Ice Breakers

You're inviting your boy friend, Jenny and her brother, Brenna and her boy friend, Sean and his friend, his friend and his girl friend. Do you all feel comfortable with each other? Starting off your party with an ice breaker is a great way to ensure guest interaction throughout the night.

Children are less likely to need ice breakers at parties because they can jump right in and have fun without feeling like they are being judged. On the other hand, adults and older kids don't want to embarrass themselves on a first impression. So, forget those rediculously embarrassing "get to know each other" games they make you play on the first day of school (you know, sitting on random peoples' laps and having to go around the circle introducing everyone who introduced themselves before you, things like that) These games and activities will let your guests get comfortable with each other without looking like idiots.

Packaged Games:
Any packaged game in general is good for breaking the ice. They require minimal thought and everyone's in the same boat. My personal reccomendations are -

• Party Jenga - each block has a simple question that all guests will have fun answering.
• Any trivia game - people love asking each other triva questions! Even if you just leave some cards around, people will pick them up and read them to each other on habit.
• Would You Rather? - I have this game in book form and it never gets old! Once again, it's filled with questions

Activities:
If you want to do ice breaker activities, make sure that no one is the center of attention if they don't want to be.

• Break your party into teams of three or more (you don't want an akward duo) and give them a teamwork assignment (I just read this about building a hat out of an assortment of balloons, but you can also do a dress out of trashbags and tape "runway show style", or a cooking contest if time and space allows, a scavenger hunt, etc, etc.)
• Mad Libs- Always fun! Make your own, find them online, or buy a book. No matter which way you do it, guests will have fun interacting in such a simple way.

I'll admit there are people out there who love those embarrassing activites I mentioned above, but for the populace who absolutely HATE things like that, show them some compassion.
-Don't make them mingle with guests, collecting names and information. If you want return guests to your parties, make sure they're comfortable and not forced to do anything!
-Don't make your guests do stupid things (unless they're willing) like pass a lifesaver around a circle using only your mouth and toothpics! (yes, that will totally break the ice, and it's a fun game for people who really know each other, but don't do it if you know someone won't be comfortable with it)