What food works at a science, STEM or slime party?

Start with food guests already eat, then add the theme

At a science, STEM or slime party, most of the fun happens at the activity table. The food doesn't need to be part of the experiment. It works best when children recognize it, can pick it up easily and can eat it somewhere away from glue, activators and experiment supplies.

First decide whether you're serving a meal or snacks. If the party overlaps lunch or dinner, put filling food first, such as quartered sandwiches or wraps, before any treats. Between meals, a smaller savory option, some fruit and one treat may be enough. Tell families which one you're providing so they can plan, and count any adults and siblings who will eat too.

Then choose a few ideas from the theme menus below. You don't need to make every idea. Pick foods your guests can eat and that you can prepare and clear away without trouble.

Easy themed snacks for science, STEM and slime parties

Themed snacks are usually ordinary food with a new name or a simple serving idea. Round crackers and cheese can become petri dish snacks. Fruit can go in molecule cups. Decorated cookies can become atoms. For a slime party, cream cheese wraps cut into spirals become monster slime wraps, and green rice cereal bars become slime slabs.

For a STEM party you can add a small task to the food: sort fruit by color, compare pretzel towers or decorate a cookie with a pattern. Keep these food tasks at the food table, with food-only utensils, and separate from craft mixing.

If you choose the slime menu, the ideas below are suggestions for putting food together, not tested recipes. Follow the preparation and storage directions for the products or recipes you use.

Some foods on these menus need extra thought if young children are coming. The CDC's list of potential choking hazards for young children includes cookies, pretzels, marshmallows, uncut grapes, gummy or chewy candies and hard pieces of raw fruit or vegetables. Cereal bars aren't named on that list as a dish, but if you make them with marshmallows, think about whether they suit your youngest guests. The CDC advises preparing food in a way that suits each child's development and watching children while they eat. Watching doesn't make a food suitable for every child, though, so for young guests you may decide to leave some of these foods off the menu, or agree alternatives with their families. Skewers add sticks to the table, so decide whether they suit your guests at all rather than assuming they do.

• Monster slime wraps: spread cream cheese on tortillas, roll them up and cut them into spirals. For a green filling, use food coloring intended for food and follow its directions. Plain cream cheese with a green label works too. Arrange the spirals on a tray so guests can take a serving without unrolling a whole wrap, and put any agreed alternative fillings or tortillas on their own labelled tray.
• Green grape and honeydew cups: portion the fruit into cups and add forks or spoons so children can take a cup to their seat. Confirm suitable fruit and preparation with families, especially for younger guests, and label the cups by their real contents.
• Slime slabs: cut green rice cereal bars into small rectangles. Use a recipe you've chosen, or buy ready-made bars to skip cooking. Homemade marshmallow cereal bars may involve heating ingredients, so allow time for the steps in your recipe. Set pieces on liners so they're easier to pick up.
• Pudding slime jars: spoon green-tinted pudding into small cups, or use ready-made pudding and add green decorations around the cups. Set out spoons and a small selection of sprinkles at the food table, not near craft mixing.
• Worms and dirt cups: top chocolate pudding cups with gummy worms. Assemble them ahead only if the product directions allow it; otherwise add the worms near serving time. Check the gummies' ingredient information, including gelatin if that matters to your guests. If your agreed menu includes some cups without gummies, label both versions.
• Slime punch: choose a sherbet punch recipe if you want a green drink. Check its ingredients and finished quantity before buying, keep the ingredients listed beside the pitcher, have an adult pour and keep water beside it.

How to make the food match the theme

You can get a strong theme from the way you serve food. Numbered trays, clear cups, green labels and matching cups and napkins all make familiar food look like part of a lab or a slime party. A single themed treat, such as atom cookies or pudding slime jars, can carry the idea without themed versions of everything.

Write the real food name on every label. For example, a card might read: Monster slime wraps — tortilla spirals with cream cheese. Add ingredient information from the exact products you bought, including any food coloring, sprinkles or gummies, and keep the packaging nearby so families and helpers can check what's in each dish.

How to keep slime and experiment supplies away from the food

Set up the food in another room, or in a clearly separate area away from the slime or experiment station. Keep glue, activators, craft containers and tools out of the food preparation and serving areas.

The food area is easier to keep clean when the slime table is planned too. Decide where glue, activators, containers and tools will stay during the activity so nothing drifts toward the snacks. Our guide to running a slime-making party covers the activity side. Keep its craft supplies at that table and never in food service.

Before eating, ask children to put slime and supplies away and wash their hands. Keep food cups, spoons and serving utensils at the food table, so craft spoons and cups don't move between the two areas. Put plates and napkins at the start of the serving area, utensils beside the foods that need them and bins near where people eat.

Walk the route yourself before the party: from the activity table to handwashing to the food. If the route is unclear, children are more likely to carry slime or supplies to the table.

Checking allergies and dietary needs with families

Ask each family what their child can eat before you choose recipes or brands. Share the planned menu and confirm the specific ingredients, products and serving arrangements they want, including whether food and utensils should be kept separate.

Gluten-free crackers or tortillas, dairy-free pudding or dairy-free frosting may be options to discuss. Swapping one ingredient doesn't show that the whole dish suits a child: check everything, including spreads, cereal, marshmallows, sprinkles, coloring and gummies. A themed label, a nut-free menu or a separate tray alone doesn't show that food meets a particular guest's needs.

Keep the original ingredient information available, follow the arrangements you agreed and check with the family before changing a confirmed product. Give whoever is serving food the same notes you have.

Worked example: a slime party menu for 12 people

This is an illustrative example, not a prediction of what children will eat. Say the party falls between meals and 12 people will eat: 10 children including the birthday child, one sibling and one staying adult. The menu is monster slime wraps (tortilla spirals with cream cheese), green grape and honeydew cups, cereal bars and water, with optional slime punch. If the party covers lunch or dinner, you would plan bigger main portions or add a more filling main food.

Decide what one serving is before you shop. Here, one main serving is one filled tortilla cut into spirals, so 12 people means 12 filled tortillas. Six spirals from one tortilla are still one tortilla's worth of food. Six cups of prepared fruit divided between 12 people makes twelve half-cup portions. Fifteen individual treats gives three extras. For the punch, twelve 6-fluid-ounce pours need 72 fluid ounces, or 9 US cups. Allowing one refill each doubles that to 144 fluid ounces, or 18 US cups. That is a batch calculation, not a hydration recommendation. Keep water available too.

To work out your own numbers, multiply the people having each food by your chosen portion, add any extras you want and round up to whole packages. Check recipe yields and tortilla size, since a small and a large tortilla aren't the same serving. Only add people who aren't already in your count.

When to prepare and serve the food

About three days before, confirm who will eat, check food arrangements with families and shop. The night before, write labels and set out trays, cups and serving tools. Make cereal bars or pudding portions ahead only when the recipe or product directions allow it, and follow their storage instructions. On party morning, prepare the fruit and wraps as your ingredients allow, and set up the separate food area, bins and handwashing supplies. Mix punch at the time your recipe says.

Wraps with cream cheese, cut fruit and pudding are perishable. FDA guidance for buffets says to keep cold food at 40°F or below and to discard perishables left at room temperature for more than 2 hours, or more than 1 hour when it's above 90°F. Count all the time a dish spends out of the refrigerator, including setup and any earlier time on the table. Keep refills in the refrigerator and bring out fresh trays rather than adding food to a dish that has already been out. Bought cereal bars that are shelf-stable don't need the same handling, but follow their package directions.

Example eating break (illustrative, 30 minutes in total): 0:00–0:05, put slime and supplies away and wash hands. 0:05–0:25, bring out the wraps and fruit cups from the refrigerator, hand out the treats, pour drinks and let guests eat. 0:25–0:30, collect cups and plates and get ready for the next activity. Put leftover wraps, fruit and pudding back in the refrigerator well within the 2-hour limit (1 hour if it's above 90°F), counting setup time. If cake comes later, you could save the treat for then.

Checklist before guests arrive

• Decide whether you're serving a meal or snacks, and tell families.
• Count everyone eating, including the birthday child, siblings and staying adults, without counting anyone twice.
• Confirm ingredients, products and serving arrangements with families who have food requirements.
• Choose a few familiar foods instead of every idea.
• If young children are coming, check the menu against the choking-hazard list (including cookies, pretzels, marshmallows, uncut grapes and gummies) and decide which foods to leave off or replace. Plan for an adult to watch while children eat.
• Write labels with the real food name and keep ingredient information nearby.
• Set up food in a separate room or area away from slime and experiment supplies.
• Put handwashing supplies on the route to the food.
• Keep perishable food refrigerated until serving and note when it comes out.
• Decide who will serve food and pour drinks.

Sources and further reading

• Slime Party Food Kids Actually Eat
• Science Party Food Kids Actually Eat
• STEM Party Food Kids Actually Eat
• Science Party Ideas
• Slime Party Ideas
• CDC: Choking Hazards
• FDA: Serving Up Safe Buffets

Related questions

• How much food should I buy for a party?
• How do I match party food to a theme?
• What information should I put on party food labels?
• How do I plan one party menu for guests with different dietary needs?