Breaking the Ice
Suggestions for getting to know one another better and creating bonds of friendship:
- Bit of Banter Between Neighbours. As a small group or as teams for each table, take turns answering questions from the Ice Breaker category from the popular discussion game Bit of Banter. It’s amazing what you can discover! There is also a junior version for children 7 and older.
- Everyone prepares an “elevator pitch” to present themselves. This expression means a conversation that lasts... well the time it takes to go up the elevator! A great idea for those living in a condo building.
- Now Who’s That Beautiful Baby? Everyone brings a baby picture of themselves. You post them on a billboard and the one who makes the most matches wins!
A Musical Feast!
- Everyone brings a CD of their latest favourite music.
- Have any neighbours who play a little guitar? Any musically-gifted children in the neighbourhood? Invite them to come create an energetic atmosphere with a playful demonstration of their talents. Break out the spoons!
- Ask the teenagers in the neighbourhood to play music at your event or make a deal with them: play the great classics from you time and they "rock" your guests with the hits of today.
- Organize an iPod Battle! Two DJs dish out sound bites from their iPods and the “public” votes for the song they like the most!
- Karaoke, always a crowd pleaser, will spice up your event in no time.
- If you are having a bigger party, get everyone to chip in and hire an African or South American band to get everybody moving to some lively music!
Liven up your Festivities
Fun activities, whether you’ve known each other forever or if you’ve just met.
- Outdoor games, bringing the young and young-at-heart together. For example: have a soccer, volleyball or basketball tournament, play horseshoes, pétanque, croquet, hoola-hooping, bean bag or limbo, rent an inflatable play structure for the kids, let your imagination run wild...
- Water Balloon Dodge Ball. An entertaining variation of dodge ball. Fill up a few dozen balloons with water and start playing. Warm weather and a bathing suit would be preferable!
- Wet Volleyball. Played with teams of two, each equipped with a dish cloth that they hold between them and that they use to both launch water balloons at their opponents who must catch the projectiles with their own dish cloth.
- Group Art in the Street. Get chalk in every colour. Block off a space in the street and invite the neighbours to contribute to the group creation. Each person adds something to what was created by the neighbour who came before them. The end result will certainly surprise you and all your neighbours will be proud of their joint creation!
- Colourful Mural. Buy some crayons, pencil crayons or gouache along with a long strip of paper or fabric that you will stick to an outside wall. As a suggestion, ask the children to represent life in the neighbourhood. To all you budding artists out there, this is an opportunity to create a collective work of art. Then approach the local convenience store, community centre or municipality to hang your collective creation.
- Chalk Drawing Contest. Set up several spaces in the street and invite the children to let their imagination fly on the theme of neighbourliness. Then get the parents to vote on the best one.
- Board Games. On a long rectangular table, organize stations with board games laid out at each one. Games like Pictionary and Cranium encourage players to use various kinds of skills and talents. The Internet site Nanny In The Box offers downloadable games. And for the card sharks among you there is always games like War or Poker.
- Treasury Hunt. To entertain the kiddies while the parents enjoy a drink, hide candy, coconuts and small figurines around the neighbourhood. Ask some of the teenagers to prepare the clues, they make great organizers!
- Ideas for Creative Fingers. Make your own necklaces, do some handicrafts with the kids or create scrapbook pages with photos of your neighbours.
- Artisan Demonstration. Ask some of the older neighbours to give a workshop on knitting for example.
- Guess who... Everybody takes a piece of paper and writes down the habits and customs of the neighbourhood, e.g. the daily constitutional of the spaniel and its master or the person who puts out his/her Christmas lights first. You have to guess who it is! Why not create some amusing sketches or have a game of improv?
- I want to make a toast to... Pick out the name of one of your neighbours from a colourful top hat (or another interesting container) and make a personalized toast to this person during the course of the celebration.
- Yard Sale or Trades. Combine your celebration with a neighbourhood yard sale or make trades: you could trade toys, books, CDs or children's clothing.
- Put on your reporter’s hat. The challenge: get an unusual story from the neighbours in attendance to add to the celebration's scrapbook.
- Fire Beautiful Fire. If it is permitted in your municipality, close out the evening with some fireworks, a friendship fire or around an outside fireplace. The children will love roasting a few marshmallows!
Inspiring Traditions from around the World
- In Mexico, piñatas are a popular activity at fiestas. You can find all kinds of piñatas in party accessory stores. If you have the time (and the talent!) to make them out of paper-mâché, put things in there other than candy. For example, you could have small toys, hockey or baseball cards, etc.
- Holi hola, a Colourful Event! During the Holi celebration, which celebrates the coming of Spring (also known under the name of “celebration of colour”), people get covered in very colourful powders and get sprayed with water! If you cannot find the type of powder the Hindus use, get water colours in fuchsia, pink, royal blue, etc. A very colourful activity, fun for both kids and adults. Make sure to dress accordingly... and immortalize the event in photos! If you want to make it simpler, do face painting for the children.
- During Purim, Jews have a custom of asking their children to put on costumes. They are given treats, a bit like Halloween. And what if the little kids got dressed as their favourite heroes? You could also have a theme for your party so that everyone could participate. If you live in a multicultural neighbourhood, ask people to get dressed in traditional costumes!
Neighbours Together
What if your celebration became the starting point of constructive alliances?
- You could set up a bartering club, sharing your tips and skills, establishing a list of potential babysitters, creating a community garden, creating a blog or Facebook group for the neighbourhood, etc. To encourage this kind of trading, circulate a page and have those interested write down their e-mail address.
- If you want some inspiration, visit the Accorderie site, a network for bartering services (no money exchanging) where members make available to others their skills and know-how in the form of service offers. Basic principle: one hour of service rendered equals an hour of service received.
- Check out the initiative (Voisins solidaires [Neighbours Together]). Initiated by our friends in France as a continuation of Neighbours Day throughout the year. The purpose of the program is to promote little favours between neighbours and neighbourhood solidarity.
Resources
- You can find a lot of tips on organizing your Neighbours Day and other momentous occasions in Réinventez vos cérémonies, fêtes et rituels!,Chantal Dauray, Stanké, 2004, 356 p.
- 100 idées pour animer une fête de famille, Pierre Lecarne, Marabout, 2002, 277 p.
- 365 activités à faire après l’école, Cynthia MacGregor, Les Éditions de l’Homme, 2000, 400 p.
