Halloween is just around the corner and I want to help make it fun, easy and inexpensive to celebrate the Halloween season with your kids.
Here are some of my favourite Halloween activities using things you probably already have around the house!
Pumpkin Decorating
We all know that carving a pumpkin is the ultimate Halloween activity but I have some other fun no-carve ways to create a perfect Halloween pumpkin.
So, before I go into details on no carve methods I want to give you my best carving tip, cut the bottom not the top!
By doing this it is so much easier to make sure you pumpkin stays intact and you are also putting a candle on the solid ground instead of inside the uneven pumpkin!
Ok, now my no-carve techniques!
Temporary Tattoos
Temporary Tattoos are a fun and easy way to decorate a pumpkin for Halloween all you need is a wet cloth and a bunch of temporary tattoos to choose from.
You can use glow in the dark ones which are great for Halloween night.
Or use full sleeve temporary tattoos to create an entire scene.
Temporary Tattoos are a fun, easy and safe way to make the perfect, unique pumpkin!
Nail Polish Dip
Nail Polish Dipping is my absolute favourite pumpkin decorating technique and it’s so easy to do.
All you need is small white pumpkins, nail polish, gloves and a container you’re ok getting dirty and possibly stained.
The first thing you need to do is fill the container with water then put on your gloves. Next, decide on what nail polish colours you’d like to use, and pour some of each colour into the water.
Let the colours settle then wearing your gloves grab the white pumpkin by the stem and dip and swirl it in the water. The pumpkin with pick up the nail polish colours and create a fun swirl design. Repeat until you get the look you want then let dry.
Fun Halloween Food
There is nothing more fun than snacks themed for a holiday! Here are some fun and delicious Halloween themed snacks your kids will love making and enjoying!
Witches Hats
This is a fun simple snack that kids will love. All you need is Oreo cookies, Hershey Kisses and Icing.
Monster Party Mix
Want to make a snack that has a little bit of everything? Monster Party Mix is a fun blend of salty & sweet, gooey & crunchy and it’s also a great way to use left-over candies and treats. All you do is add in a bunch of different treats and mix it up!
Hot Dog Mummies
To make hot dog mummies you’ll need small hot dogs and crescent rolls. Unroll the crescent rolls and using a sharp knife slice the crescent roll into thin rolls then wrap the mummies with the pastry. Bake them to the specifications on the package or until the pastry starts to go golden brown.
Marshmallow Ghosts
This is a super simple activity that results in a delicious snack! You just need marshmallows, skewers, black icing and candy eyeballs (if you want)!
Put the marshmallows on the skewers then let kids turn them into ghosts any way they want!
Rice Crispy Monsters
This is a fun and easy ones. Make a normal batch of rice crispy treats then cut them into rectangles and use icing, sprinkles and candy eyes to make monsters. Kids can decorate them any way they want!
Spooky Experiments
Here are some fun and easy ways to make Halloween themed experiments with items you probably already have at home!
Witch’s Brew
For this experiment you’ll need vinegar, baking soda, a container to act as your cauldron, food colour and some small Halloween inspired items.
This experiment is a vinegar and baking soda volcano with a fun twist! Start by having your kids pour the vinegar into the ‘cauldron’ and add in some food colour, give it a stir to mix it together. Next have them add in the Halloween items as if they are creating a spell. Once everything has been added, give some magic words then pour in the baking soda and watch the brew bubble! I would recommend doing this over a baking sheet or garbage bag in case some of the concoction spills over the top.
Ghost Balloon
This experiment works the same as the witch’s brew but the result is totally different! Add some vinegar to an empty water bottle then put a scoop full of baking soda into a balloon. Carefully put the balloon over the mouth of the water bottle.
Have your kids stand the balloon up adding the baking soda to the vinegar and watch the ghost come to like!
Witch’s Hands
All you need for this fun activity is water, disposable gloves, elastic bands and small Halloween themed items. Have your child add some of the Halloween items into the gloves then fill the gloves with water. Use your hands to move the items around then use an elastic to seal the opening. Put them in the freezer for a few hours.
Once frozen, take them out and put them in a shallow dish. Your kids can then use warm water to melt the hands away revealing the items.
You can also do this with edible items like gummy worms then use them as the ice in a party punch bowl.
Monster Blood
One of my favourite things to make is Oobleck, which is just a mix of corn starch and water, but by adding in food colour we can turn that into monster’s blood!
All you need is a small container, corn starch, water and food coloring. Add in some corn starch followed by water and mix together. You want to add in enough eater to dissolve the corn starch so add slowly and mix. Next add in food color and mix until blended. It’s an odd substance because if you go slow it acts like a liquid and if you go fast it acts like a solid so you might find mixing a bit difficult.
Once it’s all mixed have your kids put their hands in to see how it feels. Tell them to move in different ways to see how the monster blood reacts.
Simple Halloween Crafts
Seasonal crafts can sometimes get to be too much work! Here are some of my favorite super simple Halloween crafts your kids will love!
Upside Down Bats
Making a craft is great but making a craft you can play with is awesome! For these bats all you need is an empty toilet paper roll, black paint, construction paper, pipe cleaners, scissors, glue and googly eyes if you have them.
Paint the toilet paper roll black and let dry. While it’s drying cut out wings, vampire teeth (and eyes if you don’t have googly eyes) from the construction paper and cut a pipe cleaner in half. Once the paint dries attach the wings, teeth, eyes and legs using glue.
Then, once the glue dries your bat can hang upside down using its pipe cleaner legs!
Spider Hands
This is a fun and simple activity your kids will love! Grab a piece of finger painting paper and some black paint. Paint your kid’s hands but leave the thumbs bare. Have them make hand prints using both hands to form spiders. Then decorate them anyway they want!
Pumpkin Prints
For this activity you’ll need paint, an apple cut in half and finger painting paper. Put some orange paint in a flat container then dip the apple in the paint and use the apple to stamp out pumpkins.
Once those dry your kids can use black paint to decorate them like jack-o-lanterns any way they want!
Spooky Crayons
If you have old broken crayons laying around your house and any Halloween themed candy or muffin trays then this is an activity for you! Pre-heat your oven to 300 then put the broken pieces of crayon into the molds.
Place the mold on a baking tray and put in the oven for 10 minutes or until the wax is melted. Remove from the oven and once cooled, remove the crayons from the molds.
Monster Bags
All you need for this craft is paper lunch bags, paint, paint brushes, construction paper, scissors, glue and imagination!
Have your child paint the bag any way they want keep in mind that the flap at the top will be the mouth. Once they have painted the bag set it aside to dry and use the paper and construction paper to make eyes, teeth, horns, whatever they’d like.
After the paint has dried glue on the cut out pieces then let that dry. Once that’s dry your child has their very own monster puppet!
And if you're looking for a fun book to get you in the Halloween spirit, you can check out my new book, It's Halloween, Party Like a Monster!
Well, there you have it! These are some of my favourite Halloween snacks, crafts and experiments using things you probably already have at home! I hope you and your kids have a Spooktacular Halloween season!