Graduation is an important milestone that nearly everyone gets to experience in their lifetime. It’s the unofficial start to a new chapter in a young person’s life. There are endless ways to celebrate but most families generally choose an intimate celebration with close family or an outdoor BBQ party with everyone from extended family to school friends. If you’re looking for graduation BBQ party ideas, look no further! The following 9 graduation BBQ party ideas will make your graduation party one to remember.
Graduation BBQ Party Ideas #1: Party themes
Whether you want to go with a traditional graduation theme or something more unique, picking a theme is a great way to add some extra flair to your graduation party. Every school dance or graduation has a theme because it makes a celebration easier to plan if it’s based on something. It also gets everyone more excited about attending! For example, a fun Friends-themed graduation BBQ party is just one theme that is popular and easy to decorate.
Graduation BBQ Party Ideas #2: Invitations
Graduation parties are even more fun when everyone knows about them! Send out graduation party invitations to all of your friends and family. There are tons of great invitation ideas on Etsy or you can make DIY party invitations with your own personal touches.
Graduation BBQ Party Ideas #3: Decorations
Once you have your theme picked out and your invitations are sent, it’s time to start planning your decorations! Get creative and add some personal touches to make your graduation party stand out. Your local party planning store is the best place to get all of your party supplies. They’ll have nearly everything you need and you may find even more inspiration and ideas for planning your graduation party. Some ideas include yard sign banners, balloons, and hanging swirl decorations just to name a few.
4) Food
No BBQ graduation party is complete without food! You can go with classic bbq staples like burgers and hot dogs along with a wide variety of side dishes. If you’re planning to have a large number of people, you may want to add some veggie burgers, ground chicken burgers, or BBQ meatballs to appeal to people with dietary restrictions.
As for sides, coleslaw, potato salad, and a pasta salad are a must but this is one area you can get creative in. Maybe throw in some store-prepared veggie trays and corn on the cob.
Let’s not forget dessert! Pies, cakes, and cookies are all great graduation party staples to serve at a BBQ party. If you want to get a little more creative, consider making a graduation cap cake or cupcakes with graduation tassels. In fact, a cake or cupcakes is almost a must because people will expect the meal to end with cake, just like birthdays, weddings, and other celebrations.
5) Display photos
High school or college graduation parties are a great way to look back on all of your graduate’s accomplishments. Display photos of the graduate throughout their life or set up a DIY photo booth for guests to take graduation-themed photos. All you need is some graduation-themed props and a few fun backdrops. You can even DIY your own props with some construction paper and cardboard.
6) Gifts
Graduation is also a time to celebrate the future. Set up a graduation gift table where guests can drop off their gifts as they arrive and you won’t have to worry about keeping track of them. Having a guest book is another great idea as it provides a great keepsake for the graduate.
7) Games
An outdoor graduation party wouldn’t be complete without games! Keep guests entertained with graduation-themed games or classic party games like cornhole, frisbee, croquet, ring toss, or a giant Jenga game. To get lots of people involved, consider cooperative games like 4-person leg races or a tug of war between parents and students!
8) Music
Create a graduation party playlist full of upbeat songs to get everyone in the celebratory mood. There are BBQ playlists on every music streaming service; therefore, it’s just a matter of determining the musical tastes of your graduate and letting the good tunes roll.
9) Backup plan for bad weather
Every outdoor party is at the mercy of the weather. A sunny day is perfect, a cloudy day isn’t a dealbreaker but a full-on rainstorm could dampen plans for an outdoor graduation BBQ party. One way to keep the party going is to make plans to rent outdoor event tents if the weather forecast doesn’t look promising.
Graduation parties are meant to be a time to relax and celebrate so make sure to enjoy yourself and have fun! These graduation BBQ party ideas will help you do just that.
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