Pass the Parcel: Small gifts for ages 4-8
April 25, 2024 8:46 AM Subscribe
For a birthday party, we're trying to come up with "pass the parcel" gifts (basically party favors distributed randomly such that each kid gets a random unique gift) for a group of 4-5 year olds and a few older siblings.
The preschool where they met has a kind of Waldorf / nature crafts kind of vibe, and the party favor at the last party was homemade rainbow playdough, so gifts in that universe would be best. But anything that the kids will think is cool and isn't like "TOXIC WASTE FOR YOU TO EAT!!!" would probably work. I'm looking to spend about $6-10/kid. Any suggestions? Also, any tips generally from Pass the Parcel experts would be welcome!
The preschool where they met has a kind of Waldorf / nature crafts kind of vibe, and the party favor at the last party was homemade rainbow playdough, so gifts in that universe would be best. But anything that the kids will think is cool and isn't like "TOXIC WASTE FOR YOU TO EAT!!!" would probably work. I'm looking to spend about $6-10/kid. Any suggestions? Also, any tips generally from Pass the Parcel experts would be welcome!
Multicolor ballpoint pens and little spiral notebooks with cool covers
Temporary Tattoos
Pokemon Cards
Little squishy animal toys full of phthalates (probably falls into toxic waste category)
Tree-shaped crystal-growing kits (available at many price points)
Extra-cute little finger puppets
Small sets of interesting markers, like sparkly or something.
posted by juliapangolin at 9:08 AM on April 25
Temporary Tattoos
Pokemon Cards
Little squishy animal toys full of phthalates (probably falls into toxic waste category)
Tree-shaped crystal-growing kits (available at many price points)
Extra-cute little finger puppets
Small sets of interesting markers, like sparkly or something.
posted by juliapangolin at 9:08 AM on April 25
geodes / cool rocks
posted by phunniemee at 9:11 AM on April 25 [1 favorite]
posted by phunniemee at 9:11 AM on April 25 [1 favorite]
Going with the Waldorf-y vibe:
Small flowers made of felt
Seconding the cool rocks idea - if you have a rock shop nearby, small ones are not very expensive
Seeds and tiny pots of soil
One of the coolest (to me) party favor one of my kids got was a small-sized metal measuring tape - maybe for the older kids?
posted by sencha at 9:52 AM on April 25 [1 favorite]
Small flowers made of felt
Seconding the cool rocks idea - if you have a rock shop nearby, small ones are not very expensive
Seeds and tiny pots of soil
One of the coolest (to me) party favor one of my kids got was a small-sized metal measuring tape - maybe for the older kids?
posted by sencha at 9:52 AM on April 25 [1 favorite]
Best answer: American Science & Surplus has lots of options.
posted by BoscosMom at 9:57 AM on April 25 [3 favorites]
posted by BoscosMom at 9:57 AM on April 25 [3 favorites]
Assortment of pre-loved books bought secondhand (everyone needs more books) - kids can swap around afterwards if they already have it or see something they really want
Outdoor type toys like sidewalk chalk, frisbees, kites, bean bag toss, streamers, bubble things (maybe for huge bubbles)
Slinkys
kids origami books
Bug catching kit
posted by anastasiav at 10:17 AM on April 25
Outdoor type toys like sidewalk chalk, frisbees, kites, bean bag toss, streamers, bubble things (maybe for huge bubbles)
Slinkys
kids origami books
Bug catching kit
posted by anastasiav at 10:17 AM on April 25
Nature-related items:*
Magnifying glass
Compass
Flashlight (my niblings LOVED flashlights at that 4-8 yr old age range)
Small zip pouch in a fun fabric (I get a lot of these at the local secondhand shops)
Jigsaw puzzle (also a great thrift store purchase)
Colored pencil set (here's a recycled one!)
* I have my regular volunteer shift at the Bird Alliance nature store this weekend so I'll return to this thread with additional ideas hopefully!
posted by spamandkimchi at 12:01 PM on April 25 [1 favorite]
Magnifying glass
Compass
Flashlight (my niblings LOVED flashlights at that 4-8 yr old age range)
Small zip pouch in a fun fabric (I get a lot of these at the local secondhand shops)
Jigsaw puzzle (also a great thrift store purchase)
Colored pencil set (here's a recycled one!)
* I have my regular volunteer shift at the Bird Alliance nature store this weekend so I'll return to this thread with additional ideas hopefully!
posted by spamandkimchi at 12:01 PM on April 25 [1 favorite]
Best answer: In my experience kids at birthday parties want to feel that their party favor is JUST AS GOOD as the next kid's so maybe try to keep everything a relatively uniform size/shape/level of glitter/"it"-toy level.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 1:07 PM on April 25 [2 favorites]
posted by Lawn Beaver at 1:07 PM on April 25 [2 favorites]
Best answer: Good little gifts for that age range:
- small pots of kinetic sand
- little items for pretend play around a theme: eyepatch, treasure map, gold coins, headscarf, and parrot for pirates. Stick-on mustache, mirror shades, fingerprint powder, magnifying glass and fingerprint notebook (plus stamp) for mini detectives. Or just an array of funny glasses.
- warbling bird whistles, the ones you fill with water. Cuckoo or duck whistles might be fun, too. All of those allow kids to make unusual noises without annoying parents too much, and you can get wood or clay versions to satisfy your earthy requirement
- little craft sets you've put together. Pompoms, googly eyes, pipe cleaners, and feathers can all be purchased in elevated versions that are just a bit more special than what the kids might have at home. Call the kits "monster ingredients" or something
- tiny stuffed animals, especially those with magnetic paws
- snap bracelets, bonus points for getting the blank ones that kids can colour in
- tiny Kalimbas. Even without skill, Kalimbas tend to sound good
Tips from this PTP "expert":
- I'm surprised you're looking for unique gifts, as "Pass the Parcel" prizes tend to be variations of the same thing, in my experience. Which is wise, for kids that young, because birthday parties are overwhelming and you don't want kids melting down. But you know your group best, and it might be just fine. If the kids are fairly normal and not miraculously mature, I'd stick with prizes that are the exact same thing, just different designs/colours.
- If you go for things that all look the same, be ready to apply stickers or immediately put the gifts away and into goody bags because it's almost a given that two kids will decide their prize is exactly that one, and only that one.
- Traditionally, there's a bigger gift in the middle. You need to engineer the music so that this gift goes to the birthday child. Alternatively, it works well to put something that can be enjoyed by all in the center: a bunch of stickers, sweets, or a party game.
posted by toucan at 3:41 PM on April 25
- small pots of kinetic sand
- little items for pretend play around a theme: eyepatch, treasure map, gold coins, headscarf, and parrot for pirates. Stick-on mustache, mirror shades, fingerprint powder, magnifying glass and fingerprint notebook (plus stamp) for mini detectives. Or just an array of funny glasses.
- warbling bird whistles, the ones you fill with water. Cuckoo or duck whistles might be fun, too. All of those allow kids to make unusual noises without annoying parents too much, and you can get wood or clay versions to satisfy your earthy requirement
- little craft sets you've put together. Pompoms, googly eyes, pipe cleaners, and feathers can all be purchased in elevated versions that are just a bit more special than what the kids might have at home. Call the kits "monster ingredients" or something
- tiny stuffed animals, especially those with magnetic paws
- snap bracelets, bonus points for getting the blank ones that kids can colour in
- tiny Kalimbas. Even without skill, Kalimbas tend to sound good
Tips from this PTP "expert":
- I'm surprised you're looking for unique gifts, as "Pass the Parcel" prizes tend to be variations of the same thing, in my experience. Which is wise, for kids that young, because birthday parties are overwhelming and you don't want kids melting down. But you know your group best, and it might be just fine. If the kids are fairly normal and not miraculously mature, I'd stick with prizes that are the exact same thing, just different designs/colours.
- If you go for things that all look the same, be ready to apply stickers or immediately put the gifts away and into goody bags because it's almost a given that two kids will decide their prize is exactly that one, and only that one.
- Traditionally, there's a bigger gift in the middle. You need to engineer the music so that this gift goes to the birthday child. Alternatively, it works well to put something that can be enjoyed by all in the center: a bunch of stickers, sweets, or a party game.
posted by toucan at 3:41 PM on April 25
One year, I decided I wasn't going to be creative or educational or environmentally friendly with the kid party favors. They all got boxes of kid bandaids with characters on them. Super easy to buy and wrap and they were delighted. These are usually coveted items in most households and parents dole them out one or two at a time. I used to have to hide them from my kids. Giving them a whole box just for them was huge!
They all left the party covered in bandaids. It was adorable.
posted by MissPitts at 5:55 PM on April 25 [4 favorites]
They all left the party covered in bandaids. It was adorable.
posted by MissPitts at 5:55 PM on April 25 [4 favorites]
Best answer: Coming here to randomly suggest our family's preferred version of Pass the Parcel, which avoids people feeling left out or less favoured and has become a high point of kids' parties in our house (still occasionally requested by our teens). It only really works for a group of 5-6 kids unless you have a lot of resource and wrapping patience.
1) Select 6x a small crafty gift (bonus, after PTP they have sthg else to do)
2) Make up 6x parcels with the small crafty gift at the core and multiple layers of paper (works best if you use different type of paper for each layer, paper on it's nth use is fine.
3) Insert a tiny gift (like novelty eraser suggested above) or a sweet/candy in 2 or 3 of the layers
4) Everyone sits in a circle with a parcel, you then have to pass the parcels in clockwise direction once the music starts for round one (takes a bit of coordination for the kids to get everyone passing in the right direction and at the right pace, from which fun ensues)
5) The music stops and you shout GO and everyone rips one layer off the parcel in front of them and is rewarded by the excitement alone, or by a tiny gift, if there's one in that layer
6) Repeat step 4 but in the opposite direction
And so on until you get to the last layer, at which point they all get their craft activity and take that off to the table to quietly build/paint whatever, and you have a well-earned rest / cup of tea / glass of wine.
posted by melisande at 7:05 AM on April 26
1) Select 6x a small crafty gift (bonus, after PTP they have sthg else to do)
2) Make up 6x parcels with the small crafty gift at the core and multiple layers of paper (works best if you use different type of paper for each layer, paper on it's nth use is fine.
3) Insert a tiny gift (like novelty eraser suggested above) or a sweet/candy in 2 or 3 of the layers
4) Everyone sits in a circle with a parcel, you then have to pass the parcels in clockwise direction once the music starts for round one (takes a bit of coordination for the kids to get everyone passing in the right direction and at the right pace, from which fun ensues)
5) The music stops and you shout GO and everyone rips one layer off the parcel in front of them and is rewarded by the excitement alone, or by a tiny gift, if there's one in that layer
6) Repeat step 4 but in the opposite direction
And so on until you get to the last layer, at which point they all get their craft activity and take that off to the table to quietly build/paint whatever, and you have a well-earned rest / cup of tea / glass of wine.
posted by melisande at 7:05 AM on April 26
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posted by Omnomnom at 9:00 AM on April 25