For a 5- or 6-year-old, plan the party around one theme your child picks, a few short games where no one is out, and cake with the birthday song. Superheroes, dinosaurs, space or a field day all work, and each game below needs little more than music, pillows, paper or a ball.
Chung TKD in New Hyde Park teaches Tae Kwon Do to children ages 2 to 13 and hosts birthday parties. Grandmaster Howard Chung, 9th Dan, has taught Tae Kwon Do since 1970 and opened the school in 1984. This guide is by Master Chris J. Chung, 5th-degree black belt.
What are good birthday party themes for a 5- or 6-year-old?
Let your child pick the theme. It can carry the invitation, the decorations, one game and the cake, so the rest of the plan follows from it.
- Superheroes. Each guest decorates a paper mask as they arrive, and every game gets a superhero name.
- Dinosaurs. Hide plastic eggs for a dinosaur egg hunt, and the kids stomp like dinosaurs in freeze dance.
- Space. Paper rockets on the walls, star stickers for every guest, and a moon walk in slow motion between games.
- Under the sea. Blue streamers, paper fish to find around the room, and a game where the kids swim like fish until the music stops.
- Construction zone. Paper hard hats, a pile of boxes or blocks, and a building game where the whole group builds one tower.
- Princesses and knights. Paper crowns for every guest, a castle made from boxes, and a quest through a pillow obstacle course.
- Field day. Pillowcase hops, a relay and a paper medal for every child, in a backyard or a park.
What games can you play at a party for a 5- or 6-year-old?
Pick games with one rule you can show in a few seconds, and play them so no one is out. A child who is out has to sit and watch, so each game below keeps every child playing.
- Freeze dance. Needs music. When the music stops, everyone freezes in a funny pose, and no one sits down for a wobble.
- Musical cushions. Needs music and a cushion for each child. Take away one cushion each round, and the kids share the cushions that are left until the whole group fits on one.
- Picture treasure hunt. Needs paper clues drawn as pictures. The kids search as one team, so the whole group finds the treasure together.
- Beach ball keep-up. Needs a beach ball. The group keeps the ball off the floor and counts every tap out loud.
- Pillow obstacle course. Needs pillows, a blanket over two chairs and a line of tape on the floor. Each child takes a turn, and everyone cheers each finish.
- Duck, duck, goose. Needs nothing. The kids sit in a circle and take turns walking around it, so no one sits out.
How do I plan a 5th birthday party?
Plan it in this order. The first two steps come before the party, and the rest run the party itself, so the kids always know what comes next. The same plan works for a 6th birthday.
- Let your child pick the theme and one game well before the party.
- Say on the invitation when the party starts and ends, and whether parents stay.
- Set out a table craft as guests arrive, like decorating a mask or a crown, so early guests have something to do.
- Switch between a busy game and a calm one, like freeze dance and then a story.
- Let the birthday child lead the first game and go first in each one.
- Cake and the birthday song, with the birthday child in the middle of the circle.
- Favors at the door, like the mask or crown each child made.
What about birthday party ideas for a 7- or 8-year-old?
For a 7- or 8-year-old, keep the same plan and make the games harder. Write the treasure hunt clues as words instead of pictures, run the field day in teams, and turn the building game into a contest.
What about a Tae Kwon Do birthday party?
A Tae Kwon Do birthday party is one option for a family that would rather not host the party at home. At Chung TKD, every child at a birthday party, the birthday child included, goes home with a gift certificate for a free month of lessons. Our guide to what happens at a Tae Kwon Do birthday party walks through one from start to finish, and our birthday parties page has the details.
If your child wants to know how a black belt breaks a board, our guide to why Tae Kwon Do students break boards explains it.
Can my child keep going with Tae Kwon Do after the party?
Yes. Chung TKD teaches three programs by age: Pee-Wee for ages 2 to 3, Children for ages 4 to 6 and Youth for ages 7 to 13. Self-defense is part of class. New families start with two free trial classes, and a parent or guardian stays for both.
Book a free class online. Chung TKD is at 1527 Jericho Turnpike, New Hyde Park, NY 11040.
Questions parents ask
What do you do at a 5-year-old's birthday party?
Pick one theme, play a few short games where no one is out, like freeze dance or a picture treasure hunt, and finish with cake and the birthday song.
What is a good theme for a 6-year-old's birthday party?
Superheroes, dinosaurs, space, under the sea, a construction zone, princesses and knights, or a field day. Let your child pick one.
How do you play party games so no one is out?
Change the rule that puts a child out. In freeze dance everyone freezes in a pose, in musical cushions the kids share the cushions that are left, and a treasure hunt is one team.
What does each child take home from a Chung TKD birthday party?
A gift certificate for a free month of lessons. Every child at the party gets one, the birthday child included.
Which Chung TKD program is for a 5- or 6-year-old?
Children, for ages 4 to 6. New families start with two free trial classes, and a parent or guardian stays for both.