15 Fun Sleepover Activities For Kids To Keep Them Happy (But Calm)

A good sleepover is a curve: busy early, calm late. Most go wrong because the loud games are still running at ten o'clock.

Here are fifteen activities in the order they should actually happen, with the wind-down that does the heavy lifting.

Early evening: burn it off

• A treasure hunt round the house with written clues.
• Musical statues, played properly, with one adult on the pause button.
• A pizza each to build, which doubles as tea and an activity.
• A talent show, with an adult as the reluctant judge.
• Sock wrestling or the floor-is-lava course, if your downstairs can take it.

Mid evening: low mess, seated

• A quiz with teams and a silly prize.
• Decorating biscuits with icing pens rather than bowls of icing.
• Making friendship bracelets or beaded keyrings.
• Nail painting or temporary tattoos, on a towel.
• Would you rather, played in a circle with a torch.

Late: the wind-down that gets them to sleep

• A group joke-telling session in sleeping bags: one joke each, round the circle, from the same book. It's loud for ten minutes and then, reliably, it goes quiet.
• A film with the lights off, started no later than nine.
• Torch shadow puppets on the ceiling.
• A story read aloud by an adult - it works far later into childhood than people expect.
• Lights out with an audiobook playing quietly, which beats telling them to be quiet six times.

Practical bits parents forget

• Ask about allergies and bedtime routines when you invite, not on the night.
• Agree a lights-out time out loud, early, so it isn't a surprise.
• Everyone brushes teeth before the film, not after.
• A nightlight or landing light on, and show them where the loo is.
• Have one spare toothbrush and a spare pair of pyjamas. Someone will need both.
• Breakfast is easier than you think: pancakes, and let them help.

Shop kids' birthday cards

How to write it so it lands

• Write the running order on the fridge. Children like knowing what's next.
• Loud things first, always. You can't reverse the curve.
• Text the other parents your phone number and lights-out plan before the night.

Where to shop next

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Frequently asked questions

What activities are good for a kids' sleepover?

Start loud with a treasure hunt, musical statues and build-your-own pizza, move to quizzes, biscuit decorating and bracelets, then wind down with joke telling, a film and a story.

How do you calm kids down at a sleepover?

Change the activity rather than raising your voice. A round of jokes in sleeping bags, then a story or an audiobook with the lights off, settles a group far better than asking them to be quiet.

What time should a kids' sleepover lights out be?

Nine for under-eights, ten for older children, agreed out loud at the start of the evening. Expect the actual sleeping to happen thirty minutes later.

How many children should you invite to a sleepover?

Three or four including your own. Above that it becomes a party, and parties don't sleep.

Do you sell books or toys?

No. We design and print cards, enamel pin badges, prints and party decorations, all posted from the UK. Any book or toy mentioned here is an outside recommendation, not something we stock.