and fruit with appropriate dips
10. Sandwiches cut into theme shapes with cookie cutters
11. Chicken nuggets
12. Macaroni and cheese (find pasta in a theme shape if possible)
13. Applesauce for a side
14. Soft pretzels

Preschool Birthday Ideas: Games & Activities

This is the age when kids begin to enjoy traditional party games. Plan up to 8 games lasting 15 minutes each. Vary the pace by playing a couple of active games then a slower game such as the Memory Game.

1. Freeze tag
2. Red-light, green-light
3. Relay races
4. Simon Says
5. Musical Chairs
6. Balloon Bust
7. Bean Bag Toss
8. Follow the leader
9. Duck-Duck-Goose
10. Doggie-Doggie Where’s Your Bone?

Here’s a fun idea: If you or a designated person has been video taping the party, sit the celebrants down to watch themselves while you prepare for chow time.

REMEMBER: If you have older kids, there are dozens of fun kids birthday party games to explore!

Preschool Birthday Ideas: Themes

A theme is practically essential now that our little ones have tasted the irresistible flavors of what the world temptingly offers our budding consumers. Here are a few ideas to spark your own . . .

Pirates	Construction	Monster High
Cowboys/Cowgirls	Disney’s/Pixar Cars	Safari
Disney™ Phineas & Ferb	Hot Wheels™	Airplane
Firefighter	American Heros	Winnie the Pooh™
Bugs ‘n’ Butterflies	Yo Gabba Gabba™	Space
Princess	Spider Man™	Pokeman™
Knights	Captain America	Nascar™
Sesame Street	Under the Sea	Ben 10™ Alien Force
Magic	Sponge Bob™	Mickey Mouse™ Clubhouse
Jungle	Star Wars	Scooby-Doo™
Barnyard	Sports (child’s favorite)	Disney™ Toy Story
Sesame Street™	Karate	Ballerina (or other dance)
Disney’s™ Tinkerbell Fairies	Dora the Explorer	Sesame Street’s™ Elmo
Disney’s™ Princesses	Tea Party	Barbie™
Flower Power	Animals (your child’s favorite)	Hello Kitty®
Rocker Girl	Disney’s™ Princess and the Frog	Strawberry Shortcake
Butterflies	Disney’s™ Minnie Mouse	Abby Cadabby™
Ladybugs	Sock Monkey	Barney
My Little Pony	Dr. Suess™	Legos®
Thomas Tank Engine	Chuggington	The Smurfs
Transformers	WWE	Angry Birds
Power Rangers	Alvin & The Chipmunks	Alice In Wonderland

Preschool Birthday Ideas: Places to Go

Remember to make reservations 4 to 6 weeks prior to the birthday bash. Be prepared to answer questions about: date, time, ages, number of guests including accompanying grown-ups.

Oh, and be sure to ask what the venue supplies: Decorations? Cake? Entertainment? Invitations with directions to e-mail to guests?

The Zoo	Kid friendly farm	Water Park
Children’s Museum	Nature park	Regional theme Park
Family Fun Center	Mall Play area	Bounce House
Children’s Theater	Safari Sam’s	Zumba
Your local park	Public Swimming Pool	Trampoline Park
Chuck E. Cheese	Community center	Gym
Fast Food Restaurant	Aquarium	Dance Center
Indoor Playground	Build-A-Bear	Sports Club

Preschool Birthday Ideas: Gifts

Birthday Gift Ideas for 4 and 5 Year Olds:

Drawing/Doodling Easel	Toy Phones	Kid’s Boom-Box
Toy Cleaning Supplies, e.g., Vacuum, Broom…	Construction Toys; Blocks, Magnetics	Toy Musical Instruments
Toy tools, Work-hats, Aprons, Tool-belts	Ride-on Bouncies	Cars, Trucks, Tractors, Fire Engines
Bicycle	Ride on Vehicles	Legos®
Basketball hoop	Trampoline	Hello Kitty Sets
Tee-ball Set	Scooter	Activity Gyms
Leap-frog Learning Products	Gift Certificate/cash	Play Cash Register
Play set; kitchen, house, castle,etc.	Hungry, Hungry Hippos	Educational Play lap-tops
Dollhouse	Hot Wheels set	Favorite Sports Toys/balls
Age appropriate board games; Candyland, Memory Game, Hi-Ho Cherry-O	My Little Pony sets	Play-Doh sets
Roller skates	Barbie sets	Toy Shopping Cart
Inflatable Bounce House	Dress-up Clothes	Swing Set
Garage Play Set	Play Workshop Set	Arts and Craft Sets
Water toys; Slip-n-Slides, Sprinkler, Wading Pool	A Watch	Costume Jewelry
Clothes	Books, DVDs, CDs	Bedding

NOTE: You are within the rules of etiquette to state in your invitations your child’s wish list. This makes it much easier on parents to know what to purchase for the birthday honoree.

Need More Preschool Birthday Ideas?

I would love to hear from you about your successful 4 and 5 year old birthday party, complete with pictures if you would like to share those, as well. You might just find your ideas and pics right here on BirthdayHub.com.

It’s easy. Just share your preschool birthday ideas using the form below. In fact, share anything that has to do with birthdays. Thanks!