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Whether you’re venturing out for some trick-or-tricking, throwing a monster mash Halloween party, or staying in where it’s safe from spooks, make this Halloween a devilish delight!
From Halloween activities for toddlers to Halloween kids’ games for older goblins, and everything in-between, we’ve got all the best fun Halloween activities for kids, to distract them from sugary treats:
In this article: 📝
- How do you make Halloween fun for toddlers?
- How do you entertain kids at a Halloween party?
- What are Halloween word games?
- What are Halloween car games?
- What are Halloween sensory activities?
- What are Halloween board games for kids?
- What are some prizes for Halloween games?
- What can kids do for Halloween at home?
- What can kids do for Halloween?
- What activities can we do for Halloween?
How do you make Halloween fun for toddlers?
If you have a little one who’s starting to understand what Halloween’s all about, but you don’t want to do anything too scary, try these 9 Halloween activities for toddlers.
1. Donuts on a string
A sweeter take on the more traditional Halloween kids’ activity of apple-bobbing, donuts on a string is a little easier for smaller mouths.
Simply string some ring donuts from a tree or free-standing clothing rail (anywhere toddlers can reach them), then challenge your little ones to eat a donut with their hands behind their backs.
2. Feed the pumpkin
A fantastic Halloween activity for preschoolers for developing motor skills, Feed the Pumpkin is a simple game you can easily play at home.
Simply scoop out and carve a face in a pumpkin, with a decent-sized hole for the mouth.
Then give your toddler something to ‘feed’ the pumpkin, like candy corn, pumpkin seeds, or little craft pom-poms.
3. Topple the ghosts
A fun, destructive toddlers’ Halloween game.
Get some white paper cups, draw ghostly faces on them, stack them up in a pyramid, and give your toddler a beanbag to throw at the mini ghosts ‒ like a Halloween coconut shy!
4. Halloween coloring-in
Got a mini Picasso?
Then this is the perfect Halloween activity for preschoolers for you ‒ they’ll have a great time with some Halloween-themed coloring-in!
We love these free spooky, printable Halloween coloring pages from Crayola.
5. Paper plate masks
One of our favorite classic Halloween games for toddlers!
All you’ll need is paper plates, string (or elastic), scissors, coloring pens, crayons, pencils, and extra crafty embellishments.
Snip some eye holes and holes for the string in the paper plate, then let your little artist’s imagination run wild!
6. DIY skeleton puzzle
Help your toddler work on problem-solving with this Halloween activity for preschoolers.
Make your own skeleton puzzle by printing out a picture of a skeleton and sticking it to a thick piece of cardboard.
Then, cut the cardboard into a few different pieces and challenge your little peanut to recreate the skeleton.
7. Spider straw race
A super-fun Halloween activity for toddlers, you’ll just need two things: plastic spiders and straws.
Put your spiders on one end of a table, then, using your straws to blow them across the table, race to get to the end.
Top tip: engage your little one’s imagination by asking them to name the spiders.
8. Laundry basket spider web
Make laundry fun!
Using a thick white spool of string, weave the string all about your laundry basket to create a ‘web’.
Then, add some plastic spiders to the bottom and let your toddler fish them all out.
Another great Halloween activity for toddlers that builds their motor skills.
9. Halloween stick puppet show
Feeling Shakespearean?
How about this Halloween activity for preschoolers ‒ make some DIY Halloween stick puppets from old popsicle sticks with coloring pens, feathers, glitter, googly eyes… the works!
Then, put on an improvised stick puppet show with your newly-created stick actors with your toddler.
How do you entertain kids at a Halloween party?
Who doesn’t love a Halloween party?
The costumes, the creepy stories, the candy?
It’s a scream.
But if you want to fill the time between your youngsters gorging on sweets with some Halloween party games, we’ve got you covered with our 19 favorite Halloween party activities for kids:
10. Pumpkin popping
Sure, this Halloween activity for kids is pretty noisy, but most kids will love it (although best to steer clear if they’re not keen on balloons popping).
Get some orange balloons, add a trick or a treat inside (sweets for treats, plastic creepy crawlies for tricks), blow them up, then draw pumpkin faces on them in black Sharpie.
Then let the horde of hobgoblins in to stomp on the balloons to claim their treats (or tricks).
11. Pin the spider on the web
A creepy version of Pin the Tail on the Donkey ‒ draw a spider’s web on a big piece of card (we like using white pens or chalk on black card, for extra spookiness), then attach a piece of double-sided tape to a cardboard spider.
Kids then take turns to stick the spider on the web, blindfolded.
Whoever ‘pins’ the spider closest to the center of the web wins!
12. Ghost bowling
Super-easy to make ‒ a spook-tastic Halloween party activity for kids.
Make your own ‘ghost’ bowling pins from empty toilet rolls, then paint them white, covering the ends with paper.
Draw spooky faces on them, set them up on the floor like bowling pins, then give your little ghouls a ball to knock the ghosts over.
Bonus points for a strike!
13. Halloween Heads’ Up
All you need for this fang-tastic Halloween party activity for kids is post-its and pens.
Everyone writes a Halloween-y character (Dracula, zombie, Frankenstein, etc) on a post-it, then puts it on the person to their left (without them seeing what it says).
Then, you take turns to each ask a yes-or-no question about the word on your head.
14. Candy corn count
Fill a jar with candy corn (or another sweet your little devils enjoy), then challenge your kids’ party guests to guess how many sweets are in the jar.
The winner gets to keep the whole jar!
15. Pumpkin or witches hat ring toss
An eerily entertaining outdoor Halloween party activity for kids, all you need to do is get your hands on some pumpkins with long stems and some packs of glow sticks.
Click the glow sticks so they’re rings, then invite the kids to play ring toss.
If pumpkins are in short supply, you can always make your own witch hats from card.
16. Werewolf tag
One of our favorite outdoor Halloween kids’ games to burn off all the excess sugar energy!
Like traditional tag, but once you’ve been tagged, you turn into a werewolf!
Then, it’s up to you to tag more people ‒ the game is over when everyone’s been turned into howling werewolves.
17. Pumpkin cornhole
Similar to pumpkin ring toss, but instead, scooping out the ‘pumpkin guts’ and chopping the tops of all the pumpkins off, then using bean bags and aiming for the pumpkins.
Too easy?
Make it more difficult with a range of pumpkin sizes, with points assigned to them ‒ 50 points for the smallest pumpkin, and 10 for the biggest pumpkin.
Each kid gets 10 beanbags, and the winner with the most points gets a prize!
18. Truth or Scare
Like Truth or Dare, but with a terrifying twist! Not sure which questions and ‘scares’ to include?
Check out these Truth or Scare suggestions for free printable Halloween games.
19. Swap spooky stories
One of the most classic Halloween activities for kids.
Turn off all the lights, get out your flashlights, and share your spookiest stories.
Make up your own or recite one of these kid-friendly scary stories for Halloween.
20. “Minute to Win It” Halloween candy corn game
One of the trickier indoor Halloween kids’ games that require quite a bit of dexterity.
Put some candy corn on a table and give each child a bowl and a pair of chopsticks.
Set a timer for 60 seconds, then challenge them to get the most pieces of candy corn into their bowl using only the chopsticks.
21. Halloween picture bingo
For this Halloween kids’ party game, simply draw or print out some Halloween-themed bingo cards, like these, give each party guest one of the cards and an orange pen, then pick some random Halloween-related objects from the cards from a hat (bonus points if it’s a witches hat).
Bingo!
22. Halloween scavenger hunt
This kids’ Halloween party activity takes a little preparation.
Gather a few different Halloween-y items ‒ like witches’ hats, pumpkins, vampire teeth, and cobwebs ‒ and decorate your house and yard.
Then set the little goblins out to find all the scavenger items you’ve prepared on their list.
Or you can take it outside to the rest of your road (if you think it’s safe), with the children in little groups, as a team-building activity.
23. Mummy race
Stock up with all the toilet paper for this Halloween kids’ party game!
Split the children into pairs, and give each pair a few rolls of TP.
Each pair has to wrap their chosen person in toilet paper so they look like a mummy.
They must be covered from head to toe.
Then, the mummified person has to waddle to the other side of the room ‒ the first one to the other side wins!
24. Halloween charades
Charades aren’t just for Christmas!
Write down lots of Halloween movies, characters, and activities onto small pieces of paper, fold them up, and pop them into a witch’s hat.
Then take it in turns to pick a random piece of paper from the hat and act it out so the rest of the party can guess what it is.
25. Apple bobbing
The ultimate autumnal activity!
All you need is apples, a big bucket or bowl, and water.
Then each kid has to try to bite an apple with their teeth ‒ hands behind their backs.
It’s harder than it looks!
26. Halloween trivia games
Put your kid’s wits to the test with your choice of Halloween trivia games, like these from Ice Breaker Ideas.
Turn it into a competition by scoring a point for each correct answer ‒ the most points wins a peculiar prize!
27. Trick or sweet
This one needs a bit of overnight prep, but it’s so much fun!
Dip some of your little creepers’ favorite sweets in melted chocolate, along with a few Brussels sprouts.
Once they’re all set, jumble them up in a bowl, then have them each pick one at random.
It could be a sweet or a trick!
What are Halloween word games?
Halloween is still a great opportunity to build your little hobgoblin’s vocabulary, so why not try one of these frightfully fun Halloween word games:
28. Fold-over Halloween story
One of the most imaginative Halloween word games ‒ give each child a piece of paper and a pen.
They then write a word or sentence, fold the paper over what they’ve written, then pass it to the child next to them.
Then they keep doing that until the paper’s full.
At the end, each child has to read their new spooky story from the paper.
29. Halloween spell-a-thon
Challenge your little ghouls with this Halloween word game.
Each child tests their vocabulary by spelling some tricky Halloween-y words, like “pumpkin”, “witch”, “Dracula”, “Transylvania”, and “poltergeist”.
Need some more words?
Try these from Enchanted Learning.
30. Halloween acronyms
Great for little kids who are learning new words, this Halloween word game tests how many spooky words they know.
Give each child a different word, like “Halloween” or “Spooky”, then have them write other Halloween-related words as an acronym, like:
- Haunted
- Autumn
- Lantern
- Lurking
- Occult
- Witch
- Eerie
- Evil
- Night
31. Halloween word search
We love a good word search!
Find a word search from a Halloween printable games website, like this one by Fantasy Jr or this one by Sight Words Game.
Simply print them out and hand them out to the kids for them to find all the Halloween-y words.
32. Halloween alphabet game
Similar to the acronym Halloween word game, this one involves sitting the children in a circle (very witchy), and having them each name a Halloween-y word for every letter of the alphabet.
So the first child would start with A, and might say “All Hallow’s Eve”, and the next would have B, so possibly “broomstick”.
Keep going till you reach Z (zombies).
33. Halloween anagrams
A fun word puzzle for Halloween, simply print out jumbled-up Halloween words and have the party-goers rearrange the letters to spell the right words.
We like this one by Fun English Games.
34. Halloween brain teasers and code breakers
A fun puzzle-solving game that makes kids think outside the box.
Find some fun printable Halloween brain teasers (like this one by The Puzzle Den, or this one by Teachers Pay Teachers), print them out, and have the kids solve them.
What are Halloween car games?
Traveling somewhere this Halloween but don’t want to lose the spooky vibes?
Try these dastardly delightful Halloween car games to make the journey go by in a snap:
35. Find black and orange cars
A simple Halloween car game that’s fun for littler kids, too.
Simply point out all the orange and black cars you see on the road.
The winner is the one who finds the most ‒ just don’t forget to keep score!
36. Spooky license plates
Like the Halloween word game of anagrams, but picking Halloween-y words for the letters in cars’ license plates.
37. Spooky story
Make a totally unique scary Halloween story while in the car!
Each traveler takes turns to add a word to the story, following what the previous person has said.
Not sure how to start? Try “Once” “upon” “a” “time”.
What are Halloween sensory activities?
Sensory play is fantastic for encouraging exploration, creativity, and curiosity in younger kids or children with learning difficulties.
Make Halloween extra fun with these Halloween sensory activities:
38. Halloween slime
Slime is all the rage at the moment, and we think it’s perfect for a Halloween sensory activity!
Try this guide on how to make your own Halloween slime from The Best Ideas for Kids or this recipe for edible Halloween slime from The Soccer Mom Blog (note: this one is sticky!).
39. Halloween guessing jar
Another of our favorite old-school Halloween activities for kids.
Find some spooky or creepy foods and hide them in boxes (we tend to use tissue boxes) with holes for little ones to feel ‒ they can’t see what’s inside.
After some Halloween guessing jar ideas?
We like using cooked spaghetti (witches’ hair), peeled grapes (eyeballs), popcorn kernels (teeth), and baby carrots (toes).
40. Spider-pick
Another Halloween activity for toddlers that encourages dexterity, the spider-pick involves hiding plastic spiders in a bowl of uncooked rice.
Then your little ghoul can use their hands to find the spiders lurking within!
41. Halloween Rapidough
A spooky twist on the classic dough-molding game.
Write out a few different Halloween-y suggestions for things to sculpt from the dough, like ghost, witches’ hat, or spider, then let the guessing commence!
What are Halloween board games for kids?
If your little one prefers quieter games for the spooky season, how about these fun Halloween board games:
42. Go Away Monster
A fun Halloween board game for ages 3 and up, teaching shape recognition, sharing, cooperation, and bravery ‒ after all, monsters aren’t that scary, are they?
43. Clue
One of the classic creepy Halloween board games, Clue is suitable for ages 8 and up, and now, you can play the game with Amazon Alexa for a more frightful experience!
44. Boohoo-opoly
A spooky version of the board game classic, Monopoly, Boooo-opoly comes with Halloween-y playing pieces, so you can choose from a cat, bat, pumpkin, candy apple, ghost, or witch’s hat.
45. Cauldron Quest
A cooperative witchy Halloween board game for ages 6 and up.
To win Cauldron Quest, you simply have to get the right spells and potions to rid the kingdom of a dark spell ‒ easy!
46. Operation: The Nightmare Before Christmas Edition
We love the game Operation ‒ even if the buzzer did keep going off!
Make the game more creepy with this Nightmare Before Christmas version, as you remove parts from Oogie Boogie without the buzzer going off.
Buy Operation: The Nightmare Before Christmas Edition here.
What are some prizes for Halloween games?
Lots of our fun Halloween activities for kids involve winning a prize, but just what do they win?
Well, we’ve got a few spooky ideas for you:
- Sweets
- Glow-in-the-dark nail polish
- Light-up jack-o-lanterns
- Halloween toys
- Creepy jewelry
- Spooky stationery
- Scary snap-bands
- Halloween fidget-spinners and pop-its
- Spine-chilling stickers
- Halloween activity books
What can kids do for Halloween at home?
If you’re hunkering down at home instead of throwing a Halloween party or venturing out for trick-or-treating, you can still have a fun Halloween at home with your kids.
Pumpkin carving, Halloween board games, apple bobbing, and dressing up in costumes are still fun Halloween activities for kids at home.
What can kids do for Halloween?
How do you entertain your kids on Halloween?
The most fun thing you can do with your kids this Halloween is to get involved yourself!
Dress up as your favorite spooky character, get your hands stuck in some pumpkin guts, and mess up your makeup with apple bobbing ‒ having fun yourself is one of the most entertaining things for your kids at Halloween.
If you’d rather forego the kids’ Halloween party in favor of a quiet (ish) night in with your family, check out our top Family Activities for Halloween.
What activities can we do for Halloween?
There are lots of kids’ Halloween activities you can do to keep your little pumpkins entertained.
Here are a few of the more unusual Halloween activities for kids you might not have tried yet:
- Making paper plate masks
- Going on a Halloween trail
- Telling ghost stories
- Make-your-own Halloween costumes
- Halloween scavenger hunt
- Visit a haunted house
- Halloween charades
- Halloween trivia
- Halloween guessing jars
What are 5 traditional Halloween activities?
Want more traditional Halloween activities for kids?
Some Halloween activities have become family traditions that you do every year, and these five are among the most beloved by our Peanut mamas and their little ones:
- Pumpkin picking and carving: Get this done in early October to kickstart those Halloween vibes. Once you’ve got your pumpkin, it’s time to get carving! And if your little one is too young to carve, how about painting your pumpkin?
- Apple bobbing: While traditionally a British Halloween tradition, bobbing for apples has made its way across the pond.
- Decorating for Halloween: Get the whole family together to spookify your house and your yard so trick-or-treaters know to visit.
- Watch Halloween movies: Snuggle up in front of the TV with popcorn and warm apple cider (non-alcoholic, of course!), and pop on your favorite kids’ Halloween movie.
- Trick or treating: It wouldn’t be Halloween without trick or treating. Just make sure your little ones have a responsible adult to chaperone.
Those are our top 46 fun Halloween activities for kids ‒ got any other favorites?
Share them with the rest of the mamas on Peanut.