Halloween Activity Pads

Halloween Activity Pads

Give away these creatively fun Halloween activity pads this year instead of just candy. Or, let your students or daycare group color away and solve the monster options of sketches and games.

Eyeball Bounce Halloween Party Game

Eyeball Bounce Game

Take ping pong ball and decorate with markers to look like blood shot eyes. Then get a plastic pumpkin or party cups.

Now give each child an eyeball and place the plastic pumpkin or cup at the bottom of stairs or across the floor. Works best on wooden stairs and floors. Have each child toss or bounce the eyeball down the stairs or across the room. The goal is to see if their eyeball bounces into the pumpkin.

You can give a prize to those that get it in the pumpkin. Also for young kids, you may want to place 20 cups together and have each cup worth a secret prize. This increases the chance to get a prize and it makes the prize a complete surprise.

Make A Monster Party Game

Make A Monster Party Game

Break your guests into teams and tell them that they are going to Make a Monster. Now give each group a variety of magazines, paper, glue (glue stick) and scissors and tell them they must make monsters from the contents of the magazines.

Then tell them how many and what type of monsters you want. (Print on sheet of paper)Example: 3 Monsters & 1 Monster face

Tell them to use different body parts (legs, arms, head, feet, etc… to make 1. Scary Monster2. Funny Monster3. Bad Fashion Monster (target one to your theme/attendees) 4. Create a face monster cut out different eyes, lips, nose, hair to make this monster.

Give each team a time limit 10, 15, or 20 minutes (5 minutes per monster) and send them off to create their Monsters.

Once time is up call then back and have each team present their monsters based on the category and parents can independently judge you monsters and select a winner for each category. This is a fun activity and does not require a prize.

To accommodate young kids have adults cut out various body parts in advance and just have the kids put the pieces of the monster together. (This removes the scissors issue)

Candy Corn Catch Party Game

Candy Corn Catch Party Game

Divide guests into groups of 3 teams, 4-5 per team or if couples into pairs. Then announce that you are going to play Candy Corn Catch where team members will toss candy corns into the pumpkin that will be tied around a team member’s waist.

To make things fair give each team member the same amount of candy corn, so if some people choose to eat it rather throw it, they will have a choice. Suggest 10 per person.

Now select a team member to wear the pumpkin (these should be the ones for trick or treating so there is a hole on top) and tie the plastic pumpkin around one team member's waist. Now establish a throw line for those with the candy and place the pumpkin wearing teammate 5, 7 or 10 feet away.

Once everyone is set let the tossing begin. The kids and adults can throw candy corn all at one time or one at a time. You person wearing the pumpkin can move around to try to catch the candy corn as it is thrown. Once everyone has thrown the candy corn, take the pumpkin and count how many went in and also have the kids pick up any that is on the floor.

Switch team members and go again. Add up how many go in each round and then total the amounts after everyone has had a turn. Winning team is the one to get the most candy corn in the pumpkin.

Witch Hunt Party Game

Witch Hunt Party Game

Cut out paper witch hats. Whatever number you think would suit the number of people at the party, 3 - 5 per person is recommended. Color two hats a different color from the rest. Hide all the witch hats throughout the house (area where you would be doing this game).

Now let the kids know that there are witch hats hidden and the guests must find them. The guests finding the most hats will in prize (show prize) and there are two special hats that will result in special bonus prizes. Now send the kids to find all the hats, stagger the release if the age group varies a lot and give the younger kids a head start.

The kids who find the different colored hats get the biggest prize and the two who got the most hats collected get the next biggest prize. Have extra prizes in case of ties. Also, you might want some small prizes for the people who didn't get a prize.

Halloween Wine Tasting Party

Halloween Wine Tasting Party

Tired of the standard spooky Halloween party? Mix things up by throwing a festive Halloween wine tasting party that mixes sophistication and fright. With great décor and delicious Halloween treats your party is a guaranteed hit.

Haunted Wine Tasting Décor:

Go all out with the wine tasting theme and turn your house into a haunted wine cellar. Here are a few ways you can create this look:

1. Procure old wooden barrels and use them as much as possible. Use them to hold platters of food, wine decanters, decorations, and jars of candy.

2. Use oversized glass apothecary jars to hold Halloween candy, cookies or other treats.

3. Present food on large silver platters, and label cheeses and crackers with small toothpicks that have labels attached. Write in scary writing or use a ghoulish computer font for maximum effect.

4. Create a grand wine tasting table by placing an old, broken down door between two wine barrels. Scatter the table with grapes (real or faux), vines with grape leaves, and scary touches like fake mice and spider webs.

5. On the grand tasting table, place each different type of wine in an old fashioned glass decanter. Make sure to identify which wine is which with more ghoulish labels.

Delicious Wine Tasting Treats:

Serve your guests plenty of tasty snacks to satisfy their appetite between tastings.

Variety of Cheese:

Put out a variety of cheeses for your guests to nibble on. Choose an assortment of hard and soft, mild and strong flavored cheeses.

Crackers & Bread:

Bread and crackers are perfect to pair with the cheese, and they provide energy and something substantial for appetizers. Try getting seedy crackers, French bread and a soft whole wheat roll for a good variety.

Apple and Salami Rolls:
Pair a thinly sliced piece of gala apple with a thin slice of a hard cheese.

Wrap it up with a piece of Genoa salami.
Keep it all together with a toothpick.

Five Great Halloween Wines:

1. Vampire Wines: The grapes for Vampire wines were originally grown in Transylvania, giving the wine its name. Choose from a variety including Chardonnay, Merlot, Syrah and Pinot Noir.
2. Poizin Zinfandel: This wine from the Arminda Winery comes in a box shaped as a coffin.
3. Casillero del Diablo: The name of this wine translates to “Cellar of the Devil,” perfect for a Haunted Tasting Party! Look at the selection in the Casillero del Diablo, which includes good food pairings too!
4. Owen Roe Sinister Hand: A Rhone-style blend from Washington state with a label label features a ghoulish-looking hand. Have a look at Owen Roe's website for all the sinster selections.
5. R Winery Evil Cabernet Sauvignon: A thick, fruity wine with a great name. If you like white wine better, try the Pure Evil Chardonnay. Don't be afraid to shop for your evil cabernet!

Pumpkin T-Shirt Activity

Pumpkin T-Shirt Activity

Materials:

White T-shirt, washed
Rubber bands
Orange fabric dye
Sink or bucket for the dye
Rubber gloves
Blunt-ended scissors
Cardboard (for inside of shirt)
Black permanent marker
Black fabric paint
Paintbrush

1. Pinch and gather up a portion of the T-shirt fabric, then add a rubber band 1 or 2 inches from the point of the pinch. Wrap the band around several times until it's nice and tight. Create similar sections with rubber bands all over the shirt and sleeves.

2. Prepare the dyebath according to the instructions on the package. Thoroughly wet the shirt with water. Wearing rubber gloves, submerge the shirt in the dye. Let it soak until it looks a shade darker than you want it to be.

3. Still wearing gloves, rinse the shirt under warm running water. As the rinse water becomes less orange, change the water temperature to cold.

4. Once the water from the shirt runs clear, carefully cut off the rubber bands. Dry the shirt.

5. Insert cardboard inside the shirt, then use a permanent marker to draw jack-o'-lantern features inside each circle. Fill in the shapes with the marker, or use black fabric paint (which stays black longer).

Pumpkinhead Scarecrow Activity

Pumpkinhead Scarecrow

This scarecrow -- affectionately dubbed "Balancing Bob" -- has a knack for using his noggin.

CRAFT MATERIALS:
Medium pumpkin
Permanent markers or acrylic paints
Large plastic bags
Leaves
Overalls or pants
Boots
Duct tape
Spool of fishing line
Large sewing needle
Safety pins
Flannel shirt
Straw hat
Coat hanger or thick wire

1. Holding the pumpkin upside down, draw or paint a face on it (the bottom of the pumpkin will be the top of the scarecrow's head).

2. Loosely fill two tall plastic bags with leaves and insert them into Bob's pant legs. Slip the bottom of the pant legs into boots. Attach the boots to the pants using duct tape or a needle threaded with fishing line.

3. Stuff Bob's shirt-sleeves and chest with bags of leaves. Attach the shirt to the overalls with safety pins.

4. Unbutton the top few shirt buttons, and insert a long piece of wire that stretches from one sleeve, through Bob's chest and out the other sleeve. Rebutton the shirt.

5. Now, in the spot where you want Bob to be (you'll need an easily reachable tree branch or other overhanging support), place his hat on the ground, then put his head in place. Have a helper raise Bob's legs while you insert the arm wires into the ground and position the neck of his shirt so that it meets his head.

6. Attach fishing line to the boots and then wrap the fishing line around an overhead branch and tie it securely. Finally, make any adjustments to Bob's posture so he appears to be standing on his head.

Bobbing For Apples Party Game

Bobbing For Apples Party Game

Make this traditional game a little more scary by filling the bobbing tub with milk and adding red food coloring. Add enough coloring until the milk resembles bright red blood. Then add the apples and let the kids take turns bobbing for apples.

This game can get messy so it’s best played outside if possible. If you must play indoors, put down plenty of newspaper first. You should also consider protecting the children's clothes!

Variation:

Some children don’t like putting their face in the water or don’t want to mess up their Halloween make-up. If you think that might be a problem, tie the stems of the apples to varied lengths of string and then hang them up - from a clothesline, if you can be outside, or from a string suspended across your room (perhaps from door jamb to door jamb).

The kids should then put their hands behind their back and try to take a bite out of the apple - which isn't very easy to do! You can also play the game using strings of marshmallows.

Halloween Graveyard Hunt Party Game

Halloween Graveyard Hunt Party Game

Decorate your backyard to resemble a scary graveyard or just add lots of scary things. You can add cut out black felt bats, plastic spiders, fake webs, fake tombstones, jack o lanterns and even provide scary music.

Hide prizes and treats amongst the plants and decorations and let the kids go on a graveyard hunt. For older kids you can even have a disguised adult or two hiding around a spooky corner!

Pom Pom Spider Activity

Pom Pom Spider Activity

Materials:

Black yarn
Small square of cardboard
Black pipe cleaners
Googly eyes
Red construction paper
Glue

Directions:

Wind yard around and around cardboard square until heavily covered. Using a small piece of yarn tie securely at the center, cut edges and remove the cardboard.

Insert three pipe cleaners into the knotted center and bend to form legs.

Glue on eyes or cut out eyes from red paper. Use thread or yarn to hang spider.

Ghost Hunter Halloween Party Game

Ghost Hunter Halloween Game

Game for teams:

Get lollipops, ribbon, paper, tissue paper, and select 5-10 Halloween terms. You may want a styrofoam base to stick the ghosts into during the game.

Divide party guest into Ghost Hunting teams of 3-5 kids per team, the number per team may be based the ages of the kids.

Each team is given clues to find ghosts that can be hidden outside or inside. Note: Don't place all the ghosts together or the kids will grab the first ghost they see rather than find the ghost you want them. Also, tell them not to untie the ghosts until after the game is over. Send them off to different areas. You'll want 1 ghost per guest or a specified number per team, but have extras so each child gets a ghost.

Each ghost is a lollipop covered with tissue paper, tied with ribbon with a letter written on the ghost. Use a marker a add eyes and a mouth to the ghosts.

Send the kids with clues off to find ghosts. If young children have an adult go with them for safety and to assist if they don't understand the clues. Example Clues: "I live near the large tree in the backyard" or "At night I come out from under Mr. Wilson's favorite chair".

Each team will return with 3-5 ghosts with letters. The corresponding letters will spell or help spell a mystery word that relates to Halloween. See the 2 versions below:

Young kids:

Use words where all the letters are given: bat, witch, cat, hat, broom, ghoul etc... One team at a time, take the letters and mix them up. The Ghost Hunting team whose ghosts are being used get the first try to guess the mystery word. If they guess the word correctly they get a point, if they miss the word the other teams have a chance to get a point. Have them raise their hand if they know the answer, 1 guess per team. If no team guesses the word, then a simple clue is given and the process is repeated until the word is guessed. If there is a tie have a tie-breaker mystery word that is a little harder. Offer a small prize for the winners.

A little harder:

In this version the letters on the ghosts only give clues to the mystery Halloween word. Word Examples: pumpkin, headless, horseman, haunted, goblins, Sleepy Hollow, etc... Arrange the letters in correct order leaving spaces for missing letters. The Ghost Hunting team whose ghosts are being used get the first try to guess the mystery word. If they guess the word correctly they get a point, if they miss the word the other teams have a chance to get a point. Have them raise their hand if they know the answer, 1 guess per team. If no team guesses the word, then a simple clue is given and the process is repeated until the word is guessed. Again have a tie-breaker word just in case and offer a prize for the victors.

Milk Container Pumpkin Activity

Milk Container Pumpkin Activity

Need a safe way to light up your walkway? This milk container pumpkin craft is perfect for fall and Halloween. Greet your guests and trick or treaters, but don't worry about the wind! Our candles don't blow out.

Materials:

Plastic gallon milk container with lid
Pen or pencil
Craft knife or scissors
1 bottle orange acrylic enamel or gloss paint
Sponge brush applicator
Hot glue gun
Flickering tea light (battery operated)
Brown felt

Directions:

1. Lightly draw a jack-o'-lantern face on the front of the milk container.

2. Cut out features with scissors or a craft knife. Cut a flap in the back of the pumpkin, big enough that you can fit a sandwich bag full of sand or a handful of rocks in to weigh it down.

3. Paint the container with three coats of orange paint. Allow it to dry between coats.

4. Holding the flickering tea light upside down, place it inside the mouth of the milk container. (You may need to trim down the opening until the tea light is able to fit inside.) Once you’ve sized the mouth, remove the tea light and set it aside.

5. Cut out a rectangle from the brown felt big enough to fit around the mouth of the milk container. Use hot glue to line the inside of the area, then fold the excess down felt around the outside of the mouth and glue in place. The tea light should fit snuggly inside and be pointing downward. (Do not glue down the tea light – you should be able to remove and replace it when the battery dies.)

6. Insert rocks or a small bag of sand into the back flap of the pumpkin for weight. Place pumpkin on the porch and when night falls, turn on the flickering tea light!

Hand Print Spiders Activity

Hand Print Spiders Activity

Materials:

Black Tempera or poster paint

Paper

Wiggly eyes

Instructions:

Paint your child's four fingers and palm black NOT the THUMB.

Press the painted hand onto paper pointing fingers out.

Paint other hand and press it in the opposite direction overlapping palm prints.

Add wiggly eyes and you have a cute, not so creepy spider.

Trick or Treat Critter Cups Activity

Trick or Treat Critter Cups

Materials:
6 oz or smaller black and green plastic cups
Black pipe cleaners or chenille stems
1 white chenille stem
Black, white and green craft foam
Scissors
Low temperature hot glue gun and glue sticks
Wire cutters
Orange and Pink pony beads
Wiggle eyes
Rubber band
1 sheet of paper towel
1 green pompom
Black marker
A variety of Halloween chocolates and candies

Directions:

Black Cat

Using the wire cutters, cut a white pipe cleaner (chenille stems) into 4 equally sized pieces.

Thread three of the cut white chenille stems through the pink pony bead. Spread the chenille stems out like whiskers.

Set the cup upright. Glue the pink pony bead on the cup for the nose.

Cut two small triangle shapes out of the black craft foam for the ears.

Glue the ears to the inside - the front of the cup. Glue the wiggle eyes above the nose and whiskers.

Cut the black chenille stem to a suitable length and curl it like a cat's tail.

Glue the last piece of chenille stem to the back of the cup. Let it dry completely. Fill with treats.

Baby Bat

Cut a single bat wing out of black craft foam, and using the glue gun, glue to the back of the cup. Let dry.

Cut two triangles out of the black foam for the bat's ears.Glue to the inside front of the cup.

Glue two wiggle eyes to the front of the cup near center.

Cut two small triangles out of the white foam sheet for teeth and glue these to the front of the cup below the eyes.Let it dry completely.

Fill with treats!

Monster - Little Franky

Cut a jagged hair line from the black craft foam sheet below a straight edge. Glue the hairline to the top of the cup, with the straight edge at the top. Wrap a rubber band around the hair to hold in place while it dries.

Cut a two inch piece of black chenille stem below the hair for your monster's eye brow.

Below the eyebrow, glue two wiggle eyes close together.

Glue orange pony bead below the eyes for a nose.

Cut two bolt shapes out of the white foam sheet and glue them on the back of the cup. Position them so that they stick out and are easily visible from the front of the cup.

Let it dry completely.

Fill with treats!

Mummy

Cut out a "T" shape from the green craft foam. Glue the "T" shape to the front of the cup.

Cut out a set of lips from the green craft foam. Using a black marker, draw a line to create the illusion of two lips. Glue the lips below the "T" shape on the front of the cup.

Tear a sheet of paper towel into small strips. Using glue, attach the strips of paper to the cup, but only partially cover the "T" shape. Be sure to leave the lips uncovered.

When the entire cup is covered with the paper towel "bandages," glue two eyes to the top of the "T" shape.

Next glue a green pompom onto the front for a nose.

Fill the cup with treats!

Create Your Own Body Parts Activity

Create Your Own Body Parts

This is a good decoration for a dimly lit room at party time. Have several bowls of body parts displayed to horrify your friends.

-Cut up a bunch of hot dogs lenghwise for severed fingers.
-Cook some spaghetti noodles and add some red and blue food coloring for veins.
-A bunch of cocktail onions rolling around in a bowl looks like eyeballs.
-Fill a red balloon with warm water and spread it with strawberry jam and then invite your guests to touch your brain!

Ghost Libs Halloween Game

Ghost Libs Halloween Game

This participatory ghost story party game is a real howl.

WHAT YOU NEED:

Ghost story
Cue cards
Assorted noisemakers

HOW TO PLAY:

1. Ahead of time, brainstorm and write down the framework for a freaky story, leaving blanks for many of the nouns. Then cut out twenty 1- by 3-inch cue cards from poster board. On each, write a noun, anything from tombstones to tennis balls (consider, of course, your kids' reading levels) and put the cards into a hat. Next, gather a bunch of noisemakers, such as whistles, birdcalls, pitch pipes, kazoos and triangles, and place in a basket.

2. Have the kids sit in a circle. Hand a noisemaker to each child and let him or her reach in and pick two cue cards from the hat.

3. Instruct the children to make a racket with their instruments every time you say noise and to shout out one of their words each time you point to them. For example, when you say "and then the old woman heard a frightful noise," the kids should blast away.

4. When you reach an appropriate and suspenseful moment, such as, "The monster reached deep into his backpack and pulled out a huge, ugly..." you should turn to the first child in the circle and let him or her belt out a word.

5. Continue, a la Mad Libs, improvising your story until you can draw it to a scary, silly, or most likely nonsensical, noisy end.

Create Your Own Sound Effects Activity

Create Your Own Sound Effects

You can record several scary sounds and play it back during your Halloween festivities.
-A very large sheet of poster board or sheet metal makes great thunder.
-Uncooked rice poured onto a cookie sheet sounds like rain.
-Crinkle a handful of cellophane for a roaring fire.
-To get a good scream you can, well -- scream.
-Snap carrots in half for the sound of breaking bones.
-Flap a plastic bag in front of the microphone for the sound of bats.
-Slowly blow bubbles with a straw into a bowl for a bog sound.
-Hunt around your house and garden to find a squeaky hinge somewhere and tape it before someone gets to it with a can of oil.

Create Your Own Halloween Ghost Puppet Activity

Halloween Ghost Puppet Activity

Materials:

Tissue paper

Cotton ball

Rubber band

String

Instructions:

Place tissue paper over a cotton ball and secure under ball with rubber band. Draw eyes on with marker. Tie a string around neck and hang or use as a finger puppet by hooking over a finger with rubber band.