Games for a Dress-Up Birthday Tea Party for 10-Year-Old Girls

A dress-up birthday tea party is the perfect occasion to celebrate all things girly. Ten-year-olds are at an age where they still enjoy silliness but are able to appreciate more challenging games and activities. The tea party theme lends itself to games that combine the enjoyment of playing grown-up with the excitement of acting like a kid.

Place treasure hunt items around the room in plain sight and give guests a list of items to locate. Most should be tea party-themed, but also include items that are more difficult to spot, such as a piece of clear tape stuck to a window or TV screen, a rubber band placed on the leg of a chair, a coin in the bottom of a clear vase, a dollar bill wrapped around the spine of a book, or a thread laid along a window ledge. Hide items in unexpected places, such as a teaspoon mixed in with a cup of pencils or a tea bag taped into a picture frame. When a player spies the item, she must make a note of the location without drawing the other girls' attention to it. This treasure hunt combines the thrill of the chase with the challenge of keeping a secret and is perfect for 10-year-olds.

Divide the girls into two teams. For each team, place a feather boa, beaded necklaces, bracelets and a pair of not-very-high heels on the opposite side of the room. Give the first player on each team a book. Each girl places the book on her head and walks to the pile of clothing without dislodging the book. She puts the clothing on, replaces the book on her head, walks back to her team, removes the clothing and passes the book to the second player. This girl dresses in the clothes, puts the book on her head and walks across the room, where she removes the clothing, replaces the book on her head and returns to her team. The first team to finish is the winner.

Place tea bags in a teapot so that there is one tea bag for each girl. The girls take turns drawing a tea bag from the pot. Each tea bag has written instructions for an activity the girl must carry out, such as singing "I'm a Little Teapot," pouring and drinking a cup of tea or stacking a pile of sugar cubes. Each girl may decide whether to have everyone join her in the activity or to perform solo. Provide a dress-up box so that guests may be required to add a feather boa, earrings or novelty glasses to their attire.

Divide the girls into two teams. One girl on each team must guess the answer as her fellow team members act out well-known tea-related words such as 'T-rex,' 't-ball,' 'tee times,' 't-bones' and 'TV.' Team members are not allowed to speak -- or to roar! The team to first guess the word wins the round. Two new players are selected to guess and each team is given another clue. Begin the game with a familiar and easy-to-guess clue such as T-rex or t-ball to get the guests on the right track.