Science Parties
When I made the decision to throw a science-themed party to celebrate my son’s 10th birthday, I discovered that there was a scarcity of information available on the web about how to host such an event.
I’ve expended lots of time and effort into finding the right resources and thinking up ideas to flesh out all the various elements of our Science Extravaganza, but hey, I live for this stuff! In keeping with the spirit of this website, I am sharing with you, the dedicated parent of a science loving child, my “how to tips” on putting on a science-themed party.
The core element of our event was the entertainment. This was really the easiest part of the planning process. It just so happens that a few weeks ago my children’s elementary school had an assembly put on by an outfit called “Mad Science”. The performance featured a “Mad Scientist” demonstrating all sorts of scientific principles using props such as dry ice. When my kids came home from school the day of the assembly, they were practically tripping over each other to tell me about the demonstration. They LOVED it!
That very evening my husband did some searching on the web and found out that in addition to school assemblies and other large venues, Mad Science also does private parties. This was the genesis of our decision to host our own Mad Science birthday party.
The Entertainment:
I can’t overstate how great the Mad Science people were. They had various party options available that allowed us to choose the entertainment that best fit our needs and our budget. Mad Science is a franchise so each location may vary in regards to pricing and available party options. Our basic package was called “Mad About Blue” which included several experiments involving electricity and a slime-making segment. To this package we added “Bubbling Potions” - lots of fun demonstrations with dry ice and “Cotton Candy Science” - an explanation of how cotton candy is made followed by actual cotton candy making & eating. Our package even included the party invitations.
Our Mad Scientist, Dr. Goo, arrived about 20 minuted before the scheduled party time. We had her set up on the island in our kitchen. She took care to protect our counter tops with a Mad Science drop cloth. her only requirements were access to water and an electrical outlet. You may want to cover your windows if your room is very bright (we used brown paper). This will serve to enhance the visual impact of experiments featuring electricity and fire.
From the time she began her demonstration, our Mad Scientist firmly took charge of her audience. Throughout her show (almost 90 minutes), Dr. Goo kept all 15 rambunctious little scientists focused, engaged and entertained. She interacted with her audience throughout; asking and answering lots of questions. It should also be noted that she paid extra attention to the guest of honor, making sure that he got to star in some of her experiments.
At the end of the show, Dr. Goo left everything as she had found it. Considering all of the gear and other accoutrements she brought with her, her departure was very quick and orderly. Please note that although optional, a gratuity is recommended if your are pleased with your Mad Scientist’s performance. We tipped Dr. Goo $20
All in all, Mad Science gets an A+
The Cake:
Our ”Mad Scientist” birthday cake was inspired by one my niece spotted on the web. I printed the image, made some changes and brought the idea to my local bakery, Susie G’s Specialty Cakes. They did a fabulous job, don’t you agree?
The 250 ml flasks the scientist is grasping were ordered on eBay along with the rest of the laboratory glass I used for the party. I gave the flasks to the bakery when I placed my order - about 2 weeks before the party. The baker filled each flask with decorator’s gel and inserted some cotton to simulate smoke. To see more about this cake’s construction, click here.
Not including the cost of the flasks, this half sheet cake (feeds up to 40 people) came in at under $60 including tax. A very fair price I thought, considering the result.
The Refreshments:
After considering various refreshment ideas, I was inspired to create the “Snack Laboratory”. This concept is perfect for a science party in several ways;
- it fits the science theme to a tee!
- It serves as entertainment and keeps your guests focused and engaged as they enter your home and await the show.
- You can tailor your offerings to suit individual tastes, dietary requirements and number of guests. For our 15 guests, I provided 8 different items (mini cookies, candy corn, mini marshmallows, M&Ms, cheese curls, pretzels, popcorn and goldfish crackers). Other good choices are raisins, peanuts, gummi bears, etc. The possibilities are endless.
- The kids can serve themselves - I can’t tell you how helpful this was! I had the kids all wash their hands before going through the Snack Laboratory but you could place antibacterial wipes or hand sanitizer right on the table if you don’t have soap and water handy.
- It’s a very budget friendly option. You should have extra bags of snacks available but only open what you need as you need it.
- Two words - “Easy Clean-up”. I gave each guest a disposable plastic party cup labeled with their name. Each child filled their own cup from the Snack Laboratory and went on his or her way. After the party I gathered up all the party cups & just threw them away. Since all of the snacks were dry (unlike pizza, for example), whatever got dropped on the floor was easy to vacuum up.
To create the Snack Laboratory I moved my dining room table up against one wall and covered it with a plain white plastic tablecloth. My husband has access to a large plotter at work so we made our “Snack Laboratory”sign on that. All you will need to create your sign is a large piece of paper, some colored markers and imagination!
To dispense our snacks, I used disposable aluminum pans. These look very sciency, come in mutiple sizes, are inexpensive and reusable.
Our atomic punch is actually Blue Raspberry Tampico. A variation of this drink is available in most grocery stores - usually sold in plastic gallon sized containers in the dairy section. Tampico is great because it’s already mixed for you. It’s also very inexpensive at about $1.25 per gallon. If you can’t find Tampico, Kool-Aid is a good alternative. Pick a bright sciency color/flavor such as Lime.
Since some kids (mine included) don’t care for punch drinks, I also filled a silver beverage bucket with ice, a variety of mini (8 oz.) sodas and bottled water.
As you can see in the above picture, we added dry ice to our punch bowl. Although this makes a really cool presentation and keeps the punch cold, I would be remiss if I did not warn you that it can also be a health hazard. Dry ice will burn your fingers if you touch it. Think of what will happen if you swallow it! If you do opt to use dry ice in your punch bowl make certain that you;
- Use a single larger piece of dry ice and leave it undisturbed at the bottom of the serving bowl.
- Have an adult carefully ladle the drinks from the top of the punch bowl to ensure that no small pieces make their way into someone’s cup.
- Warn your guests that they should under no circumstances swallow dry ice if they do encounter a piece in their drink.
These fanstatic science-themed cookies were created using cookie cutters we made ourselves with a cookie cutter crafting kit. If you’d like to see more about these wonderful cookies click here.
The Glassware:
All of the laboratory glassware I used was ordered from eBay. Next to the entertainment, this was my biggest expense. The glassware itself isn’t very expensive but shipping it can be. If you have a laboratory supply house near you, that’s likely your best option. If not, make sure you order everything you need in one order and ask the vendor to combine the shipping charges for all of your items. Also, give yourself plenty of lead time when ordering. For our party I ordered the following items:
- 1 (one) 4000 ml graduated beaker - This served as our punch bowl. 4000 ml equates to just over 1 gallon - Perfect for a punch bowl. A beaker this size will also come in handy for brining and other kitchen uses, so it’s not a wasted investment if you like to cook. Cost - $24.50
- 15 (fifteen) 250 ml graduated beakers - These hold about 8 oz (1 cup) and served as punch cups. The beakers also became our treat bags at the end of the party (see treat bags). Cost - $36.00 for a dozen
- 2 (two) 250 ml graduated Erlenmeyer Flasks - These are the flasks used on the Mad Scientist Cake - Cost $3.65 each
The Treat Bags:
Rather than the standard-issue treat bags filled with run-of-the-mill candy and junk toys, we opted to gift our guests with their lab beakers (earlier used as drinking glasses) filled with some really great “sciency” treats. What, after all, do I need over a dozen 250 ml graduated beakers for? Here is a sample picture of our “treat bag” followed by (coming soon!) my suggestions for what the contents of your treat bag might be.
The Thank You Cards:
Once again, I couldn’t find any commercially made thank you cards to suit our science theme so we made our own. The cards are from Wal-Mart and are very inexpensive. They come 10 to a pack and are blank inside. The front of the cards just say “Thanks”. Each pack contains a variety of colors. To customize these I added some awesome science stickers that I found on eBay. These were just the right size and colors to coordinate with our cards. Each card is unique and your kids will love making them! You can find a link to the sticker packs in our store.
