Birthday Party Games for a 1st Birthday

Games for a first birthday party should be easy to play, entertaining for a variety of ages, and theme-related if the party has a special theme. Parents will not want to miss the fun and laughter party games can bring to their child’s first birthday party. Planning fun games for a first birthday only requires a little creativity and sense of humor. The type of games played will depend on the ages of the children attending the party.

Games for 1 and 2 year-olds.

Baby Bottle Bowling: Arrange ten empty plastic baby bottles in a bowling pin triangle, keeping them close together. Help the littlest party people stand at a line about four feet away from the bottles. Use masking tape for the line. Let the bowlers roll a medium sized playground ball towards the bottles. If the birthday boy chooses to knock down the bottles by walking into them, let him and make sure you get it on film.

Bubble Catching: Great for indoors or out, get several large bubble wands and blow bubbles to the children and encourage them to catch and pop each bubble. Make sure there is plenty of room from running, jumping, and silliness.

Put the Nose on the Clown: This version of the traditional Pin the Tail on the Donkey can be purchased at a party supply store or made by drawing a large clown face on poster board and making several red clown noses out of cardboard. Tack the clown face to a wall at toddler height level. Have each child take a turn at sticking a red nose on the clown. Use poster tack to attach the noses. Spinning and blindfolding a one or two year-old is not recommended for this game, save that for the older kids. This game can be adapted to match many different party themes: Give the Mouse a Cookie, Put a Tire on the Racecar, Put a Nose on the Teddy Bear, or Give the Princess a Wand.

Games for Preschoolers and older.

Baby Bottle Bowling: This versatile game can easily be adapted to challenge and amuse older children and even adults. To play with an older group, fill ten baby bottles two-thirds of the way full with water or rice. Secure the lids. Arrange in a bowling pin triangle leaving about two bottle-widths space in between. This game requires space. Designate a starting line with masking tape about eight feet for preschoolers and twelve feet for older children. Preschoolers and older children can take turns knocking down the bottles with a medium sized playground ball, using two rolls per player. Keep score for older children (ten and up) and award prizes for the top three high rollers. For the players under ten, deem all players high rollers and offer a participation prize like a Baby Bottle Pop candy. For adults, have each player get down on their knees and have them roll the ball with their elbows. Give the adult high roller a baby bottle filled with candy.

Toy Relay: For this energetic relay, place two laundry baskets at the end of the room about three feet apart. At the other end of the room, opposite the baskets, pile two areas with small toys: cars, plush animals, blocks, rattles, and more. Each pile needs to have the same amount of toys. Form two teams with the children and line them behind the toy pile. Each player must carry a toy to the basket at the other end but can only crawl there and back. When the player returns to the line, the player can take his turn. The first team to get all their toys in the basket wins. For preschoolers make sure that both teams feel like winners by providing prizes to all players.

Pacifier & Spoon Race: Typically, a plastic or hard-boiled egg is balanced on a spoon but for a first birthday, it is fun to use a pacifier. This is a traditional party favorite and can be played by all ages by varying the difficulty. This is a relay between two teams. Props needed are two plastic spoons and two pacifiers. Players should form two lines/teams. There needs to be a start and turn-around point. Have preschoolers balance the pacifier on their spoon and walk quickly to the turn-around point and back to their team without dropping the pacifier. If they drop it, they must stop and put it back on the spoon and then continue. For older children, ten and up, have them carry the spoon in their mouth and make them restart if they drop their pacifier. Have a small prize for each participant. Adults can play this game using the rules for the ten and up age group.

One Hunt: Make several three-inch cardboard number ones. For preschoolers make five per player, for ten and up make ten per player. To make either draw a number one with marker or print from your computer. Attach or print on colored paper and laminate for stability. Hide outside or in a large room indoors like eggs for an Easter Egg Hunt. Make sure each player knows they must find either five or ten ones but not more than that so every player has a part in the hunt. Let the players exchange their found ones for pieces of candy.

Games and activities for all ages.

Cheerio Guess: Most households with a one-year old have a box of toasted oat cereal or Cheerios. Fill a baby bottle full with the cereal, count each piece first, and have each party guess how many are in the bottle. The one that guesses the closest wins a prize.

Baby Art: Purchase sculpting clay and have each child at the party make a handprint in clay to take home as a memory of the celebration. Be sure to “write” the day’s date and the child’s name on the handprint with a toothpick.

Memory Maker: This is a great keepsake for the birthday parents. Place a photo of the birthday boy or girl in an 8 x 10 cardboard matte frame. Encourage each party guest to sign the matte and leave a short message for the guest of honor.