How to throw a spectacular space-themed kids party
Elle Redman
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Planning an interstellar adventure for your little explorers? Our space-themed party guide has it all. Kids will have a BLAST whether they’re playing intergalactic games or munching on out-of-this-world star-shaped biscuits. Read on for our inventive ideas ...
3 … 2 … 1 … lift off!
Kids love learning about the stars, planets and solar systems. And, as well as building a love of science, technology, maths and more, the topic makes a spectacularly fun party theme.
We’ve got lots of imaginative ideas lined up for your space-themed soiree, making party planning super easy.
From moon sand messy play for little ones, to Marvel movie nights for older children, there’s something for everyone – to infinity and beyond!
Intergalactic games & activities
With a sprinkle of stardust, traditional party games and crafts can easily be transformed into amazing space-themed activities:
Musical planets
This is a fun twist on the classic musical chairs. Just print out some photos or templates of planets (or draw your own if you’re feeling arty) and place them on the floor, forming a circle in the living room.
Follow the usual rules for musical chairs but swap the seats for planets. When the music stops, players will need to find a planet in the solar system to land on (though you may want to pop some pillows under the planets to make sure little astronauts don’t get hurt as they land!).
Planet hunt
You could also turn a traditional treasure hunt into a space-themed one, by hiding the printed planets in various spots around the house.
Begin by dividing the explorers into two teams, then challenge them to find all the planets in the solar system.
To up the ante, older kids could even be tasked with arranging the planets in the correct order (i.e. Mercury, Venus, Earth, etc …).
The first team to complete the challenge wins!
Saturn ring toss
This one is ideal if you have access to a garden or outdoor space.
Place a yellow beach ball on the ground to represent Saturn. Then, have kiddos line up a couple of metres away from the ball.
Similarly to the ring toss game, players will take it in turns to throw a hula hoop over the beach ball (representing the rings of Saturn).
DIY rockets
Let your kids’ imaginations run wild while they make their very own rockets from everyday junk around the house.
Yoghurt pots and loo rolls make excellent rockets; just add a cardboard cone on top and decorate with paint and biodegradable glitter. Or go the whole hog by transforming a large cardboard box; have a grown-up cut out circles for portholes, then let the kids decorate it however they like.
Though your party guests can’t really fly to the moon in their DIY creations, their excitement will absolutely sky rocket when they make these!
Messy play
There’s plenty of messy play activities for little’uns to get involved with too. From planet painting and moon sand to sticky alien slime, check out our 10 space-themed messy play ideas.
Marvel movie night
If you've got older kids who are too 'cool' for silly space games, they'll have a blast with a movie marathon instead. There’s Captain Marvel, Guardians of the Galaxy and lots more. Scroll through our A-Z guide of Marvel movies for inspo.
Glow in the dark dance party
A perfect way to end the night, or help the little ones burn off some energy. Pop on an out-of-this-world playlist (there are loads of great space-themed playlists online, or you could have the kids help you make your own).
Decorate the ceilings and walls with clusters of glow in the dark stars, spaceships and planets. Then, dim the lights and let your little astronauts dance the night away!
Still stuck? For more games and activities, browse through our space-themed problem solving play ideas for kids. These will help little explorers develop their passion for all things astronomy.
Party decorations
Create your own solar system or constellation display on the ceiling with glow in the dark stars, planets and spaceships.
You could buy some online or even make your own. Simply paint a piece of stiff card using glow in the dark paint and cut out intergalactic designs.
Decorate the party room with star-shaped balloons and ask your kids to make a space-inspired welcome banner. With a large piece of black card, it’s super easy to create a starry night masterpiece using white paint and biodegradable glitter. Alien-themed decorations are always a hit, too!
If you're feeling super ambitious, you could even have the kids make their very own space-themed piñata! Papier mache works great for this; just create two papier mache bowls, fill them with sweets, stick them together and let the kids have fun whacking them open to get at the intergalactic treats.
As for table settings, silver reusable cups and rocket party plates make the coolest finishing touches.
If all else fails, you can’t go wrong with some simple dark blue, black and silver party decorations, forming a beautiful backdrop for outer space in the comfort of your living room.
Space-inspired snacks
Tasty food is the key to any great kids' party.
Keep the space theme going with some savoury sweet potato stars for the kids to snack on, finished off with some star-shaped biscuits. Or just make regular round biscuits and have the kids decorate them to look like planets!
Following our easy cupcake recipe for kids, you could add magic stars, edible rainbow dust and flying saucer sweets to give the traditional bake a space-themed twist.
Or, for a showstopping centrepiece, try our magic see-in-the-dark cake!
For a healthier option (and an inventive way of inspiring kids to eat their fruit and veggies), arrange some slices of banana, watermelon, carrot sticks and apple slices into the shape of a rocket ship.
You could also create the solar system out of party food, teaching kiddos all about astronomy in the process.
Use mandarin oranges for the sun, red grapes for Mercury, celery for Venus, kiwi for Earth, strawberries for Mars, pepperoni for Jupiter, cheddar cheese for Saturn, a slice of string cheese for Uranus, ham for Neptune and sweetcorn for Pluto.
You may want to invest in some specially themed paper cups and plates, too; there are some gorgeous galaxy-themed space party cups and plates out there!
Invitations
There’s so many imaginative ways of making your space-themed party invitations stand out. Think UFOs, aliens, planets and constellations.
There are loads of free templates online, or get the creative juices flowing by making your own.
When it comes to the practicalities, you know the drill. It’s best to send out invitations around three weeks before the party, allowing enough time for every space explorer to RSVP.
Make sure to include these essential points too:
- Date, time and venue of the party
- Date you need an RSVP by
- Whether you want other parents to stick around
- Whether or not guests will be sleeping over
- Dietary requirements and allergies
Party bags
Opt for a paper party bag or a compostable party box. These are kinder on the planet than plastic – plus, they’re more long-lasting so guests can use them again!
Pack them full of handmade glow-in-the-dark stars and leftover star-shaped biscuits. Along with the wild and wonderful messy play creations they made earlier in the evening.
You could even task your kids with making outer space fact cards for their guests.
The cards could contain fun and interesting astronomy facts such as ‘scientists believe that our solar system was formed over 4.6 billion years ago,’ or ‘our sun is over 300,000 times bigger than the Earth.’
Kids can then test each other on their seriously clever space knowledge during break times at school.
Browse through our brilliant kids party ideas, from party food to games and themes – all the way to the party bags! Read our related stories below or share your spectacular ideas with other parents in the forum.
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