The force was with us all on May 4th 2016 as I entertained over 60 little Star Wars fans with a Star Wars Party!

This was the first big program I’ve put on since starting my new job as Children’s and Teen Librarian at a library in the Niagara region and I am so encouraged by the response. At my former job I put on a similar Star Wars event for teens. I was able to take my original plan and build on it using new resources at my new library!

Jedi Training Photo Booth

I used our new die cutter machine and the Star Jedi font to create a “Jedi Training” banner with Jedi symbols, and hung black streamers to create some background texture. Kids could wear masks (which I got from here) and pose with their newly made light sabers, or some of our lightsaber props.

My artist-fiancé-Star-Wars-enthusiast-Danny painted a BB8 portrait for this party, so kids could stick their head through and become their favourite little droid.

I was tickled by how many kids put the masks on and then stood carefully with their arms at their sides for the photos.

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Star Wars Trivia

I was able to build upon my trivia presentation from December – I added a few new questions from The Force Awakens. I was DELIGHTED that even though there were questions from all 7 Star Wars movies, some kids knew the answers to almost every question!

Download the PowerPoint Here

1st place prize was a 3D Printed Darth Vader action figure (on thingiverse here). 2nd place prize was a Storm Trooper kite (from the dollar store, but the kid who won it was uber excited). 3rd place prize was a large BB8 sticker that we made with our new vinyl cutter. After the “awards ceremony” I let everyone grab a participation prize from the box – smaller star wars character stickers from our vinyl cutter, Jedi Academy bookmarks, and 3D printed rebel symbols.

Saber Duel Station

Same as last time, I taped off a circle on the ground and put up a Saber Duels sign. I cut a pool noodle in half and decorated the “hilts” with duct tape and electrical tape. A volunteer led the station, giving each Jedi a balloon and explaining the rules:

1. They had to stay inside the circle
2. They had to keep their balloon up in the air
3. They were only allowed to touch the balloon with their saber

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Button Making Station

Predictably the most popular station at the party. I premade and printed a bunch of Star Wars themed circle images. Kids cut out the circles (or could draw their own) and a volunteer helped them press their buttons. This before and after shot says it all:

Saber Balloon Craft Station

Before the party started, we blew up a bunch of string balloons using dollar store balloon pumps. I put out 2 kinds of duct tape – one normal grey and one shiny silver – and 2 rolls of black electrical tape. I put up a sign showing images of all the main characters’ saber hilts, in case anyone wanted to try to replicate one. 20 minutes into the party they had cleared us out! I had 40 balloons total, but next time many more would be needed!

Promotion

To promote the party, I created half page flyers with information about the party, and pinned a Star Wars button to each one. Staff was amazing at handing them out and talking up the party to families.

I also created a stop motion animation video using a 3D Printed Darth Vader action figure that received a lot of attention on social media:

We had 3 local news outlets cover the story – and one of them came just because he saw the stop motion animation video!

All in all it was such a great event. I feel lucky to have some very supportive staff members who helped me pull this off / dressed up like Star Wars characters.

What are your favourite Star Wars Day events?