21 Halloween Activities for Preschool and Kindergarten

Halloween is an exciting time in the preschool classroom or home setting, but the activities don’t need to be complicated or scary. These simple, play-based ideas cover music and movement, art, literacy and more — perfect for a fun and friendly Halloween theme week.

🎶🏃 Music & Movement

1. Musical Pumpkins

Practise finding position in space by taping pumpkin cutouts on the floor and playing a game of musical pumpkins! You'll need one pumpkin per child.

Play some Halloween-themed music and when the music stops, kids must run and sit down on a pumpkin as quickly as they can. Remove one pumpkin on each round and play until you have a winner, or keep all the pumpkins out for younger toddlers.

2. Charades

Play a game of Halloween charades. Move like silly monsters, witches, crawling spiders or bats, and ask the children to guess what you are.

3. Spider Web Walk

Using masking tape, create a large spider web pattern on the classroom floor. The children pretend to be spiders and must walk along the tape, balancing carefully so they don’t fall off their webs.

4. Simon Says

Play Halloween Simon Says. Here are some examples:

Simon says get on your broom and fly away

Simon says lie upside down like a bat

Simon says hoot like an owl

Simon says rattle like a skeleton

Simon says cackle like a witch

Simon says walk like a zombie

5. Halloween Songs

Knock, Knock, Trick or Treat?

Introduce children to different Halloween costumes with this call-and-response song by Noodle & Pals. Here is the first verse:

Knock knock, trick or treat?
Who are you?
I'm a ghost. I'm a little ghost.
Knock knock, trick or treat?
Who are you?
I'm a ghost. I'm a little ghost.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdsxHxrDEzs

The Skeleton Dance

This fun song teaches body awareness and is also full of movement:

Dem bones, dem bones, dem dancing bones.
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dancing bones.
Dem bones, dem bones, dem dancing bones.
Doin' the skeleton dance.

The foot bone's connected to the leg bone.
The leg bone's connected to the knee bone.
The knee bone's connected to the thigh bone.
Doin' the skeleton dance.

The thigh bone's connected to the hip bone.
The hip bone's connected to the backbone.
The backbone's connected to the neck bone.
Doin' the skeleton dance.

Shake your hands to the left.
Shake your hands to the right.
Put your hands in the air.
Put your hands out of sight.
Shake your hands to the left.
Shake your hands to the right.
Put your hands in the air.
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle,
wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle,
wiggle, wiggle…wiggle your knees.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e54m6XOpRgU

If You’re a Monster and You Know It

Make up the words to this song as you go along, and sing it to the tune of If You're Happy and You Know It:

If you're a monster and you know it clap your claws/stomp your feet/growl out loud.
If you're a monster and you know it clap your claws
If you're a monster and you know it clap your claws, and you really want to show it
If you're a monster and you know it clap your claws

The Skeleton Shake!

and have the children follow the dance moves, especially if they need a quick movement break! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etbS9iiWLl4

🎨 Process Art and Crafts

1. Colour-Mixing

Allow children to paint freely with the main colours of Halloween — black and orange. Let them see the effect when the black and orange paints mix on their page.

2. Tissue Paper Collage

Provide an outline of a pumpkin and some orange tissue paper. They can scrunch the tissue paper into small pieces and glue them onto the pumpkin. This would also work with black tissue paper and a cat outline, or white paper on a ghost outline.

3. Witch Hats

Make striking witch hats by providing an outline on cardstock and painting it all black. Leave it to dry and decorate the hats the next day by providing lots of fun materials such as glitter, pom-poms, sequins or shiny/glow-in-the-dark stickers.

4. Spider Webs

Make spider webs with marbles and paint by dipping marbles in white paint and rolling them across black paper. Or try drawing spider webs with glue on black cardstock and sprinkling salt over them to make the webs stand out.

📚 Literacy & Stories

1. Book ideas

Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson is a favourite with most kids and fast becoming a classic. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHxGe44wSCI&t=7s

Big Pumpkin by Erica Silverman tells the story of a witch who planted a pumpkin seed that grew into an enormous pumpkin. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swCq9BuOcnU

The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything by Linda Williams is a cute story about facing fear. It has lots of fun repetition. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtcGFWStz5o

Click, Clack, Boo! by Doreen Cronin makes use of lots of sound words (onomatopoeia). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9PvJW9BYdY

2. Story Retelling with Props

Act out the popular story Room on the Broom (above). Use props such as a witch’s hat, cape, broom and a large pot or cauldron.

3. I Went Trick-or-Treating...

Build auditory memory with this fun listening and recall game. Take turns saying the phrase "I went trick-or-treating and I saw a...", each time adding a new word to the list. See how many words the children can remember in a string. For example:

I went trick-or-treating and I saw a ghost

I went trick-or-treating and I saw a ghost and a witch

I went trick-or-treating and I saw a ghost, a witch and a werewolf

4. What Comes Next?

Create a Halloween-themed tale together during circle time. Introduce the story and have the children take turns adding lines and watch how the story takes on a life of its own. Try to steer it away from becoming too scary.

5. Alphabet Hunt

Hide paper ghosts or other cutouts with letters around the room. Each child must find one and return to sit and tell the others what their letter or sound is.

🔢 Maths & Science

1. Patterning with Halloween Colours

Make patterns with orange, black and green — the colours of Halloween. Use beads or paper cutouts. Try varying the pattern: A/B or A/A/B or A/B/C.

2. Graphing

Create a class graph where you plot down what everyone is planning to wear on Halloween to go trick-or-treating.

Draw a graph on the board or on a large sheet of paper with headings such as Witch, Ghost, Cat, etc., and make a mark (or paste a symbol) under the relevant outfit for each child. Ideas for discussion at the end:

What is the most common Halloween costume?

How many different outfit ideas are there in the class altogether?

Which outfit will be worn by three children?

Which outfits are the most unique?

How many children are going to dress up as a ghost?

How many children are wearing outfits that are not scary?

3. Glow-in-the-Dark Exploration

Turn off the main lights and explore what glows! Set up a small darkened area and shine blacklights (UV lights) on different objects such as white paper, neon toys, glow sticks or highlighter drawings.

Children can predict which materials will glow, then test their ideas. This simple activity builds scientific observation and prediction skills, while also sparking awe and curiosity.

Safety tip: Avoid shining the light directly into children’s eyes and supervise closely.

💬 Dramatic Play and Social-Emotional Learning

1. Halloween Dress-Up Corner

Set up a Halloween dress-up corner and ask the children to donate some items to help make this area really fun. Include props such as capes, hats and masks.

Halloween dress-up is not always scary, so mix in some neutral themes such as superheroes or fairies.

2. Feelings Discussion

Have a discussion about what makes Halloween fun and also what makes it a little scary. Give children time to express their thoughts and feelings, and discuss that they have choices about what they will wear and whether or not they would like to go trick-or-treating.

While many children will be celebrating, some families may choose not to for various reasons. It’s worth discussing that not everyone feels the same way about this holiday.

One of the stories in the section above might follow this discussion and help put the "scariness" factor into perspective.

3. Witch’s Potion

In the dramatic play area, create a sensory bin with “ingredients” to make a witch's potion. Include natural materials such as flowers, twigs and leaves. Find a make-shift cauldron and provide spoons and bowls.

4. Halloween Parade

Hold your own class Halloween parade to celebrate the week. Invite children to dress up in friendly costumes and march around the classroom or playground, taking turns to lead the line.

Encourage them to wave, smile and share space as they walk, helping them learn about cooperation and body awareness. Play some upbeat music to make it feel festive and finish by letting each child take a bow.

Feel free to mix and match these activities throughout the week — during circle time, learning centres, or playtime at home. There’s no need for lots of preparation; even a few songs, process art projects, and simple games can create a fun, festive Halloween atmosphere that children will absolutely love.