How Many Kids Do You Invite to a Party?

Planning for your kid’s special event is extremely awesome if you have many kids to invite to a party. This can be overwhelming, too, as it requires more time, preparation, and, of course, the funds to entertain many guests. Deciding on the number of guests is actually a crucial step, yet a fun way to start planning and organizing children’s parties.

So, how many kids do you invite to a party? The ideal number can actually range from a minimum of 5 to a maximum of 20 kids. Your child may be too young to have many friends to invite so the number varies in range.

Inviting 20 kids is fair enough. This is an ideal number to have fun and attend to them in a more reasonable way. If your child goes to school with 30 of them in the class, then it is a good idea if you hold the party at school.

The teacher and some parents can help you take care of this large number of kids for the party.  However, if you just intend to invite the kids who are close to your child, as this is what your child wants, you can just invite 15-20 of them.

You may send each one an invitation privately. Do not invite them to come over to your house to party right away after class. This will offend other kids and gives the feeling of being left behind.

Remember, though, that you are doing this not just to make your child happy. You also want to make his friends happy and for everyone to enjoy. Yet, you do not want to offend his classmates or even the parents who were not invited. 

This is why you have to be very careful about other people’s feelings, too. Some parents find this inviting issue really awkward. For this reason, if they can just afford to host a class of 30 children, then they do so to be fair to everyone. Yet, if you really want to stick to a budget, this depends on you.

Parents’ Invitation Etiquettes You Must Know

Children, as well as the parents, should know that there is a set of rules to show good manners and right conduct. This is the proper etiquette that they should exercise at party invitations, during the party, and even after the party. It is the responsibility of the parents to show their kids this proper behavior as a social responsibility while they grow.

Here are some of this birthday party and other events’ invitation etiquettes.

Working on the Invite List

Try to be generous and hospitable as much as possible. Have a big heart to accommodate your child’s friends and classmates. It doesn’t matter if you are just hosting a simple party for your child. What is even more important here is the fact that you have invited them all.

Make sure no child feels being left out of the group. Lavish preparations, venues, and foods or even goody treats cannot equal the happiness that every child gets when invited to a birthday party. Simplify everything so you can accommodate as many kids as possible on the list.

Deciding Whether to Go For a Drop-Off Party or Not

As a parent, who is about to host your child’s birthday party, it may be confusing at first whether or not you want to go for a drop-off party. Remember that it would be more confusing to those on your invite list if you wouldn’t make it clear in the very first place the preferences you have for this particular party.

Since money is involved here, you have to think and plan ahead. How much budget do you really need to accommodate a certain number of children along with their parents? Can you afford it? Can you simplify your party’s preparations to accommodate these guests? 

List down all the pros and cons of doing a drop-off party. Weigh all advantages and consequences. Make sure to clarify this on your invitation before sending them out to your guests. This will relieve you of any future problems that may happen during the party.

Dealing with RSVP

Sending out birthday invitations to your guests can be really exhausting. If you decided to invite all the children in the class for your child’s special day, it is still your responsibility to have each of them confirm the attendance to that invitation. This rule also applies if you are inviting your child’s close friends who are not in school yet.

So, what should you do if some parents of your child’s guests do not RSVP to the invitation a day before the party? It is still ethical if you reach out to them through a phone call or an email to confirm whether their child is coming or not at your kid’s birthday party.  

Talking to them on the phone is a better choice than sending an email as you can get a real-time reply. This also gives you the chance to get to know other parents’ feelings and their reactions regarding your inquiry. This even gives you the chance to make friends with them, whether they respond positively or negatively to your invitation in some unavoidable cases.

Drop-off Parties

Unless your child is in the first grade, you can allow him to attend to a drop-off party. Yet, there are still some particular conditions wherein you simply could not allow your child to be dropped off for that party.

Talk to your child about this upon accepting a birthday invitation. If the invitation states that the event is strictly a drop-off party, ask your child whether or not he can manage it. If you both are unsure about this, ask him if he still wants to go or not.

Consider your child’s feelings. If he wants to join the celebration yet feels not so confident without seeing you around, then be a mature parent and friend to him. You can RSVP and tell the matter to the host in advance. You can tell the host about your child’s issue in private but be sure to assure this parent that you won’t be hanging around as another guest.

Tell the host that you are just there for your child’s welfare, and she does not have to worry about you at all. Assure her that you know your limits and won’t be a burden to the party. You can even stay in your car while the party is going on.

Opening Presents

Opening birthday presents is another way to be thankful to your guests. However, this part of the party is usually ignored by the birthday celebrant and the host parents. This may be due to the fact that they are so busy entertaining guests and ensuring that everything in the party is being taken care of while the guests are around.

If this usually happens to you while hosting your kid’s birthday party, make some room for improvement the next time you host an event. Talk to your child in advance about this party segment wherein he needs to open the gifts he receives at the party. This is a more ethical way of showing him that he has the social responsibility to thank everyone for attending his party and for the gift they bring to honor him on that special occasion.

Tell him that even if he does not like a gift, it is so unethical to tell the child who gives that that he didn’t like it. Whether your child likes the gift or not, he must thank each of his guests for these presents.

Goody Bags and Other Party Treats or Favors

Are you a fan of the good old goody bags since childhood? Or do you think it is just OK to host a party without these goody treats for the guests to bring home as souvenirs or sweet favors?

Some parents have great memories with birthday parties and the party favors they take as giveaways after attending a party. They even cherished such memories. With that, they feel that hosting a birthday party for their child without these goody bags becomes incomplete. 

For this reason, they always try their best to give out party favors to the guests every time they host their kid’s birthday party. Even your kiddie guests love the idea of having party favors. This is the completion of the party for them.

So, instead of ignoring these party favors, stick to the traditional way of celebrating birthday parties with goody bags. This is also another way of letting your child know how to be thankful to his guests through these favors that they could bring home.

Sending Out Thank You Notes

It is not just enough that you give party favors and let them go home after that. The party would be more memorable and complete if you let every guest know how happy you are for being with them. After a day or two, you can help your child send out thank you notes to individual guests who have come to celebrate the birthday party. 

It would even be more meaningful if you or your child have jotted down who gives each particular gift that he receives at the party. This is to make sure that you or your young host can make a more personalized thank you note.  He may also mention what he is doing with each gift by now so that each guest may feel honored, too.

If your child is a toddler or a preschooler, let him draw, color, or scribble some kiddie symbols or characters on the note. He may also write letters if he can for the names of the guests or even his own name. Try to encourage your child to participate in this activity as much as possible.

This way, you are not just teaching him to be thankful. You are also teaching him to be more involved and responsible in saying thank you and other good etiquettes to his friends and playmates as he grows.

Think of the Possibility of Having Additional Guests

Your party may not just always go smoothly as you want it to happen. You need some troubleshooting or additional preparations in case something happens. This usually occurs when children bring their younger siblings to the party because no one can take care of the infant or toddler while the parent is accompanying the older sibling. 

There are other unavoidable circumstances like a long lost friend or an extended family relative who may come over without calling beforehand. It is always good to prepare extra food and goody treats so those awkward situations can be avoided. This will keep both parties in peace and not in shame.

Birthday Party Etiquette for Young Guests

• As a child, remember to greet your classmate or friend who invited you to his party. Do this to his parents as well. Thank them for inviting you.
• Be sure to give your gift to the celebrant upon arrival at the party.
• Remember the rule: “If you can’t say anything nice, then don’t anything at all.” This simply means that you cannot say anything you want during the party. If you think the activity is boring, just keep it to your self. Don’t show it through your actions, too.
• Avoid asking such questions as “When is the time for cake?” or “Is the food ready now?”
• Use your phone to contact your parents whenever necessary. Don’t use it to call other friends or play games as you may offend the host family and their other guests.

Conclusion

Knowing how many kids you need to invite to a party makes all the preparation and hosting a breeze. It is also necessary that both the hosts and the guests know the proper birthday party etiquettes they must show to avoid any problems before, during, and even after the party. Parents also help their kids become responsible individuals with these party etiquettes.

Related Questions

• On average, how much should I spend on a birthday gift to a child’s birthday party?

The average cost ranges from $10-$20. This is the amount that you need to buy your child a gift as a guest at another kid’s birthday party. 

• Are there kid’s birthday gifts to buy that cost less than $5?

Yes, there are reasonable gifts to buy that cost less than $5. These include books, stickers, card games, miniature dolls, hot wheels/matchbox cars, and coloring books.