Lessons Kids can Gain from a Farm-Themed Birthday Party

When I began preparing for my second child’s first birthday party, we chose farm life as the theme which then became the inspiration for the games and activities during the party. Come party time, we could tell that our guests loved the theme a lot. But I guess our kids loved the theme a whole lot because months after my second child’s first birthday party, my kids were still playing them. Our farm party theme turned out to be a seedbed of many wonderful pretend play scenarios and home school lessons.

The kids actually started learning about farm life even before the party. We had been reading them books about the farm which they really enjoyed. Their curiosity about the farm was intensified when we started preparing the materials and props for our farm-themed kiddie party -- we bought plaid tops and farmer hats, plastic fruit and vegetable toys and baskets; we made farm-related crafts and art projects; we sang and danced to songs about farm animals, and I also taught my kids the barn dance. My youngest son (the birthday boy) loved it very much especially the tap-tap-tap and clap-clap-clap portion of the dance. My kids and I still use our costumes and props when we play at home. It makes us enjoy our pretend play even more.

Here are activities/scenarios that they like to imitate and the lessons they learn while engaging in these activities.

Planting and Harvest time – Reading books paved the way for our discussions about life in the farm.  One of the things that I was able to discuss with them is the concept of planting and harvesting, and that it takes some time before you can harvest so it would be good to be busy with something else while waiting for harvest time. One time, we drew a farm scene on manila paper which the kids later colored. Then, I scattered plastic fruit and vegetable toys in the house and gave each one of them a basket, and they gladly went around the house “harvesting”. 

 

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Farmer’s Market – Through our farm pretend play, I was able to share with my kids that farmers sell their farm products in the Farmer’s Market. They love this pretend play where my youngest acts as the customer, while my eldest is the farmer selling his produce, including eggs and live farm animals. They use play money in their transactions. My eldest gets to practice his Math and writing skills. He learns about the farm business as we play. My youngest learns to identify objects through their pretend play and to differentiate between fruits and vegetables. Sometimes, he helps his brother set up his stall by separating the fruits from the vegetables in the display. We like playing “bring me” games, too. 

Restaurant in the Farm – This is another of the kids’ favorites. They pretend to cook the vegetables that they harvest from their farm, make fruit shakes, and I get to teach them simple recipes as we pretend to cook dishes using their plastic toys. Using some of my youngest son’s books as our menu, this pretend play teaches them that when they plant, they will not go hungry because they can cook what they harvest. Moreover, it influences their real food and drink choices. Pretending to eat fruits and vegetables at play prepares them for mealtimes. Kids also get to practice their Math and Applied Math skills in this activity as they pretend to run their restaurant.

Caring for farm animals – One of the games we had at my son’s birthday party is to ask the kids to help the farmer/birthday boy to gather his animals back in the farm. Two teams raced to round out the animals and bring them back to the big red barn. At home, we talk about where the animals live in the farm, what they eat, what they do, the sounds that farm animals make. Recently, we went to a zoo where they saw live farm animals, and they enjoyed that field trip very much!

 

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I’m excited to see the kids’ reactions when our trip to a real farm pushes through this summer. I wonder how they would react as they discover real farm animals in action, and the different fruits and vegetables that we usually only talk about in our farm pretend plays.  I’m sure they will find that experience fascinating as well.  

Even if the kids are on summer break, it’s still possible for them to keep learning. These kinds of pretend play can mean hours of not just information but fun for the whole family as well. 

Looking for farm-themed books? Here are some suggestions:

• The Three Little Pigs (with house and finger puppets)

• Clifford’s Animal Sounds

• On the Farm

• Farm (Lift the Flap)

• Click, Clack, Moo, Cows that Type

• Animals by Brainy Baby

• Fruits and Vegetables Lovely Mini Padded Board Book

• Farm Animals (A Mini Magic Color Book) 

• Farm cloth book by Fisher Price