Dora Party Ideas

Come on, vamanos! This party is sure to be a big hit with children ages 2-5. We’ve gathered everything you need to decorate, and celebrate, in true Dora style! Dora Party Ideas!

FIESTA PHOTO PROP


DORA&FRIENDS 9" PLATE(8)	DORA&FRIENDS 7" PLATE(8)	DORA&FRIENDS NAPKIN(16)	DORA&FRIENDS 9OZ. CUP(8)

DORA TABLE COVER	DORA CENTERPIECE	DORA INVITE COMBO(16)	DORA LOOT BAG(8)

DORA BLOW OUTS(8)	DORA BUBBLES(4)	DORA CONE HATS(8)	DORA THE EXPLORER TATTOOS

DORA THE EXPLORER BALLOON	BOOTS BALLOON	DORA GLITTER STICKERS 50	DORA BDAY ADD-ONS

Dora Party Ideas

Party Slogan:

After selecting a theme for your party, choose a slogan to use in your invitations, and to use to tie in decorations and personalized favors. Find the perfect slogan for your party by trying one of the following, or by thinking of one that fits your guest of honor’s personality:

”Feliz Cumpleanos Jessie!”
“Join us for a birthday Fiesta with Dora and Danica!”
“She Did It! Maria turned 4!”

Invitations:

Choose DORA INVITE COMBO(16) to let your guests know that they are an important part of this birthday celebration and to send Thank You Notes after the party.

Address each envelope to “Senorita Atkins (each child’s last name)”

Consider attaching a Dora™ style map of your town with Curling Ribbon. On the map say, “I’m the Map…and I’m here to show the way to a muy bueno adventure to celebrate Selma’s birthday!

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Outdoor decorations:

Attach a bouquet of helium filled Assorted 12" Balloons, topped off with a DORA THE EXPLORER BALLOON to a light post or mailbox so there will be no mistaking where the fun will be that day!

Greet your guests by hanging a personalized birthday banner from your front door or entrance. A fabulous way to add spunk right from the get-go!

Indoor Decorations:

Dora the Explorer is a 7-year old Latino girl and through her world, children are exposed to the Spanish language, Latin music, and other parts of Latin culture. Add a brilliant splash of color by adding some festive decorations with a southwest flair.

Color Scheme:
When using a color scheme use one or two main colors and build around these. If you choose to use only one color for your decorating, try to add little touches of another color or a lighter or darker shade of the same color to create a more pleasing effect. Adding little splashes of white, black, gold or silver will not detract from your main color choice, and the effect will be considerably more dramatic!

Setting the Scene

Enter Dora’s computer animated world through a “Fiesta Forest.” Hang Green Vines and Balloons overhead in the area where the children will enter the party. Add Water Gossamer in front of the door, or in a hallway to create ”Crocodile Lake”…the first obstacle to cross!

Transform a room into a large fiesta scene by using an inexpensive FIESTA DESERT FLOWERS 40'X 4' scene setter. It will fill an entire wall, and better yet, provide guests with the most realistic setting imaginable. This scene makes an excellent photo background too. Add a FIESTA DESERT BORDER 40'X 18" roll and INFLATABLE CACTUS 68"T.

Bows

Tie huge bows across the top of each chair back. The bows can be cut to any length, and even look great with tails trailing on the floor. Make bows to hang anywhere and everywhere…chairs, doorways, tree trunks, stair rails, deck posts, gift packages, or table-ends. Gossamer is an inexpensive alternative for making bows, rather than using tulle or ribbon.

Balloons

Balloons can economically transform any room, backyard or park into a festive space in a matter of minutes by using some of the following ideas:

Use a Helium Tank to fill Assorted 12" Balloons. Tie Green Curling Ribbon or Orange Curling Ribbon to balloons, and group them together. (Odd numbers look best: 3, 5, or 7) Place groupings of balloons around the party room.

Tie a bunch of helium filled Assorted 12" Balloons to the birthday child’s chair, or tie one to the back of each chair.

If you choose not to use helium, tie Assorted 12" Balloons to varying lengths of curling ribbon, and hang balloons from the ceiling, or from a light fixture over the party table.

Balloon arches are ideal for photo backdrops, entryways, and to hi-light different areas around your party room and are easy to make.

A column of balloons will work much the same way that arches do, and can be used for entryways, photo backdrop, or for a terrific splash of color when placed at intervals around a party room.

Balloon swags make the perfect accessory. They can be hung across the ceiling of a tent, or a room with a high ceiling like banquet halls or a gymnasium.

We offer some instructions on how to make:

Streamers

Streamers offer an economical way to splash lots of color around the site of the party. Create a fun and colorful effect by draping streamers from the center of the ceiling to the walls on each side of the room, or between trees if the party is being held outdoors. The streamers can be twisted after they are anchored to a ceiling wall or table for a more dimensional look. Two different colored streamers can be placed back to back and twisted for a unique look. They also look terrific hanging from doorframes or cascading vertically down walls.

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Table Decorations:

Setting a table with the party ware, including the tablecloth, cups, plates, napkins, and cutlery is the fastest way to create a focal point in a room.

Add one or a few of the following touches to personalize your table:

Create a centerpiece using a bunch of helium filled Assorted 12" Balloons, topped off with a DORA THE EXPLORER BALLOON tied with Green Curling Ribbon or Orange Curling Ribbon. Attach balloons to a Balloon Weights

Turn a Sombreros upside down, and anchor the balloons to the inside of the hat. This hat also makes a terrific serving dish for dry snacks such as chips, pretzels or candy.

Make a festive salad with this Sombrero Salad Recipe. If you are having a Dora's Island Adventure party make a Watermelon Whale Centerpiece.

Display your birthday cake in the center of the table…the kids will love the close up view!

Napkins can be laid out on a buffet table, or can be displayed at each place setting. Place napkins in the center of each place setting at an angle, or unfold them and place them in glasses for a tall dramatic look.

The napkins can also be tied (and bundled with plastic cutlery) with a multitude of items to match your theme. Try Curling Ribbon, Gossamer Streamers, ric-rac or ribbon.

Bring color to the table via napkins. Give each person two napkins slipped into one napkin ring. Use two different colors, two coordinating patterns or one patterned and one solid-colored napkin. A colorful setting can be achieved with little effort this way

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Party Favors

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Party Activities & Games

A Dora party just wouldn’t be complete without some fun games and activities played in an animated world. Treat the birthday girl to a Dora the Explorer costume to wear at the party, so she’ll be a standout.

Let those who arrive early play with DORA BUBBLES(4) while they wait for the other guests to arrive.

Recruit a sibling or neighbor to play the role of Swiper the Fox. As each party guest arrives with a gift, have Swiper swipe the gift, fill his black sack (a black trash bag will work), and escape. A black mask will disguise a big brother enough to have the kids yelling, “Swiper no swiping!”

A wonderful BULL PINATA. We’ve yet to find a child who doesn’t want to grab some goodies from one at a party! Ask the children to join in as you count in Spanish – uno, dos, tres tries for everyone!

Play this game using the same concept as the classic game of musical chairs…one less hat than there are children for each round. Place a pile of CHILD SIZE SOMBREROS on a table that the kids must walk around while the music is playing. When the music is turned off, the kids must scramble to put on a hat. The child without a hat must leave the game, and the game continues with one less hat until there is one child remaining – the winner.

Play “Dora, Boots, Swiper”, which is a simple variation on the timeless “Duck, Duck, Goose” game.

Instead of “Simon Says”, play “Dora Dice” (this is the Spanish word for “says”, and it is pronounced as dee-say.)

If you have extra time because the children have moved quickly through your planned activities, play Leap Frog, Freeze Tag or Freeze Dancing.

For more Games, Activities and Crafts for a Dora the Explorer Party see the Dora the Explorer links.

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Party Food & Cake Ideas

All the little party guests will be encouraging each other to “Come on, vamonos!” when you say it’s time for Backpack cake and ice cream!

Sing happy birthday in Spanish! The tune is the same, and here are the words:
Feliz cumpleanos a ti, Feliz cumpleanos a ti, Feliz cumpleanos a ti, Feliz cumpleanos a ti! (Cha cha cha’s are optional.)

What you’ll need:

1 cake mix
1-16 oz. container of ready-made frosting
One board for displaying the cake
One 9 X13” cake pan
Violet and red gel or paste food coloring
Two Hostess Snowballs™
One tube of Black writing gel
Purple or lavender colored Airheads candy to form backpack handles

Bake cake according to the directions on the box. After the cake has cooled, place it on the cake board, and cut according to the diagram below. Frost the entire cake with the violet tinted frosting. Add the Snowballs as the eyeballs, using black writing gel to make the pupils. Using red tinted frosting, pipe an outline for the mouth, and then fill in the outline. The Airheads candy strips are soft and pliable, and can be shaped to create straps for the backpack.

If you are serving more people than can be accommodated by one boxed mix, we recommend that you either bake extra cupcakes, or an extra rectangular cake. All can just be frosted simply, and cut and served behind the scenes.

See Dora the Explorer links for Dora's Pirate Treasure Cupcakes

Food:

Set up a little Fiesta that will expose the children to another wonderful taste of Latin culture. Serve mini tacos, empanadas, simple cheese quesadillas, salsa and chips, and Estrella Pequeno (little star sugar cookies). A Sombrero makes a wonderful “basket” for chips.

As the excitement is so high at children’s birthday parties, most young children will eat very little, and the waste can be disheartening. Schedule your party during a time when parents will not expect that their children will eat a meal…and serve only cake, ice cream, and a few other munchies.

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Dora the Explorer Links:

"Download or Play Games Online with Dora the Explorer. Print Dora's Activity Packs and Coloring Books. Send someone a Dora the Explorer E-Card and learn all about the TV show."
www.nickjr.com/shows/dora/index.jhtml

Dora's Pirate Party
http://www.nickjr.com/shows/dora/tv-specials/dora-pirate/index.jhtml

Dora's Pirate Treasure Cupcakes
http://www.nickjr.com/shows/dora/tv-specials/dora-pirate/party/dora_pirate_cupcakes.jhtml

Dora's Pirate Goody Bag Note
http://www.nickjr.com/shows/dora/tv-specials/dora-pirate/party/dora_pirate_goody_bag.jhtml

Dora Pirate Song Sheets
http://www.nickjr.com/shows/dora/tv-specials/dora-pirate/printables/dora_pirate_songs.jhtml

Dora's Pirate Adventure Coloring Book
http://www.nickjr.com/shows/dora/tv-specials/dora-pirate/printables/dora_pirate_adventure_coloring.jhtml

Dora's No-Sew Pirate Pig Craft
http://www.nickjr.com/shows/dora/tv-specials/dora-pirate/craft/dora-mermaid-pirate-pig-craft.jhtml

Dora's Pirate Hat
http://www.nickjr.com/shows/dora/tv-specials/dora-pirate/craft/dora_pirate_hat.jhtml

Dora Saves the Mermaids
http://www.nickjr.com/shows/dora/tv-specials/dora-saves-the-mermaid/index.jhtml

Dora the Explorer - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dora_the_Explorer

DLTK's Dora the Explorer Section
DLTK's Crafts for Kids Dora the Explorer crafts, coloring, printables and other activities for toddler, preschool and kindergarten children.
http://www.dltk-kids.com/crafts/cartoons/dora.htm

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Theme Parties N More is a wedding & event planning company located in Cypress, TX. We are also a wedding & event florist. Our party & wedding planners have put this website together to provide our visitors with ideas for planning their events, this includes links to products that can help you to make your event extra special. In accordance with the FTC Guidelines we are disclosing that some of the vendors that we link you to, pay us a commission when you purchase products from them, but some of the vendors do not provide us with any compensation.