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I have done it once for 3rd birthday and every child opened a layer and every one got a freddo. The end prize was random at who opened, I do not agree with birthday child getting main prize they have got enough already.
Have seen it done completely per organised with diff things for boys and girls at each layer and birthday girl won.
Games to play.... duck, duck, goose; crocodile, crocodile (may I cross your river); and, what's the time Mr Wolf?
If I know the exact number of kids I just do a lollypop in each layer and they go off and eat it while the game continues. Each round is completely random. I may or may not have deliberately stopped on a couple of toddlers/babies early in the rounds ;)
I've seen it where they had a list of who to stop on in order because they had specific prizes in each layer. Was dreadful. Cos of course they stop the music but the parcel went too far or something so they'd say.. no this one's for Johnny. So the poor kid who actually had hold of it had to pass it back.
My birthday kids are clued in before hand - they know it won't end with them.
We had a treasure hunt recently but instead of loot there were lego men (little ones for the over 5's and duplo for the under 5's), then they had to find one of the mums who had the loot.
I don't see anything wrong with putting a very small item in each layer just to keep interest and then a decent prize at the end for the winner. I don't like the 'every child gets a prize' mentality but putting a lollypop in it isn't that big a deal - they still see the main prize as the only prize kwim?
Yes a lolly in each layer is no big deal - I prefer that than a lolly bag at the end of party. Kids are so funny with party games you never know the reactions - we went to a party with a piñata DD wouldn't bash it at all she just wanted to know why we didnt just get some scissors and cut it open. I tried to explain to her it was meant to be fun but she just didn't get it. The fun of pass the parcel is the chance element and I wonder whether sometimes 'we' try to play it with children who are too young to understand that element and that is why trend has developed for presents/goodies in every layer - it isn't that children are being greedy by expecting something is more that they aren't old enough to understand the fun of unwrapping a layer and chance until they are around 5 I reckon. I saw it done with a group of turning three year olds and they were totally bewildered by whole experience.:
Thanks girls. Some really good thoughts and ideas! Haven't had to worry about it till now and I will let you know after this weekend how it went x
So I did pass the parcel the 'old school way' and let every child unwrap a layer (nothing in each layer)
Then the winner was a guest not the birthday boy! No children were harmed or damaged by the process 😜
Kids had a ball but the girls were definitely more interested and had an attention span to the activities than the boys. They were just happy to run around and be ninjas!!!