Halloween Activities for the Whole Family

By Brian Price

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Halloween season is here, and it’s just about time! Summer has ended and fall is on full display. School is back in session and the cooler weather is making everyone a little bit anxious for a reason to celebrate. While Halloween is brimming to the top with traditions, sometimes it can feel overwhelming. Read on for ideas for each age group in the family to make sure everyone gets to have a little fun. Getting all the materials together can take a little time, so go ahead and read through and figure out which activities you want to try.

Carving Pumpkins

Making Jack-o-Lanterns can be super fun but it’s not always an age-appropriate activity. There are ways to make it more developmentally appropriate though. Find a local pumpkin patch or corn maze and bring the whole family. Be sure to sign up for a hayride if it’s available! Let everyone pick their own pumpkin to bring home, and then the fun begins!

For toddlers:

Make edible modeling dough and color it orange, let them make faces in the dough.
Bring out the finger paints and let them paint a pumpkin
Cut a pumpkin shape and some facial features out of felt and let them make many different faces

For young children:

Let your child use modeling clay to make features for the pumpkin and help them glue them on once the clay is dry.
Cut the top off the pumpkin and let them scoop it out. Let them draw a design on a pumpkin and help them use a hammer and nail to do “dot art” along the lines.
After they have scooped out the inside of the pumpkin help them to remove the seeds and roast them for a snack later.

For older children and adults:

Ramp up the pumpkin fun by printing out more complicated designs and scenes and carve those into the pumpkins. Favorite cartoon characters are a big hit here!
If your child is especially talented consider buying a craft pumpkin so you can keep their design and use it every year.

Getting in the mood

Making your house into Halloween central isn’t required, but a few touches can make the season special. Don’t forget that you can always make orange pancakes for breakfast with chocolate chip faces!

For toddlers:

Help them trace their hands on white paper and cut them out. Use a black crayon to make ghost faces on them, and then run a fishing line through the top and hang them up!
Use cardboard to make a lacing board for your child to pull shoestrings through, you can make many shapes like cats, ghosts, pumpkins or leaves.

For young children:

Go on a nature walk and gather leaves and sticks, bring them home and make a Fall sensory bucket.
Buy a tote bag from the dollar store and let your child decorate their own trick or treat bag with fabric paints.

For older children and adults:

Use graham crackers, icing, and Halloween candies to make a haunted house (like a gingerbread house but with a spooky theme)
Create your own Halloween shirts by using a stencil and bleach water on a dark colored shirt. Remember to buy bleach-stop to treat the shirt after so the bleach will be neutralized and the shirt will last longer.
Buy cheesecloth and stretch it over an inflated balloon and spray it with starch, after it is dry, remove the balloon and you have a spooky ghost.

Family night

Fall can be a great time to slow things down and reconnect as a family. Make a plan to have a movie night, pick a few Halloween movies that are appropriate for everyone and serve snacks and popcorn. Consider also having a game night, below you’ll find Halloween games for everyone.

For toddlers:

Create a spooky bowling game by painting empty water bottles white and drawing ghost faces on them, rolling a ball into them and knocking them over is hours of fun.
Make a spooky sensory bottle using water, oil, purple food coloring, glitter, and a few small toys. Be sure to glue the lid closed so your child doesn’t decide to empty it out to get to the toy.
Halloween charades, while younger children may need some help learning the game almost anyone can play. Be sure to make cards with pictures for the ones who can’t read yet.

For young children:

Tape the nose on the Jack-o-lantern can be super fun, let them help you make the Jack-o-Lantern face and the silly noses.
Glow in the dark ring toss is possible with water bottles with a little bit of sand in the bottom to help them hold up, put a glow stick inside and then make rings out of glow necklaces. Night starting earlier help facilitate this fun.

For older children and adults:

Telling a ghost story as a family can be a lot of fun, bring out dice and let each person roll, whatever number they get is how many words they have to add to the story. When their time is up, pass the dice to the next person to let them continue.
Playing the board game Clue by candlelight after the little kids go to sleep is a lot of fun with a little bit of ambiance.

Going out

The weather can be beautiful this time of year, and the sights and smells of fall are incredible. Before it gets too cold, make some time to go as a family and enjoy the changing of the seasons.

Trick or treat! At least once, every family should try to dress up together. Will you be all the characters from The Wizard of Oz or some other theme?

Is there a fall festival or a storybook walk nearby? These things can be fun for little ones.
Go on a nature hike as a family, bring along a list of things to find. Remember to leave no trace and just mark off the things on your scavenger list, don’t take anything out of the woods that you didn’t bring in and don’t leave anything that you brought.

Halloween can be fun for the whole family and these ideas could inspire some new traditions. Be sure to keep your child’s abilities in mind when picking activities, you may need to scale down or be able to play up any of these ideas to make them easier or more fun for your family.