A chill is in the air, costumes are filling the stores, and Halloween is right around the corner. That means spooky season is upon us! Celebrate the season with these fun and creative Halloween activities, crafts, and games. You’ll find party games perfect for a class Halloween celebration as well as more educational finds like writing prompts and STEM and math challenges. There are enough Halloween activities on this list to do something different every day in October and then some!
1. Watch a Halloween video
We found a whole selection of terrific educational Halloween videos. Get some math practice, learn about Halloween around the world, or try some spooky yoga.
Learn more: Halloween Videos
2. Have a pumpkin and witch’s broom race
Gather your brooms and a few small pumpkins, break the class into teams, then watch them race to see who can push the pumpkin across the finish line first!
Learn more: I Dig Pinterest
3. Make straw skeletons
Insert a little biology lesson about the skeletal system when you work on these bone-chilling skeletons for Halloween.
Learn more: Education.com
4. Race to wrap up your friend like a mummy
Halloween activities can be a fun way to get kids moving. Grab some rolls of toilet paper, select teams, and then watch the hilarity ensue as the kids race to wrap up their friend like a mummy before the other team does!
Learn more: Group Games 101
5. Turn plastic spiders into magnets
Make your own spider magnets for only a few bucks by gluing small magnets to the back of plastic spiders from the dollar store. Then, use them for math activities, arrange them to spell letters or words, or just decorate your classroom with them.
Learn more: Early Learning Ideas
6. Create dotted pumpkins
Teach your students about the work of artist Yayoi Kusama and let them create beautiful dotted pumpkins of their own.
Learn more: Art Is Basic
7. Feed alphabet letters to a ghost
Keep little learners busy by taping a large paper ghost with an open mouth to a doorway. Have kids feed letter magnets through the mouth as you call them out. This works with numbers and sight words too.
Learn more: Toddler Approved
8. Build STEM structures with toothpicks and pumpkin candy
STEM building challenges make great Halloween activities. Give this classic example a Halloween twist by using gummy pumpkins in place of marshmallows.
Learn more: Lemon Lime Adventures
9. Wrap a mummy with yarn
These little mummies are just oh-so cute. Have the cutout people prepared and then let kids go to town with some white yarn and googly eyes.
Learn more: The Best Kids Crafts and Activities
10. Sort by initial sounds
Early readers and spellers can get some practice at initial letter sounds with this cute idea. Label Halloween-themed boxes with letters, and fill a plastic cauldron with small toys or mini erasers. Then, have students sort the items into the correct boxes by their initial sounds.
Learn more: Mrs. Jones’ Creation Station
11. Assemble a geometric bat
Sesame Street’s The Count would definitely approve of this bat. It’s made up of ONE rectangle, TWO squares, SIX triangles … mwah ha ha!
Learn more: Math Four
12. Play a spiderweb walking game
Some Halloween activities, like this one, work on gross motor skills. Use some painter’s tape to create a spiderweb on the floor, then spread spiders or ghosts all around. Finally, let students try their hand at collecting them without losing their footing.
Learn more: No Time for Flash Cards
13. Sculpt pony bead pumpkins
This easy Halloween craft will give kids some fine motor skill practice. You can also have them count the beads as they string them. When you’re done, they have a cute little pumpkin to decorate their room for fall!
Learn more: Cutesy Crafts
14. Do some Halloween-style creative writing
We didn’t come up with this hilarious writing prompt, but we do have 19 more ideas plus free printable writing paper for you to use! Find them all here.
Source: Writing Prompts Tumblr
15. Paint rocks to look like jack-o’-lanterns
So simple and yet so fun. Go on a nature hunt with your students and have them collect as many flat rocks as they can and then let them bring their jack-o’-lanterns to life with some orange and black paint. Be sure to use non-washable paint if you plan on displaying them outside!
Learn more: Easy Peasy and Fun
16. Practice sequencing with Room on the Broom
Sequencing is a key skill for kids to master, so use the beloved book Room on the Broom to work on the concept.
Learn more: Pencils to Pigtails
17. Play poke-a-pumpkin
Fill solo cups with cute Halloween-themed prizes, cover them with orange tissue paper, and then hang them on a poster. Kids will love poking through a pumpkin to reveal their prize when it is their turn.
Learn more: Project Whim
18. Read a Halloween book or two
If you’re looking for some not-so-spooky stories, try our roundup of pumpkin books. For kids who love to be scared, check out some of these (slightly) terrifying tales instead.
19. Erupt a pumpkin-cano
Every kid loves the standard baking-soda-and-lemon-juice volcano, so add some Halloween flavor by doing the whole thing in a pumpkin!
Learn more: Little Bins for Little Hands
20. Have an eyeball relay race
Divide students into two teams then have them race up and back trying not to drop their eyeball off their skeleton’s hand.
Learn more: Joy in the Works
21. Carve up some pumpkin pi
How amazing would these look in your classroom or flickering away in the background of your Zoom screen? They’re easy to make, too, using our free printable templates.
22. Craft a climbing spider
Teach your students how spiders use their sticky webs to catch their food. Then have them make their very own spiders that really climb!
Learn more: San Diego Zoo
23. Dig for witch fingers
Fill a tub or sand table with sand and some creepy, crawly Halloween items, then blindfold your students and have them race to see who can find the witch’s finger first!
Learn more: One Sharp Bunch
24. Vanishing ghosts
Save and clean your hollowed-out eggshells, then fill them with cornstarch to create vanishing ghosts! Experiment with dropping or throwing them from different angles and heights to see what sorts of patterns you can create.
Learn more: Growing a Jeweled Rose/Smoking Ghosts Halloween Activity
25. Roll and stack spiders
The best Halloween activities involve simple supplies and simple setup. Stick a drinking straw into a ball of play dough, then roll the dice and add that number of spider rings to your stack. The first to fill up their spider tower wins!
Learn more: Learning With Mrs. Langley
26. Make a ghost dance
Nothing spooky here! Make this cute little tissue ghost dance with just a balloon and a little static electricity.
Learn more: Science Bob
27. Do a giant Halloween word search
Work on word recognition while having fun at the same time! Remember to use painter’s tape so you can easily remove it from the wall when you’re done.
Learn more: Busy Toddler
28. Crawl like a spider, tiptoe like a cat
Need a movement break? Roll this free printable Halloween die, and let the fun begin!
Learn more: Pre-K Printable Fun
29. Experiment with Halloween candy
There’s always plenty of candy to go around on Halloween, so kids can definitely spare some of it for cool science experiments. Find Dancing Franken-worms and a dozen more fun candy experiments here.
Source: Playdough to Plato
30. Decorate pumpkins with string art
Pumpkin carving is pretty messy in a classroom, so try this clever string-art activity using thumbtacks instead.
Learn more: Hello, Wonderful
31. Use candy corn for math activities
Pick up a few bags of candy corn and grab our free printables, then engage your students in meaningful math activities from matching to multiplication.
32. Spin inverted pumpkin tops
Paint wooden inverted tops to look like pumpkins, then give kids a lesson in physics as they try to spin them so they land on their stems!
Learn more: Buggy and Buddy
33. Work on writing with hair gel baggies
Fill a zipper baggie with hair gel and a few drops of orange food coloring, then knead to mix. Add pumpkin seeds or googly eyes, then lay it flat for kids to practice tracing letters or numbers.
Learn more: Pocket of Preschool
34. Turn leaves into ghosts
Take a nature walk to gather leaves, then paint them to create spooky little ghosts. Add bats made of egg cartons for more seasonal holiday decor.
Learn more: Handimania
35. Stencil craft stick puzzles
Wood craft stick activities are inexpensive and lots of fun. Tape sticks together, then turn them over and stencil or draw a Halloween design on the front. Remove the tape and shuffle up the sticks, then reassemble your DIY puzzles.
Learn more: Active Littles
36. Make a skeleton you with cotton swabs
Take and print photos of all of your students before getting started with this craft/anatomy lesson. Have students cut up different-size cotton swabs and then glue them to form the skeleton.
Learn more: Mrs. Plemon’s Kindergarten
37. Explore story elements with pumpkins
Craft 3D paper pumpkins, then use them to break down a story into elements like plot, theme, and characters.
Learn more: Runde’s Room
38. Construct bone bridges
Cotton swab “bones” turn a bridge-building STEM challenge into a Halloween treat! You’ll need wood craft sticks, pipe cleaners, and rubber bands too.
Learn more: Feel Good Teaching
39. Learn about mixtures and solutions
Students learn about mixtures and solutions in this STEM activity using homemade snack mix. They get practice counting and graphing too.
Learn more: Third Grade Thinkers
40. Stack paper cup ghosts
This is bound to become one of your favorite Halloween activities. Draw faces on disposable cups to turn them into ghosts. Then challenge kids to stack and unstack them quickly, build the highest tower, and more.
Learn more: Turner’s Tots
41. Comparison shop for candy
Learning how to add and subtract decimals is fun when candy is involved! Get the free printable task cards at the link, then use Halloween candy ads for a comparison shop of the best candy prices in town.
Learn more: Teaching With a Mountain View
42. Catapult pumpkins through the air
This is the perfect STEM activity for Halloween. Gather some large Popsicle sticks, rubber bands, bottle caps, and candy corn pumpkins, and get ready to see who can shoot their pumpkin the farthest!
Learn more: There’s Just One Mommy
43. Count with spiderweb 10-frames
Ten-frames are excellent learning tools for early math students. We love these free printable spiderwebs, which add a spooky seasonal twist to the learning.
Learn more: Fun Learning for Kids
44. Blow-paint silly little ghosts
Pucker up and blow some strange and eerie ghosts, using straws and white paint. Add googly eyes and a mouth with a black marker to give them each their own personality.
Learn more: Crafty Morning
45. Play Pumpkin Emotion Bingo
Pumpkin faces help kids learn about different emotions as they play special Halloween games of bingo.
Learn more: The Kindergarten Connection
46. Engineer a robot hand
Nothing says Halloween like a skeleton. Teach your students how our joints, muscles, and tendons work together to move our hands using just construction paper, plastic straws, string, and tape.
Learn more: Instructables
47. Create spiderweb resist art
Grab some sturdy cardboard, washable paint, and painter’s tape, then let your little artists go to work. Ripping off the tape to reveal the masterpiece will be oh-so satisfying for your little ones.
Learn more: Busy Toddler
48. Seek and find Halloween images
Use this free printable when you need a quick Halloween activity for your little monsters. It gives them counting practice with a seasonal theme.
Learn more: And Next Comes L
49. Calculate and match with pumpkins
Label mini pumpkin bowls with numbers, and write equations on wood craft sticks. Kids calculate the sums and place the sticks into the correct pumpkin.
Learn more: Kids Activities Blog
50. Make play dough and cut fall shapes out of it
Play dough is the perfect sensory activity for little learners, so why not put a fun, Halloween-themed spin on it? Make some homemade play dough or buy some premade if you are short on time, then have students cut shapes from it with Halloween cookie cutters.
Learn more: Natural Beach Living
51. Go bowling for ghosts
Stuff empty plastic bottles with cotton balls to turn them into ghost bowling pins, then have fun knocking them down. You can even turn this into a math activity by having kids tally or graph the number of pins they knock down on each turn.
Learn more: No Time for Flash Cards
52. Explode ghost rockets
What kid wouldn’t love to see a ghost rocket flying through the air? This is a science demo that’s always fun to see in action.
Learn more: Growing a Jeweled Rose/Ghost Rockets Halloween Activity
53. Complete spider equations
If you’re looking for Halloween activities that help kids practice math facts, check this out. How many different ways can kids make equivalent equations? They’ll need at least eight for this silly spider craft.
Learn more: Mr. Elementary Math
54. Make a witch’s broom
Create a broomstick from cut-up yellow construction paper and a brown pipe cleaner, then let students personalize them by stringing beads of their choosing onto it.
Learn more: Happy Toddler Playtime
55. Make a silly spider headband
All you’ll need to create this adorable headband is some black construction paper, glue or a stapler, and some googly eyes. Your students will have fun personalizing them and then showing them off.
Learn more: Fantastic Fun and Learning
What are your favorite Halloween activities for the classroom? Come share on our WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook!
Plus, check out 30 Sugar-Free Treats for Halloween.
