Planning

The Dinosaur party is a classic - and as most young boys (and some girls!) go through a dinosaur phase at some point before they are 10, this is always a winner!  There are a couple of directions you can go with this Theme - you can take your small guests back to the prehistoric days of lush jungle and living dinosaurs, or, you can create the feeling of a dinosaur "dig" where your guests are inspired by the bones of these great creatures.  The focus is on the dinosaur itself - and can be as tame or as scary as you want to make it - depending on the age of your guests.

What is your "Party Picture"?   Dinosaur party - Dinosaur Birthday party

Pull out any dinosaur book and flip through the pages. Then, ask your little guest of honor what their favorite dinosaur is???  Are we still in the land of Barney, our favorite purple dinosaur?  Or have we ventured into the land of the T-Rex, or even, for older children, velociraptors and the classic Jurassic Park movies?  Does your child want to create the feel of prehistoric earth, or are they into archeology and bones?  Once you have determined where in the spectrum your child and guests are, then you can start putting together your thoughts and ideas.  There are a few derivations for this theme that are worth considering: 

• For small children, there are cartoon dinosaurs that they may be fond of.  If your child has a favorite, sit down and watch a few shows/movies or, read the book of interest and take your cues from there.  Although remember, that although your child may be familiar with a certain movie and character, other children may not be so keep it generic enough that everyone will have fun.

• Prehistoric Earth - this should have a tropical feel.  Hot, primal, colorful, with exotic foliage. Images of actual dinosaurs should be front and center as well as tucked away in little corners and unexpected places. Watch the scary rating based on your guests' ages. Envelope your guests in the Dinosaur experience, targeting each of the senses.  Kids, unlike adults, are far more likely to let themselves go and get into the role you are creating - so have fun and introduce your guests to another time, when dinosaurs roamed the earth. 

• If your child doesn't have a book about dinosaurs, this might be the time to get one!  Use the pictures and text to help keep your Theme real, (although, who really cares that cavemen and dinosaurs weren't actually alive at the same time - right???)  The other obvious resource here is the internet - you will probably find more than you could ever possibly use as inspiration!

• - Dinosaur themed parties can fit just about anywhere, but if you really want to step it up a notch, consider your local natural history museum as a venue option.
  
  

Invitations

Communicating with your Guests Dinosaur party - Dinosaur Birthday party

Your invitation should SCREAM dinosaurs!  Here are some ideas:

• Invitation: 
• Fun Party Quotes:
• ________________'s Having a Dino-Mite Dinosaur Birthday Party and You're Invited!
• Dinosaurs on the card (these can be made or bought preprinted)
• Plastic dinosaur figure (from inexpensive figures found in bulk to full on toys like the Imaginext line) with a printed dinosaur themed card providing party details. 
• An egg shaped invitation that opens to reveal a full dinosaur and party details.
• An actual plastic dinosaur egg with the invitation inside.
•  Safari hats with party details on the inside rim for your Dinosaur Dig.

Party Reminder - Send an e-mail with a picture of a dinosaur with directions, any party specifics that may be appropriate, etc.  It's a second chance to get the buzz going for your party!

Thank you Note -

• Take a group picture of all of your party guests  posing in their scariest of dinosaur poses!   If you've included some Arts and Crafts, consider including that as well, for example, if the kids all made dinosaur masks have them put them on with growling faces and hands and send that as the thank you note. 

Invitations	Thank You Notes
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Dress It Up

Decorations Dinosaur party - Dinosaur Birthday party

• Prehistoric Earth - this theme calls for many shades of green and brown, evoking a prehistoric jungle feel.  Go exotic and get inspiration from dinosaur illustrations.
• Hang pieces of green streamers from the ceiling with periodic attached green or brown construction paper leaves to create a prehistoric jungle feel.
• Make cardboard palms to put in corners or hide contemporary furniture
• If you are using outdoor space with a tent, consider getting bamboo poles and palm fronds from your local garden center and turning the tent poles into palm trees
• Move all of your tropical style houseplants into the party room
• Attach palm leaves (you can get them from your local florist) or cut outs here and there on walls
• Poster board cut outs of dinosaurs should peek out from plants or be front and center or primary walls. 
• Do a silhouette of a pterodactyl or velociraptor and tack it to the ceiling for prehistoric dinosaur fly bys
• Mylar balloons come with great dinosaur shapes.  Purchase a few large size balloons and have them bobbing up about 6' off the ground among the green streamers.  This creates layers of green and balloons, adding to your jungle vegetation effect.
• Go scavenging in your backyard for exotic looking flora to bring into the party space.
• Tablescape:
• A deep green tablecloth with cut out leaves of all different hues of green attached to it.  Create a "nest" of substantial twigs in the center and place an enormous watermelon in the center (a dinosaur "egg") with mylar dinosaurs hovering about 3 feet off the table every two feet.  Strategically place dinosaur figures along the center of the table around the watermelon.  Table settings can be green or brown, or, try getting a set that is in a dinosaur theme to continue the look.
• Go green for your table cloth and use placemats shaped as dinosaurs with fun plastic figures throughout the table.
• Take brown butcher paper and adhere construction paper leaves and dinosaurs with woven placemats.
• Place settings can be shades of green or, you can use this as an opportunity to inject more dinosaurs with themed place settings.

Tablescapes Dinosaur party - Dinosaur Birthday party

• Jungle Table:  A deep green tablecloth with cut out leaves of all different hues of green attached to it.  Create a "nest" of substantial twigs in the center and place an enormous watermelon in the center (a dinosaur "egg") with mylar dinosaurs hovering about 3 feet off the table every two feet.  Strategically place dinosaur figures along the center of the table around the watermelon.  Table settings can be green or brown, or, try getting a set that is in a dinosaur theme to continue the look.
• Dinosaur Fun:  Go green for your table cloth and use placemats shaped as dinosaurs with fun plastic figures throughout the table.
• Basic Fun:  Take brown butcher paper and adhere construction paper leaves and dinosaurs with woven placemats.  Have crayons scattered on the table so that the tablecloth becomes an activity after cake and ice cream have been eaten.
• Place Settings:  Place settings can be shades of green or, you can use this as an opportunity to inject more dinosaurs with themed place settings.

Decorations	Tablescapes
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Food/Drink

The Food:  Dinosaur party - Dinosaur Birthday party

• Dinosaur Egg:  Nothing beats a "real" dinosaur egg (aka a watermelon) that can be broken into for effect (you can precut and place baby dinosaur figures inside!)
• Primitive = Barbecue:  When I think "Dinosaur" I always think primitive, and primitive means BARBECUE!  Grilled chicken legs have that little hint of "caveman" that will add effect to this fun party.  Food should be simple, and if possible, cooked on a flame!
• Brown and Green Food:  The more primitive it looks the better (as long as it's still appetizing of course!)  If you can't make the food look prehistoric then consider its presentation as a vehicle for your Dinosaur Theme as well.
• Bowl Presentation:  Chips or pretzels can be presented in bowl covered in brown and green construction paper leaves, or you can serve regular bowls on Tiki mats!

The Drinks:  Dinosaur party - Dinosaur Birthday party

• Swamp Punch:  Make green punch and float bits of fresh sprigs of mint to make it look murky (some mint leaves have a brown hue that is great if you can find them).
• Jungle Juice:  Pour lemon-lime soda into a large punch bowl.  When you are ready to serve, add scoops of lime sherbert and watch the punch bubbles as it turns into green jungle juice!
• Prehistoric Fruit Punch:  You will need one 10 oz. package frozen rasberries and one 10 oz package of frozen strawberries (both partially thawed), one 12 oz. can frozen lime juice concentrate, 32 oz. ginger ale (chilled), one 32 oz. bottle of club soda (chilled), and one pint vanilla ice cream.  Puree berries in a blender and combine with the lime juice concentrate.  Refrigerate until party time.  When ready to serve, pour mixture into a punch bowl and add ginger ale, club soda, and scoops of ice cream.

 

Food	Beverages
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Cake

Cakes and Desserts Dinosaur party - Dinosaur Birthday party

•  Dinosaur Cake:  You can never fails with a cake shaped like a Dinosaur!  Most bakeries offer a cake in this style - I'd try to tell you how to do it yourself, but this is beyond my creative abilities! 
• Cupcake Cake:  Brown cupcakes with green icing leaves - tuck in a few mint leaves (mint is edible so won't have any scares if someone pops a leaf into their mouth) for added effect.
• It's a Jungle Out There:  A green jungle cake with miniature dinosaurs roaming around.  Use a standard rectangle cake (you can layer it for height) and cover the sides with brown icing, and the top with green icing.  Use different shades of green to create "leaves" and add in a few brown accents as tree trunks.  Tuck a few mint leaves for effect.  Top with miniature dinosaur figures roaming your jungle!
• Volcano!  A tiered cake that starts wide and narrows into a volcano!  Brown icing on the bottom with orange and red icing overflowing the top.  The base would be green with dinosaur figures included.
• Jurassic Cookie:  For an Oversized world, nothing beats an Oversized cookie! 
• Dirt Cups:  You'll need crushed oreo cookies, prepared chocolate pudding, gummi worms and clear plastic cups.  Spoon layers of chocolate pudding into the clear plastic cups (about 2/3 full).  Add a few gummi worms so that they lay in the pudding but hang over the edge of the cup.  Top the cup off with crushed Oreo cookies and it's a bowl of mud with worms, ewwwww!

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Entertainment

Activities

 

Dinosaur Masks Dinosaur Pictures Create a dinosaur - have a simple outline of different types of dinosaurs with many types of items for the imagination to be expressed with - feathers, construction paper scales, items that sparkle and glitter, puff paint and markers….  Have everything young imaginations may need to create the dinosaurs living in their minds. Creating individual dinosaurs.  With poster board, paper plates, and other decorating goodies, have pre-cut dinosaur heads, bodies, arms, legs and tails in various colors and sizes.  Then children can create their own distinctive dinosaur and decorate it with spots, stripes, or texture (have various types of materials available).  Precut is better for younger kids, but older kids can get even more creative.

• Dinosaur Dance:  For younger children, music is always fun, so find some rhythms with big drum beats and play "dinosaur dance" where the children all dance like dinosaurs (lots of stomping and roaring of course) until the music goes off and the host dinosaur roars... It's basically a derivation of the "freeze" dance but with some fun roaring and play acting thrown in.
• Pin the tail on the dinosaur - need I say more?
• Lost World Obstacle Course:  Set up an obstacle course and name each obstacle in a theme related manner (Jungle Jump, Dino Swamp, T-Rex Trench, etc.)  Use construction paper Dinosaur Footprints to lead your guests through your obstacle course.
• Dinosaur Seek and Find:  Use construction paper to create images of dinosaurs and then cut in half.  Hide the pieces in your party space and then have the children find the pieces.  They then need to find the guest with the matching piece to win a prize!
• Cave Painting:  Create your own prehistoric cave mural!  Hang a wide roll of off white or brown butcher paper on a wall, or spread it on a smooth surface.  Provide paints, markers, crayons, stamps, etc. for your cave kids to use while creating their cave paintings.  Lay out books and magazines with dinosaur pictures to give your guests extra ideas.  Hang the mural up when the kids  are finished to add more decoration to your party space!
• Catch the Dino by the Tail:  Form the children into a line (a dinosaur) with one player as the head and another as the end - all of the other children are the body.  Tie a scarf around the child at the end of the dinosaur, leaving at least a foot of excess fabric trailing behind (tie it so that it's loose around the child's waist sot that if it's tugged hard the child won't be injured).  Each child will hold the waist of the child in front of them and the goal of the game is for the child playing the head to catch the scarf.  The dinosaur body will twist and turn but cannot break.  The child wearing the scarf should avoid being caught.  Once caught, the end becomes the head, and everyone else shifts back one spot before playing again.
• Jungle Vines  - This game will put your guests to the test by challenging both their skill and intelligence. Begin by having the children stand in a circle, facing inward. Have everyone extend their right hand into the ring and take hold of someone else’s hand. Then, have them do the same with their left hand. The object of the game is to untangle the “Jungle Vines” by stepping over, ducking under, turning around, or doing whatever it takes. Remind the kids not to let go of hands until they have successfully untangled the vines!

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Prizes / Favors

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