Planning a Magical Harry Potter Themed Party for Kids

When you think of Harry Potter, what do you think of? Witches? Potions? Three-headed dogs? Flying broomsticks? What kid doesn't love the magical world of Harry Potter? J.K. Rowling's unique writing ability takes kids and adults alike on a mystical world of magic, dragons and potions. With the last installment of the series, and the new movie coming out this summer you can be sure that your child will want a party relating to Harry Potter. When your child's birthday rolls around and he or she wants a Harry Potter themed party, don't worry. There are tons of ways to make the day special.

Invitations:

First start with the invitations. Remember in the first movie how the invitation to Hogwart's came via owl? You can get some stationary and invite all of your child's friend to join you on Platform 9-3/4 (your house) to depart for Hogwart's (the party). Or, you could make your own "Daily Prophet" newspaper announcing the date, time and location of the party. Another unique idea is let Hagrid come take the children away from their homes and whisk them away to Hogwarts. In order to do this, you will need to inform the parents of the children that you wish to invite ahead of time so they know to be home and ready for Hagrid to come. Now have somebody dressed up like Hagrid (wearing a long trench coat, boots, shaggy black beard and a shaggy black wig) to visit each home and take the children to the party sites.

Activities:

Once the children arrive at the party site, now it is time to have some magical fun. You can ask each child's to dress up as their favorite Harry Potter character, or you can have items for them to wear once they arrive to the party. Consider shopping at your local thrift store to find black graduation cloaks to serve as costumes. You can also give each child a pair of round glasses, and if they all want to dress like Harry, add a small lightning scar on their forehead.

Here are games and activities to keep them busy:

After they arrive at your house, they can each visit Diagon Alley, where they are given plastic cauldrons (for their party favors) and a wand. If you have kids that enjoy making crafts, have them each make their own wand. All you need to do is purchase dowel rods, and them cut 12 inches long. Provide the kids with colored electrical tape to wrap around the wand, glitter glue, and perhaps even feathers.

Have a mini Hogwarts Castle set up in your home. Choose a class for each room of your home and have an adult dress up like that Professor. For example, the first.could be the sorting room. You can read the passage from the book that explains how they are sorted into their appropriate houses. Then have each child be sorted into their favorite house. You can even have somebody dressed as Professor Dumbledore to preside over the sorting ceremony.

In another room, you can have Professor Trelawney inside telling fortunes. You can make this elaborate as you want by decorating the room in dark light, having tea cups sitting around, and a large fortune telling ball in the middle of the room. The kids will enjoy having their palms read in divinations. You can even give them each a fortune cookie at the end of class.

Another classroom that you can set up would be potions. You will need somebody to dress up as Professor Snape. Once they arrive in the classroom, you can have science experiments that they can complete in the classroom. For example, hand each child a clear plastic cup and instruct them to add baking soda to the bottom. Then pass around a bottle labeled "potions" but inside it only contains vinegar. Then you can have them add the vinegar to the baking soda and let them watch a bubble over. You can get creative with this by calling its "Snape's Bubbling Potion". For added effect, have Snape gave them homework to take home with them.

Now you guests can go outside for a Quidditch lesson. Have several goals with hoops set up around the yard and give the kids Nerf balls to throw into the hoops. Or, if you prefer a calmer activity, consider a class in herbology. Provide them with small pots, and allow them to fill with soil and plant mystery seats. Instruct them to take them home and let them grow to see what sprouts.

Other options for a Harry Potter themed party include hiring a magician to perform at the party, or hiring a person that can bring reptiles to the party. For older kids, you can also send them on a scavenger hunt in your neighborhood using a "marauder's map" included items on the list that relate to the movie, such as candy, a wand, a witches hat, a pumpkin, plastic rat, or even a stuffed cat. You can even provide these items to your neighbors so they know that the kids are coming beforehand.

Food:

How about giving your guests pumpkin juice or chocolate frogs? You can make apple cider, and tell them that it's pumpkin juice. For chocolate frogs, consider going to your local craft store and purchasing candy molds in the shape of frogs. Simply melt the candy melts in the microwave and pour them into the molds. When they have cooled off, you have chocolate frogs. Of course, no Harry Potter party would be complete without Bertie Bott's every flavor bean, so head to your local store and buy a large supply jellybeans to hand out to the kids.

The possibilities are endless when you have a Harry Potter themed birthday party for your child.