Birthdays
Dear Principal,
My son is turning five next month and wants a big birthday party. I don't want to invite the entire class but also don't want some children to feel left out. How could the situation be handled?
Mrs. Sylvester
Dear Mrs. Sylvester,
Birthdays are a very special time for children and they will often talk
about their birthday party for weeks ahead of time. Given the size of
most classes and the cost of many activities, it is natural the not
everyone in the class will be invited to every birthday.
You could discuss with your child possible activities as well as the possible guest list. Some activities will lend themselves to smaller or larger groups of children.
Children will sometimes use birthday invitations as leverage. (Your can come to my party if you give me that ball.) Once the guest list has been established children need to know how to deal with those not invited.
Invitations should be given to the teacher to hand out at the end of the day, preferably on a Friday. In this way the excitement of receiving an invitation is less likely to be displayed in front of other children.
If your son is asked directly why someone wasn't invited he could say that he would have like to invite more people but his parents would not allow it. In this manner feelings are not hurt and friendship could be preserved.
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