Grad Party Ideas That Are Easy To Recreate | Thoughtfully Simple (2024)

We recently asked our Facebook Fans to share any party planning questions they may have with us. Kim, shared that she was having a combined 30th birthday party and grad school graduation party and needed help with party ideas. We jumped at the chance to brainstorm with her!

Kim is a Kindergarten teacher, so what better theme for a grad party than an elementary one?

Centerpiece Ideas For A Grad Party

Remember this school themed wedding we featured? I love their use of books as centerpieces. You can stack up an eclectic group of books and place them anywhere you would like some decoration. For a more streamlined look, cover the books using solid red paper which will really make them pop. Use the books alone or top them with flowers or even a framed black and white photo of the guest of honor. For a buffet or dessert table, use the stacks of books as cake stands and pedestals to give your table height.

I recently used books as table decor in this book themed baby shower theme I hosted and it looked great! You can also use pages as a table runner like I did.

I also like the "chalkboard" vibe this table gives off. Perfect for a grad party!

Here, black paper was used as table runners. Use chalk to draw placemats if it is a seated meal. For a buffet table, use chalk to write the names of the dishes that are set out.

Related: How to set up a buffet table

You can also just use this paper on tables throughout your space leaving chalk for others to have fun with and doodle you graduation (or birthday) wishes.

I love this mini candy apple buffet for a dessert table! Apples for a grad party for a teacher is perfectly on theme!

Serving an easy co*cktail recipe is a good grad party idea. You want to pick something that feels special but isn't too hard to make. I think a Washington Apple Martini might just be the perfect choice.

I can never get enough of the chalkboard photo booth idea. Start of by drawing a big message on the chalkboard for the guest of honor and then let guest sign it and leave messages as well.

Let guests leave you graduation and birthday wishes in a yearbook styled guest book. This will be loads of fun to look back on. If you don't wish to do the photo booth, ask guests to bring their favorite picture of you two together and let them add them to the book when they arrive.

I've done this for a school themed high school graduation party and it worked great!

More Grad Party Ideas

• I like the red color scheme that flows throughout this party but if you prefer, swap out the red for green. Use green apples for the candy apple buffet and make a green apple martini.
• For invitations, a mock report card would be really cool or use library cards like I did for our book themed baby shower.
• If you're hosting your grad party outdoors at a park or winery, you can prepare cute "lunch box" meals that guests can grab and enjoy.
• Make cute "School Snacks" as a party favor

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