What Things Can You Have for a Graduation Party?

While some students need to repeat grades or take more than four years to finish college, they'll only graduate once. You could follow the traditional pattern of dining at a favorite restaurant or renting a fire hall to celebrate the graduation, or you can stage an original, fun event that your family, your graduate and her friends will remember.

Entertainment

If you're throwing an elementary school graduation party, hire a balloon animal maker, face-paint artist, mime, magician or portraitist. Tailor your choice to your child's tastes; for instance, science minded students might want an entertainer who can perform science experiments. You can also rent large trampolines or inflatable "moonwalk" rides for the children. Entertain high school and college graduates by hiring a disc jockey or local band; or, you could inquire at a local comedy club and hire a stand-up comic to perform.

Activities

A graduation party can be more than friends and families sitting around eating cake. Find ways to make the graduation party fun and exciting by playing games or organizing activities. Elementary school graduates can play a variety of age-appropriate children's games, such as musical chairs. You also could set seashells or plaster crafts and water color kits at each table, and give the children time to paint. You can liven up the event for high school graduates by renting a projection screen television and interactive video games that everyone can play, such as "Rock Band" or "Digital Dance Revolution." For college students, consider setting up dart boards, renting billiards, foosball tables or paintball equipment, or staging games that encourage the graduates to interact. One game involves passing out a key or a lock to every other person as each enters. During the night, attendees must figure out whose key opens which lock.

Memorabilia

Scrapbooks make a great present for your graduate, and a number of things will enable the party guests to contribute to the memories. Many big-box stores sell bulk or party packs of disposable cameras; place one or two of these at each table and encourage guests to take shots, then leave the cameras behind. Ask each guest to write a short entry and sign a memorial book. Or, hire a videographer or professional photographer to record and shoot the event. You can also provide guests with customized souvenirs or gift bags of the event; for a sports-themed graduation party, have a trophy shop engrave mini-trophies with the name of the graduate and date. Distribute these to guests at the table or when they leave.

Themes

Just because it's a graduation party doesn't mean you can't organize it around a theme. A simple theme might require attendees to dress in the school's or college's colors. If the graduate played collegiate or high school sports, you could center the party on athletics and ask everyone to wear sports gear. Another idea would center the party on the recent graduate's major academic subject. If your daughter earned a degree in communications or media, for instance, set up a "red-carpet" processional line and "media" staging area near the entrance. If your son majored in computer science, decorate the venue to look like a website and ask everyone to attend dressed as a favorite Internet celebrity.