What to write in a child's birthday card

Short and cheerful

For a small card, a present tag or a card the whole class signs.

• Happy birthday, Finn! Have the best day ever.

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• Happy birthday! Five looks brilliant on you.

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• Hip hip hooray, it's your birthday today!

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• Happy birthday to the birthday girl. Cake first, everything else later.

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• Happy birthday! Wishing you a day as fun as you are.

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• Another year older and even more fun. Happy birthday!

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• Happy birthday, superstar. Have a brilliant day.

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• Six today! Happy birthday, and enjoy every minute.

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Tailored to what they love

Pick up one thing your child loves right now: dinosaurs, football, horses, space.

• Happy birthday to our favourite dinosaur expert. Have a ROAR-ing good day!

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• Happy birthday, little astronaut. This year, you're going to reach the stars.

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• Happy birthday to the best goal scorer we know. Here's to a year full of wins.

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• To our horse-mad birthday girl: gallop into your new year!

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• Happy birthday to the builder of the tallest towers in the whole house.

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• Happy birthday, bookworm. May this year bring you a hundred new stories.

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From parents

Warm and personal: what you love about your child right now.

• Happy birthday, sweetheart. Watching you grow this year has been the best thing in our lives.

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• To our boy on his seventh birthday: you're kind, you're funny, and you make every day better. We love you to the moon.

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• Happy birthday to the girl who makes our house louder and our hearts fuller.

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• Four years ago today, you made us a family. Thank you for every single day since.

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• Happy birthday! We love your laugh, your questions and the way you hug. Never change.

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• To our birthday star: whatever this year brings, we're right behind you.

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From grandparents, godparents and relatives

For the people who see the child a little less often and want to say something that lasts.

• Happy birthday to our wonderful grandson. We're so proud of the boy you're becoming.

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• Dear Aoife, happy birthday from your godmother. I can't wait to hear all about your year.

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• To our granddaughter on her birthday: you'll always be our favourite reason to visit.

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• Happy birthday from your auntie. Save me a slice of cake!

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• Happy birthday, little one. Every year you surprise us, and we love it.

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• From Nana and Grandad, with more hugs than will fit in this card.

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Milestone birthdays

First birthday, starting school, double figures.

• Happy first birthday! One whole year of smiles, and many more to come.

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• Happy fifth birthday! A whole hand of years, and a whole world to explore.

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• Double figures! Happy tenth birthday to a very grown-up girl.

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• Happy first birthday, little one. You've changed everything, in the best way.

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• Happy birthday! Big school this year, and you're so ready for it.

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• Ten today! Happy birthday to a boy with a whole decade of stories already.

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To write in a book

An inscription lasts longer than a card. Add the date, the age and your name.

• For Finn, on your sixth birthday. Read it now, and again when you're sixteen.

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• Happy birthday, Aoife. This story was written just for you, the year you turned four.

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• For our grandson, who turned seven today and can now read this all by himself.

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• To you, on your birthday. May every page remind you how loved you are.

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• Happy fifth birthday! The hero of this book is very brave, and a lot like you.

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• For your birthday, with love. One day you'll read this to someone small yourself.

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Write your own message in four steps

1. 1

   Start with the name and the age

   “Happy sixth birthday, Finn!” is already more personal than any printed verse. Children notice their age on a card.

2. 2

   Pick up one thing they love

   Dinosaurs, football, space, horses: one line about what your child loves right now shows you know them.

3. 3

   Give one compliment

   Something true and specific: brave, kind, funny, the best tower builder in the house. Children remember a compliment for a long time.

4. 4

   End with a wish for the year ahead

   Not for their whole life, just for this year: a year of adventures, of new friends, of big school.

Slips to avoid

• Comments on size or looks

  “You're getting so big!” or remarks about their looks are about the grown-up's surprise more than the child. What they do and who they are makes a better message.

• Comparing with brothers and sisters

  “Almost as tall as your brother!” turns a birthday card into a competition.

• Too long for the age

  A three-year-old won't read a paragraph. For young children, one line read out loud is plenty; save the longer words for an inscription they'll read later.

Frequently asked questions

What do you write in a child's birthday card?

Their name and age, one thing they love right now, a compliment and a wish for the year ahead. Children's cards can be playful: a line about dinosaurs or football for a child who loves them works better than a general verse.

What do parents write in their child's birthday card?

Something warm and personal: what you love about your child right now, a memory from this year, how proud you are. Parents' messages are often the ones kept longest.

What do you write for a first birthday?

The card is really for the parents to keep. A line about the first year, the first smile, the first steps, and a wish for everything ahead.

What goes in an inscription in a birthday book?

The date, the child's age, your name and a sentence for later. The child may read it again in ten years.