Over the weekend we had my son’s birthday party at a board game club/school owned by my friend. There were 8 kids, mostly preschoolers like my son but a pair of 10 or 11 year-olds were there, and about 12 parents. My son and I were the only ones who play games regularly. Even so, it was a lot of fun. Every kid played at least one game and most adults played as well. I’m sharing my thoughts in case anyone else wants to do something similar.
1) Fewer games than you expect will get played. As the host, I didn’t do any playing after the first guests arrived. I was busy directing parking, introducing people, gathering coats, setting out food, etc. Instruction often takes longer than expected, especially for little kids and adults who never game. Most kids and parents did not get back to the game tables after eating. A few parents were just there to talk and hang out.
2) Having a good staff to teach games and keep an eye on the kids is vital if you want parents (and you should) to play some games. We were lucky that the school’s schedule aligned to provide us 3 teachers to show the kids and adults how to play.
3) Remember that for many of the guests, this a birthday party first, board games second. They’ll mostly be good sports and play for a bit and they’ll probably have fun. But most of them are there for the party and socializing. Don’t force them to play and keep and eye on the dynamics. If guests are mostly chatting during a game, let them finish the game and move to the social party. Hot take: I wouldn’t invite anyone who really wanted to game to a party like this. They would either be frustrated or annoy most of the guests.
4) Timing is so important. We planned the party to be from 15:00-18:00. I originally thought it would be 2 hours of games then an hour of food and socializing. We only gamed for about 90 minutes and then the next 90 minutes were spent eating and chatting. Also, 18:00 is the very edge of acceptability for preschoolers, especially if they didn’t get a nap that day. We only had one small breakdown near the very end. Anything later though would have been a bigger problem.
5) Games before food. We were lucky that the club allows food, so we ordered a bunch of pizza and had a big cake. The food takes up lots of table space and creates messes that need to be cleaned up before gaming. Food is also socializing time. Once the food comes out, the games are over.
6) Bring some free play toys for the littles. We had a few toy cars and action figures in the car that we brought out for the little ones to play while the adults were eating and chatting. The kids had plenty of fun playing together on the floor. I don’t think trying to corral the kids back to the table (especially for any competitive game) would have worked, see points 3 and 5.
7) Clarify what is an isn’t allowed with the club before finalizing your plans. You almost certainly want a private area to avoid disturbing others. Players might want to munch on snacks, so check if that is allowed. Try to get a games list to see if they are appropriate for your crowd. The more information you can gather, the better you can plan the party so everyone had fun.
The Keasy Depot 