The first thing you need to do is meet with the teacher and any other parents who have offered to plan or help with the party. Before any planning can take place, it is imperative that everyone be on the same page and understands what the party will look like once it is all planned out. Good planning and communication early in the process can go a long way towards heading off potential problems later on.
The classroom teacher needs to let you know how much time will be allocated for the party and at what time it will happen. In addition, the teacher will need to let you know what roll she wishes to play in the party planning and in the event itself. Some teachers prefer to let the parents handle the entire party from planning to the big day, while others prefer to have more of a say and an active roll in the planning and the party itself.
To plan the party itself, ask the teacher what foods they prefer be served. Would they like to go with snacks? Healthy foods? Cupcakes and cookies? Find out what is easiest and what will make the least amount of mess in the classroom which will have to be cleaned up at the end of the party.
When the topic of purchasing food comes up, this is a good time to ask if the school can provide anything for the party, if a collection will be taken up from each of the families who have kids in the class, or it the parents will be paying for it themselves. A lot of times the budget for the event will have a lot to do with the planning for the party.
The next item for discussion is the activities, if any, for the party. Will the children be playing games, making a fun craft project to take home, etc… One of the most appreciated crafts around holiday times can be something that the kids can make at school and then wrap and present to their parents as gifts for the occasion. With some creativity this can be done relatively inexpensively.
If the teacher prefers to let the parents plan the party, the teacher can leave the meeting and the parents can meet, or plan to meet again, to plan more of the details of the day. While planning the party with other parents it is always a good idea to make sure you have back-up plans incase one of the parents doesn’t do what they said that they would, or doesn’t show up the day of the party.
Unfortunately, things like that do happen and it is just so much better to be prepared for them ahead of time than to be caught on the day of the party without supplies or enough people. With these professional party planning tips you can make your children’s parties the best in the school!