Mad science birthday parties in your backyard
ShareIf you have a young budding scientist in your family it can be great fun to have a science-themed birthday party for them. It's easy to set up in your backyard with just a few supplies from the party store and will be a unique and memorable party for your child.
Dress ups
Get everyone in the mood with a pile of lab coats and thick rimmed glasses. You can often find cheap lab coats in the thrifts stores around university stores, and party supply stores often have a selection of prop glasses that you can have in the dress up corner. It can be fun to have a photo booth set up with science props such as plastic test tubes and beakers. If you don't have a photo booth you can often hire these from photo stores, and this can be a fun memento for kids.
A bubbling potion
Serve the kids some bubbling and smoking potions by adding dry ice (liquid nitrogen) to the punch. Liquid nitrogen is a perfectly safe way to cool drinks providing the nitrogen does not come in contact with the skin, so you can place it at the bottom of a large bowl and ladle it into cups for a dramatic looking drink. You can buy liquid nitrogen from party stores as it's often used to create smoke effects.
Science activities
It can be fun to have a range of science activities set up. This can include reactions such as mixing bicarbonate soda (available from the baking aisle of the supermarket) and vinegar for a dramatic reaction. It can also be fun to have other sorts of science equipment such as magnifying glasses to examine the details of toy cars, and fossils made from dinosaur toys hidden in plaster cases made by settling small dinosaurs in bowls on plaster. This gives kids a chance to try all sorts of different types of science 'experiments'.
Science karaoke
Another fun thing for kids to do at a science party is to sing along for science karaoke. There are some great kids science-themed songs including the They Might Be Giants "Here Comes the Science" album. You can hire karaoke machines from party hire stores.
Test tubes
Rather than giving the guests traditional lolly bags, at the end of the party, it can be fun to give 'test tubes' of lollies which can be made by filling clear plastic tubes with colourful lollies and sealing each end. These are often available from party stores as they are a popular option for wedding bonbonnieres.
Good luck having a fun science-themed party!