The end of the school year is nearly here, which means it’s time to start planning that special graduation party. Graduation parties are a great way to show how proud you are of your student’s academic accomplishments, as well as preparing them for their next step in life. Here are a few easy steps to giving your student the best graduation party possible.
As with any party, the first three steps are budget, date, and guest list. Your budget will let you know how much money you have to spend on food, rental equipment, decorations, and any other miscellaneous expenses. It will also help you determine the size of your guest list.
Keep your student in mind when planning the guest list. Will he or she be more comfortable in a small, intimate gathering? Or does he or she welcome the attention of a large crowd? Identify the most important people on the list (including family and friends) and discuss the proposed date of the party with them to make sure that they can be in attendance.
Most often, the graduation party is scheduled for immediately before or after the graduation ceremony itself. However, you may find that it works better with your schedule to have the party the evening before or a few days after the graduation itself. Once you have set a date and finalized the guest list, prepare your invitations so that they are ready to be sent out 8 weeks in advanced.
At this point you are ready to plan the theme of the party. With graduation parties, the most popular theme and color scheme is the school colors of the graduates. Other popular choices include activities that the graduate was involved in (i.e. sports, music, theater), the colors of the future university, or the field the graduate plans on pursuing. You can also choose a “tips for the future” theme to help the graduate in his or her next steps.
