Boys who are turning 10 years old have a vast range of tastes and interests. Make your 10-year-old son’s birthday special by consulting with him regarding a theme, activities, snacks and the cake. Take care to get his approval on your choices, as some boys at this age consider certain party elements too babyish. Remind your son, however, that you have the final word on the birthday party’s budget.
Types
Theme parties still work for 10-year-old boys, but the themes have changed. Rather than trucks or Sponge Bob, think Harry Potter or rock stars. Rely less on characters and more on settings or concepts for your theme, drawing from motifs, such as fantasy, dungeons, science, magic, mythology, exotic locales, spies, mysteries or extreme sports. Pop culture references to favorite video games or bands also work well.
Features
The classic features of any child’s birthday party show up at a 10th birthday celebration as well, but you can add some creative updates. Instead of a character cake, serve a cake covered in mud with worms, made of crumbled chocolate cookies, chocolate syrup and gummy worms. Put up glow-in-the-dark decorations and turn off the lights or turn on blacklight. Replace children’s party games like Pin the Tail on the Donkey with a water balloon fight, Lego-building contest or giant treasure hunt.
Function
Your 10-year-old boy should feel special on his birthday. Personalize the decorations by printing out images of him and his friends and placing them on posters, banners or party bags. Set up a digital slide show of silly baby pictures and project it onto a wall or a sheet. Create a soundtrack of his favorite songs and make copies for every party guest.
Considerations
Some 10-year-old boys have outgrown the large-scale party for family and friends and prefer a smaller birthday celebration. A slumber party or backyard camp out with a few best friends works well. You could also plan an outing with your boy’s close friends to play laser tag or paint ball. A more major outing may consist of a visit to an amusement park or a water park.
Warning
Many 10-year-olds have younger siblings who will want to tag along to the party. You should be clear on the birthday party invitation if you plan to have activities younger children will not enjoy. If you wish to accommodate younger guests, set up some simpler party games and activities, such as sculpting with Play-Doh, building sand castles or constructing with larger Duplo blocks.
Photo Credit
- birthday party time image by Pix by Marti from Fotolia.com
