Musical Activities

• Children can play a Sesame Street game of hot potato using a Sesame Street stuffed animal. Play music---the Sesame Street theme song if you have it---while children pass the stuffed animal around the circle from one person to another. They have to pass quickly because whoever is holding the stuffed animal when the music ends is out. The last person remaining wins a prize. Hand out small treat bags to all the children so they don't feel left out.
  
  BirthdayInABox.com suggests having a Sesame Street parade. Play music, and give children noise makers. Noise makers are cheap and available at dollar stores. Let the kids keep them when they leave. If you have actual instruments, such as children's drums or rattles, you can use those as well.
  
  You can even turn musical chairs into a Sesame Street activity. If you have enough Sesame Street stuffed animals or toys, place one in a chair at the end of each round instead of removing the chair. Remind the children that they can't sit on the characters or they're out.
  
  

Food Games

• Fill a clear jar with chocolate chip cookies, the kind Cookie Monster eats, and have children guess how many cookies are in the jar. Whoever gets it right wins the cookies, or you can give them a different prize and share the cookies with everyone. Children can also decorate cupcakes instead of buying a birthday cake. Challenge them to write a letter on each cupcake to spell out "Happy Birthday," or if that challenge is too hard, play a game where each child draws a letter on their cupcake and the other children try to think of a word that starts with that letter.
  
  

Classic Games

• Pin the tail on the donkey is a classic party game that works for any birthday theme. Choose the birthday girl's favorite Sesame Street character, and print out a large picture of that character, then cut out an item to pin on the character. For example, pin the beak on Big Bird or, as Kids-Birthday-Party-Guide.com suggests, pin the cookie on cookie monster.
  
  Kids-Birthday-Party-Guide.com also suggests a fun game of bean-bag toss with Oscar the Grouch. Use a trash can with a picture of Oscar taped to the front, and toss bean bags inside. The child who gets the most in wins. BirthdayInABox.com suggests a different variation of this game. Instead of using bean bags, wait until the birthday boy has unwrapped all of his presents, then have children crumple the wrapping paper into balls and toss it inside the trash can. It's an exciting game that saves you the work of cleaning up later on.