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I am very new to the daycare world & will have my very first little one celebrating a birthday. I am curious on what everyone else does to celebrate these occasions? I plan on having cake/ice cream/singing during afternoon snack time but am looking for any and all other suggestions (ie: do you decorate, buy themed paper products, give gifts, give take home treats to other kids in care, take photos, etc)! Thanks!
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You are going to get answers from one end of the spectrum to the other and whole lot in between.
My advice is do what YOU feel comfortable doing.
Personally, I don't do any type of birthday celebration on a regular basis.
Sometimes, we will have the birthday kid be the first in line, the table setter or the one who gets to pick the nap time story...
Here are some other threads about birthdays
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Thank you, BC!You are going to get answers from one end of the spectrum to the other and whole lot in between.
My advice is do what YOU feel comfortable doing.
Personally, I don't do any type of birthday celebration on a regular basis.
Sometimes, we will have the birthday kid be the first in line, the table setter or the one who gets to pick the nap time story...
Here are some other threads about birthdays
https://www.daycare.com/forum/tags.p...birthday+party
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I skip the ice cream and cake opting for cupcakes, pretzels and fruit. The rest ^^ I do...
Themes, decorations, photos, gifts (each child brings a gift up to $10, I keep a few extras from clearance sales for backup, no "from" names allowed on gifts to avoid score keeping between parents or outing parents who cannot afford to participate
), singing and goody bags. lovethis
I only keep 6 kids, so it is pretty easy to plan for. I buy 6 clearance birthday kits (oriental trading. animals, bugs and all things unisex) every January for the upcoming year as I am planning curriculum.
Simple.
- Unless otherwise stated, all my posts are personal opinion and worth what you paid for them.
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I like to keep birthdays very low key, but we've developed a few traditions that make it feel very special to the kids. They are:
I cut a paper number (their new age), write happy birthday on it, and hang it on their basket (at the entrance).
I give a gift of books, usually 2. I choose them based on the child's interests. I keep a stash gleaned from thrift stores, tag sales, or remainders from book stores, though sometimes I'll buy new to get the perfect thing.
At snack time, we celebrate with muffins (we don't do sugary treats here). The birthday child gets a candle in theirs, and we sing to them.
On our last birthday, one of the older girls suggested we give the birthday boy "a special tea party," so we set the tables with tablecloths and had tea with our muffins. I suspect that will become our new tradition, as they loved it.
I've also thought I might start having birthdays at the dining-room table, rather than the usual kitchen tables. Even little changes like that feel so special to them. They are STILL talking about the first-day-of-school welcome-back "party" I did for them in the dining room 2 years ago. It was snack in the dining room, with gifts of shells I'd found on vacation. :-)
Some years, I've worked with the other children to create a group gift for the birthday child (based on their interests: a stuffed doll, a cardboard-box-and-other-stuff backhoe), and that was really meaningful and lovely, but life became hectic and I had to back off of some things.
The kids often make each other cards and pictures, but that's now completely child-directed.Comment
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Im very laid back about birthdays. Usually make something for lunch I know birthday child really likes and a special treat for afternoon snack.Comment
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The only thing I do for birthdays is a special PM snack where we sing Happy Birthday.
The only kids I decorate for, plan themes, etc. are my own (we hold their parties on the weekends)Comment
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I have a birthday box filled with $ store gifts......they LOVE to pick a gift from that box! I have a birthday bear that sits at their spot during snack. We play the birthday song that' s on a Hap Palmer CD and they get a BD crown!
I don't decorate. The birthday child is welcome to bring a birthday treat to share.Comment
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I really don't "do" their birthdays. If I am often times invited to their parties and will take them their "gift". I make up a photo album with their past year at my house in it. It really is more of a gift for mom and PR for me. Usually though, we hug them tell them happy birthday and that is about it. I have made muffins before for one child... But, I really feel that the cake, ice cream etc is the parents job. They don't need multiple birthdays. Also by not setting the bar way up there, I don't have to have it there for every kid.
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Just as BC said, you will get all different answers! I agree that you should do what you are comfortable with and also what is within your budget and time constraints. Just remember that what you do for one child during daycare hours is often expected for the other daycare children.....it's just the nature of things!
I usually will purchase a $10-$15 gift for each child for their birthday, but I don't give it to the child until the end of the day closest to their birthday (or on their birthday if they are in my care). If I was invited to their party, I will wait to give it to the child until that day.
I do make a special sweet snack on that day. I absolutely LOVE baking and I really enjoy any excuse to do so. I've made everything from cupcakes to cookies to muffins to cake pops. It's kind of what I am in the mood for and what I think the child would like. I usually serve it with fruit and limit the quantities (1 cupcake or 2 cookies). On occasion, I will have a parent bring in something and that is fine with me also.
As far as daily festivities, usually either the parents bring in goody bags for each child or I make them with supplies I have on hand. I've purchased a variety of stuff from Oriental Trading through the years and therefore have quite a selection of trinkets (they always sell things by the dozen or more and I only have a group of 6 .... there is always extra!). Usually the goody bags includes a helium balloon I filled or one of those "punching" balloons and about 3 other things in a plastic or paper bag. I also have dollar store table covers that I reuse for birthdays (a boy and a girl one). The kids are usually extremely entertained with the goody bags for the entire day and it makes it very memorable to them for a very nominal effort on my part.Comment
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My parents are welcome to bring a treat for everyone. I will not decorate. I will serve the cake or whatever parents bring. We do make a big deal over the birthday, but wait until after nap time to do so, so as to allow me to stay sane without birthday talk ALL DAY.Comment
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I go all out, but I only have 3 dck. My kids are grown, my grandkids are almost grown, and I love kid's parties. I decorate, we have hats and whistles, either cupcakes or a cake. I usually make them something handmade, but I may do something different for the upcoming birthday. She is my only kid that day, so I'm going to invite a little girl that use to come here and has stayed friends. She is fascinated with birthdays-there is seldom a day goes by that she doesn't "wrap" a present for someone or talk about a birthday. Instead of one gift, I'm going to wrap up a whole basket of things from the dollar store. I'll either give them to her through the day or give her a whole basket at once and watch the excitement.
I can manage extra with only 3 kids, and it's as much fun for me as for them.Comment
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At the daycare I used to work at (she had about 14 DCKs) we would celebrate all birthdays in one month on one day, 1/2 way through the month (usually on a Friday close to the 15th), it was usually after nap time (we would spend nap time decorating the daycare room). The provider would usually spend about $5-$10 on gifts for each birthday kid (usually tax deductible). If she knew that the kids were having a party at home during the weekend then she would just send it home with the child.
We wouldn't really make treats or anything but usually the parents would bring some. I guess if they didn't she might have gotten some cupcakes or make a small cake, but she may be more prone to make more kid approved lunches (pizza/pizza rolls or spaghetti). I wouldn't go to overboard with candy/junk food because 1) kids will get jumpy and parents may get mad if they pick up a hyper kid 2) kids may overeat and get tummy aches, diarrhea, vomit, or be constipated 3) some kids may have allergies/diabetes or other strict dietary needs and would feel left out if they cant partake 4) most treats go to waste- especially the bottom of cupcakes or non-frosted parts of a cake.
BTW: there are some religions that don't believe in celebrating birthdays or certain holidays (I.E. Jehovah's witnesses) so make sure all your parents understand when they sign up what parties/celebrations you have through out the year, also let them know that if they chose not to bring their child on that day and if it is their regular day that they are still responsible for paying for the day (if that is in your policies).Comment
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