Planning

Super Heroes, comic book heroes, television, movies, they're everywhere!  These people with extraordinary powers and innate goodness saving the world have intrigued us, child and adult alike for lifetimes!  And with the resurgence of old comic books turning into new movies there's always something new!  But what my child is into may not be main stream, or what your child is into.  So why choose just one?  Instead, have a generic superheroes party - and infuse a little of everything in it!  And for a little extra silliness for smaller children, ask them to arrive in style at your party, as their favorite super hero, or, create their OWN super hero, complete with costume and powers!  This colorful, busy,  familiar party is good for boys and girls alike (great for a boys party that will include girls!)  You can work with what's currently hot as well as what your child loves, and what's a constant (Superman, Batman, etc.)  And if your child happens to be into a super hero that isn't mainstream, this super hero inspired party will allow your child to celebrate with their favorite without your guests looking around wondering who the pictures are of!   

What is your "Party Picture"? SuperHeroes Party Batman, Superman, Spiderman, Wonder Woman,

• Dig around on the internet for inspiration.  What recent movies have come out that your kids loved?  What cartoons do they watch?  Then turn to the classics as well!  You can do a Justice League genre, Nickelodeon genre, or Marvel comics - etc.  What works for you?  Look at pictures to get an idea of a common color scheme (note, a fun way to do this is to do everything in black and white and then have the characters in color!)  and imagery that you can use in your décor. 
• If you would like everyone to dress the part, realize that the occasional forgetful parent will show up with a child in jeans and a T-shirt.  Be prepared for this by having make shift masks, capes, etc. available!
• If you don't want to ask guests to show up in costume, you can have masks and easy to make capes available for each guest when they get there!  This prevents jealousy and hurt feelings when someone has a super cool costume, and someone else just has a mask, red galoshes and a towel draped over their shoulders!

• Concentrate on what the kids in this age group (figure your child's age plus/minute 2 years) are into and are allowed to watch.  You can get easily overwhelmed by the options, so if you can work within a subset of the theme it may make this a little simpler.
• Marvel
• DC Comics
• Movie Based
• Recent (last 2 years there's been a movie)
• Favorite Channel on TV (like cartoon network)
• Space related…
• What works for you?

• - If there is a movie coming out or has recently come out that is age appropriate, consider having a viewing party.  Most theaters will section of an area specifically for your guests to sit and have specials for tickets, popcorn, soda and candy!  You can follow on at your place or a local park.

Invitations

Communicating with your Guests

Your invitation can be as simple or as creative as you want it to be!  But remember, if you have younger kids this is a great opportunity to have "guest participation" - ask your guests to come as their favorite superheroes, or, get creative and create their own!  Have them create their own costume and write down on a card what their superpowers will be (having them write it down prevents them from forgetting this all important detail in their excitement!  Use the internet for imagery .

Invitations: SuperHeroes Party Batman, Superman, Spiderman, Wonder Woman,

• Invitation Masks:  Cut out masks in a variety of poster board or card stock colors.  Batman, Robin, Iron Man, Incredibles, Spiderman, they all have masks!  Copy party information on the back!
• Prepurchased invites:  With Superheroes, there are ALWAYS preprinted invitations.  This is easy and a time saver!  Fill in party information and include a quick note with important party details like your Party Page and special requests (like costume wear).
• Personalize It!  For smaller children, dress your child up as his/her favorite superhero and take a photo.  Create your invitations with this photo on the front!  This is a fun way to create your own invitation as well as get your child involved and excited!  Plus, for younger children with parents who stick invitations on the fridge it will build a lot of excitement for them as they think about your child and the party to come.

Invitations	Thank You Notes
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Dress It Up

Decorations SuperHeroes Party Batman, Superman, Spiderman, Wonder Woman,

Defining this party is somewhat difficult because it really does depend on the direction you go in.  But typically when dealing with comics and superheroes you have popping colors mixed with black and white.  Primary is usually where we find our spectrum, so start there.  You can create "comic boards" by taking large poster board and imagery/photos and creating your own comic pages.  Outline pics in black and include bubble "POW" and dialogue here and there!  Layer your décor - have Superman flying from fishing wire on the ceiling, or floating via Mylar balloon.  Symbols of your favorite superhero work as well.  Chest symbols, masks, even vehicles can be immediately recognized!  What about the Bat signal in silhouette on your ceiling?  Don't forget the occasional expletive in black printing in a white bubble - POW, ZAP, BAM, OOPH, etc.

Tablescapes SuperHeroes Party Batman, Superman, Spiderman, Wonder Woman,

Decorations	Tablescapes
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Food/Drink

There aren't many hero-inspired foods, but this is definitely a theme that you can have some fun with naming!  Consider the heroes themselves, OR their super powers.  Create name plates in front of each dish and let the kids have fun.  Better yet, let them come up with names for each food item.  What's it called, and what power will it give to you???  A different take would be to "Super Size" everything!  Foot long hot dogs, giant hamburgers cut into slices, steak fries, a huge pizza or turkey legs etc.  Giant proportions would definitely be food for a superhero! 

• Horrendous Breath Hot Dogs - Allow you to render your foes unconscious for 43 minutes!
• Punch, Bash and Jump (PB & J) - Gives super strength for punching, bashing and then jumping before your foe can strike back!
• Champion Chips - Allow you to use grease smeared fingers to cause enemies to slip as they approach.

Food	Beverages
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Cake

Cakes and Desserts SuperHeroes Party Batman, Superman, Spiderman, Wonder Woman,

• Bakery is the key!  EVERY bakery has a variety of superhero inspired cakes, and they are all really cool.  Often, your local stores even have their cake options on their websites for you to look through.  This is one theme that you can find some amazing stuff at your local store!
• Superhero Symbol:  Most of us can't create faces or difficult illustrations if we are doing it ourself.  However, most of our favorite superheroes have an identifying symbol.  Superman's "S", batman's  bat, Spiderman's red and blue spider…  If you have a little skill you can pull this cake off on your own. 
• Color Identified Cakes:  Your favorite superhero wears specific colors.  Frost your cake withthose colors and then purchase miniature figures to decorate with.  Easy!

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Entertainment

Party fun for a superheroes party can be based on the characters you are selecting, or on their powers.  When looking at activities think about whether you can inject an element of a specific super hero into it, or if it would work with a superpower element.  For Arts and Crafts, let the kids make their own masks, costumes (T-shirt decorating, cape making, etc.), create their own comics, or color preprinted outlines of superheroes in the costume that they like! 

Entertainment: SuperHeroes Party Batman, Superman, Spiderman, Wonder Woman,

• Superhero Visit:  What better entertainment at a superhero party than a visit from your favorite super hero! 

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Activities

• Make your Own Mask (A/C):  Have masks precut for smaller kids, let bigger kids cut their own.  Set up your art center with glitter, glue sticks, stickers, markers, crayons, etc.  Each child can create their own super mask! 
• Create Your Own Comic Books (A/C):  Set out story pages (pre-printed with five or six boxes) and have drawing pencils, crayons and markers available for each child to create their own comic story.  Have an example or two decorating the art space for inspiration.
• Super Hero Power Test:  Create an obstacle course to test your heroes powers.  How fast can you run?  How high can you jump?  How quickly can you crawl through, under and over??  Make it skills age appropriate! 

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Prizes / Favors

Prizes and Favors SuperHeroes Party Batman, Superman, Spiderman, Wonder Woman,

Favors

- small "books" and crayons for them to make their own comic books.

- the masks and capes they created

- party store favors with the theme of several super heros

- DVD's of episodes of your child's favorite super hero (often not that expensive)-

- T-shirts with various superhero's on them.

Prizes	Favors
Title Name State	Title Name State

 

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