First day at School

Recommended age group: 5–8

SETTING THE SCENE

This theme is fabulous if the birthday falls around the start of the birthday child’s first school year. It also works well at the end of a long school holiday, as this is an ideal way to reconnect with schoolmates! Adapt the ideas and use without the birthday component for a fun get-together for the class.

INVITATIONS
  1. Enlarge the bell template and trace it onto the cardboard. Cut out. Coat the front of the bell with the gold paint and set aside to dry.
  2. Write the invitation details (see Suggested Wording) on the notepaper, roll it up and tie with ribbon. Attach the paper to the back of the bell with Prestik® so that it is not visible from the front.
  3. Tie the round bell onto the cord and attach it with masking tape to the back of the cardboard bell, near the lower edge, so that the round bell protrudes.
  4. Write the guest’s name on the yellow board paper, punch a hole near one corner edge and attach the tag to the neck of the bell with the ribbon.

SUGGESTED WORDING

Heed the bell and come on over to (child’s name)’s birthday party!

Catch the school bus on: (date) to (address)

Lessons start: (time party starts)

School ends: (time party ends)

RSVP: The Teacher at (phone number) before (date)

Dress: As for school

TREAT BAGS
  1. Adjust the template so that the bell measures about 100 mm in length. Trace it onto the cardboard, cut out and coat with the gold paint. Set aside to dry.
  2. Attach the gold cord to the bell and fix to the back of the cardboard bell with masking tape.
  3. Punch a hole near the end of the handle of the bell, attach the curling ribbon, and glue to the front of the party box.
  4. Write the guest’s name on the back or on top of the box.

GAMES AND ACTIVITIES

Teacher, Teacher!

  1. A child is chosen to be the teacher. On starter’s orders, the teacher leads the group, who must walk behind and in unison ask: ‘Teacher, teacher, what’s the time?’ The teacher, without turning around, answers ‘One o’clock’, or any randomly selected time. The game continues in this manner with the children traipsing behind the teacher.
  2. When the teacher replies ‘Homework time!’, he or she spins around to face the children, who must fall to the ground and remain sitting motionless. The last child to sit down is eliminated.
  3. The game continues until there is a winner, who receives a prize. The rest receive tokens.

Teacher’s Test

  1. Display the items on the tray and instruct the children to study them for 1 minute. The children must then close their eyes while you remove one item from the tray. The children must identify the item that has been removed. The first child who offers the correct answer receives that particular item and then leaves the game. Reduce the observation period by a few seconds with each round. At the end of the game each child should have received a small prize.
  2. * Ensure that there are sufficient items for the number of guests. If you have to duplicate the items, they should be of varying colours and/or shapes.

Detention Tag

  1. One child is the teacher. The rest of the children move about in the playing area while the teacher attempts to tag them. As a child is tagged they have to remain frozen in place with their legs astride. Children may be released from detention if one of their untagged mates crawls through their legs. If the child who is attempting this is tagged, he or she must remain frozen in place as well. Children who step out of the playing area are also frozen in detention. The game continues until there is one untagged child remaining. The winner and teacher each receive a prize, and the rest receive tokens.

Report Card Blues

  1. Have the children sit in a circle and call out their names in alphabetical order. As each child is called, they must select a note from the container and follow the instructions written on it.
  2. Examples may be: ‘Forgot to do homework – hop around the outer circle on one leg’; ‘Chattered during lessons – bark like a dog’; ‘Top of the class – choose a prize’; ‘Failed history test – sing a song’; ‘Brought teacher an apple – choose a prize’.
  3. When each child has had a turn, allow those who had to act out forfeits to choose a small token.

PARTY FOOD

Party Pencils

  1. Coat the biscuits with yellow icing.
  2. Trim one end of each twist to ‘sharpen the pencil’ and arrange side by side on the wafer biscuit.
  3. Place a gold ball in the icing in front of each point.

Alphabet Cones

Use letters that represent the guests’ initials or to spell out the name of the birthday child.
  1. Fill the wafer cone with sweets.
  2. Coat the Marie or tea biscuit with icing and place over the open end of the cone. Upend so that the biscuit forms the base.
  3. Use the star nozzle to cover the flat top of the upended cone with iced stars and place a letter on top.
  4. Pipe a spiral of stars around the cone, finishing with a row around the base of the cone. Decorate with gold balls.

Tasty Rides

  1. Prepare the biscuit dough as per the recipe.
  2. Use the cookie cutter or template to cut out the biscuits and bake as directed.
  3. Leave biscuits to cool completely before covering with icing.
  4. Place the liquorice squares in position for the windows, shaping the front one slightly to follow the contour of the bus.
  5. Decorate with silver balls for a headlamp and the doors and position the Smarties® for the wheels. Sprinkle with edible glitter.

School Bells

  1. Cover the top of the Marie biscuit with icing and position the Sweetie Pie® in the centre.
  2. Use a sharp knife to cut a hole in the top of the Sweetie Pie® and insert the chocolate roll into the hole.
  3. Use the star nozzle to pipe a row of stars to neaten the hole and conceal any cracks in the chocolate. Decorate with gold balls.
  4. Pipe a row of stars around the base of the bell.

LITTLE RED SCHOOL BUS CAKE
  1. Bake the cake according to the recipe and leave to cool completely.
  2. Cut the cake in half across the width and sandwich the two halves one on top of the other with a layer of icing.
  3. Coat the entire cake with red icing.
  4. Cover the lower half of the dolls’ bodies with foil and insert into the top of the cake so that there is a driver and four passengers.
  5. Cut the wafer biscuits into 25 mm widths and insert one piece behind each doll for a back rest.
  6. Place the round ring sweet in front of the driver for the steering wheel.
  7. Place the plastic container upside down over the dolls to create the top of the bus.
  8. Coat the ‘roof’ with a light layer of icing and edge with a row of piped stars to neaten.
  9. Pipe stars around the base of the plastic container to neaten.
  10. Use the star nozzle to pipe window borders and two doors on either side of the bus, as illustrated. Add the small yellow sweets to make door handles.
  11. Mark the outline of the front grille with a toothpick and place the small silver balls in position using a small pair of tweezers.
  12. For the lights, attach the flat round sweets to the front and back of the bus. Add the small round sweets as indicators. Attach the liquorice cable for the exhaust.
  13. Position the star-shaped sweet emblems at the front and back of the bus.
  14. Use the liquorice straps to create the front and rear bumpers.
  15. Attach the biscuits for the wheels. Use a dab of icing to attach a large silver ball to the centre of each biscuit. Use the star nozzle to pipe mudguards around each wheel as illustrated.