Celebrate fifth grade graduation with a classroom party or open house.
Graduating from fifth grade is a large milestone for children because it marks the transition to middle school. Whether the party is a classroom event held at the end of the school year or an open house for friends and relatives after the graduation ceremony, these party ideas will help guests to honor the graduating fifth graders. Does this Spark an idea?
Affirmation Books
Fifth grade students can sometimes be a little scared about moving on to middle school and being at the bottom of the social ladder again. To boost their self-esteem, have graduation party guests make each graduate an affirmation book. Write the student's name clearly on the front of a small notebook and encourage everybody to write something nice in each graduate's notebook. Ideas include telling graduates about things they are good at or describing a time when the graduate did something helpful or was a good friend.
Photo Memory Board
Ask everybody coming to the graduation party to bring both a baby picture and a fifth grade picture. Put a strip of double-sided tape on the back of each photo and arrange all the baby photos on one poster and all the fifth grade photos on another. Write each guest's name next to his fifth grade photo and write a number next to each baby photo. Make a key of which baby photo goes with which fifth grader. Have guests write down their guesses of who each baby is and give a prize to the person who gets the most correct.
Circle Game
The circle game works well both at parties with mostly fifth graders in attendance and parties with older friends and relatives. Set up a circle of chairs with one fewer chair than people and have guests sit down, except one person who stands in the center. The person in the center says, "During fifth grade, I enjoyed" and completes the sentence with an activity. Anybody in the circle who also enjoyed that activity in fifth grade has to stand up and find a new empty chair to sit in, and the person in the center also runs to find a chair. Whoever is left without a chair stands in the center and starts the next round.
Penny Guessing Game
It is never too soon to start saving for college and fifth grade students are often already beginning to think about career aspirations. At the graduation party, display a large jar partially full of change and have graduates in attendance guess how much money is in the jar. Give the jar to the graduate whose guess is closest to the actual amount as a starter college fund that can continue to grow with loose change in future years.
Graduation Cap Treats
Although fifth grade students do not always get to wear a graduation cap to their ceremony, the graduation party can have edible graduation caps to celebrate the occasion. Turn a chocolate-covered peanut butter cup upside down to make the base of the graduation cap and use a dab of peanut butter to secure a chocolate-covered graham cracker on top as the mortarboard. Use licorice whips or strips of fruit snack as the tassels.
Tags: fifth grade, graduation party, grade students, baby photo, each baby, each graduate