Pre k halloween activities: Halloween Activities and Centers for Preschool, Pre-K and Kindergarten

Halloween Activities and Centers for Preschool, Pre-K and Kindergarten

It’s almost Halloween!  I’m here to share engaging Halloween-themed activities and centers to keep your students learning and having FUN during this crazy holiday!  Use these activities and centers to take the Halloween theme all over your classroom (even the blocks center).  Don’t forget to grab your FREEBIES later in this post, or click to grab the Halloween Math and Literacy Unit, Halloween Fine Motor Mats, Pumpkin Patch Dramatic Play Unit, Little Learners Science All About Pumpkins, and Little Learners Science All About Nocturnal Animals. Let’s start planning!

Grab the FREEBIE by entering your email in the box at the bottom of this post. This post contains affiliate links which means I earn a tiny commission when you use my links at no cost to you.

Halloween Name Writing! Students make their name with the pumpkin letters, then practice writing the letters in their name on the sensory baggie with a pom pom (one letter at a time). Itis an easy way to make handwriting FUN.

Hair gel baggies are super simple to make.  Grab some hair gel from the dollar store.  Squeeze some hair gel in a baggie, and add a few eyeballs, glitter, and a few drops of gel food coloring.  Tape the top closed.  Trust me, you don’t want to forget this step. And you are ready to go!

Frankenstein Letter Match! Little learners will love practicing their letters with this cute Frankenstein theme! Students can find the matching capital letter card or use letter manipulatives with the letter mats. Throw everything in a sensory bin and give students tongs for added fine motor practice.

Skeleton Letters! Write capital letters on some butcher paper, wrapping paper, or construction paper. Then have students make the letters with q-tips. Pretend the q-tips are skeleton bones! To make it easier to form the letters, I cut some in half so they are smaller to make the curved letters. Students could also match letter manipulatives to the big letter or trace the large letters with skeleton pens.

Halloween Letter Mats! Make letters with play dough, mini erasers, small manipulatives, or trace the letters with a dry-erase marker on these fun Halloween letter mats.  Put the worksheets away and make handwriting FUN and hands-on!

Halloween Writing Center! Put out some themed writing paper, vocabulary cards, and stickers for your Halloween theme to make the writing center new and exciting for your kiddos.  I also added neon paint sticks (they dry in like two minutes).  Adding new writing tools keeps students writing all year long.

Halloween Syllables! Students clap, count, and build the number of syllables each word has using these connecting cubes. 

Halloween Book List! I absolutely have a children’s book obsession, so I change out the bookshelf for every theme!  The bottom of the bookshelf is for our class books we’ve made and our book hospital.  Want a list of my favorite Halloween books?  Click HERE!

Halloween Color Clip! In my library center, you will find this cute Halloween Color Clip matching activity.   It’s simple to play.  Students clip the matching color squares.  It’s bright, sparkly, and a great fine motor task! Want to make a set?  It’s super simple!  Just paint some clothespins and attached foam stickers to the end. Cut up matching colored cardstock, and you are all set.

Halloween Sort! All you need is a cupcake tin, tongs, and mini erasers or small Halloween manipulatives. Students will sort the items into separate tins. They will be working on one-to-one correspondence, hand-eye coordination, fine motor skills, and sorting skills. I like to tape one mini eraser to each spot on the muffin tin so when students dump the muffin tin at the end of the activity, the mini erasers are still stuck to the muffin pan. 

Witches’ Brew Counting Game! Your students will FLIP over this counting game.  They pick a recipe card and count out the objects to create the witches’ brew!  I bought all of the “ingredients,” tray, and cauldron at the dollar store. Check here if you are having trouble finding materials for this activity. 

>Grab the FREEBIE by entering your email in the box at the bottom of this blog post!<<

Monster Race! Races make any game more exciting, so I just had to make a Monster Race game for our Halloween theme.  Instead of using counters, I put out googly eyes for students to use to cover their boards. Students roll one or two dice and cover the corresponding number of spaces on their board.  The first one to race to the end wins!

Witch Number Build It Mats! Trace numbers with pom poms, mini spiders, or candy corn. If you are worried about students eating the candy, make each child their own baggie.  Don’t want to use candy?  Use mini erasers or any small manipulatives you have in your classroom. Students can even trace them with a dry-erase marker. Place witch fingers at the table and students can trace the number with the witch finger.  

Candy Count! Practice sorting, counting, and graphing skills with a fun candy-sorting activity. I made a color die with stickers and made the game board using candy wrappers. Students rolled the die and moved a bear manipulative up the candy graph one space. Talk about more than, less than, and equal to with your little learners and for students who need more practice with one-to-one correspondence. 

Trick-or-Treat Numbers! Place the Halloween number cards around the room and give students a clipboard, writing utensil, and recording sheet. Students will walk around the room and find the number cards. Then, they will trace them on the recording sheet and move to the next number. This is a great activity to get students up and moving but also learning!

Mummy Shapes! Little learners will love to make shapes with these cute mummy shapes cards! I set out large marshmallows overnight to dry and get hard. Then, I drew mummy faces and mummy wraps on them. Students will use pipe cleaners and mummy marshmallows to build the shapes. Then count the number of sides and vertices. You can also use playdough snakes to make the shapes. 

Jack-O-Lantern Shape Craft! Make this simple craft with your little learners for a fun Halloween-themed activity. Everyone gets a green piece of paper, then cut an orange pumpkin shape. Students then will use black paper shapes to create the face. Add some eyes and a brown stem to complete the craft. 

Halloween Patterns! Students will practice patterning skills, hand-eye coordination, and fine motor skills with this simple task. I laminated some orange bulletin board borders. Then cut it into smaller strips. Students make patterns with mini erasers, pom poms, Halloween candy, or any other small manipulatives. 

Halloween STEM! Don’t forget to add Halloween props to the blocks center.   Add spiders, popsicle sticks (for making fences), ghosts, bats, bones (Q tips), jack-o-lanterns, and foam boards (green/brown for dirt/fields).  Add real photographs to inspire students to plan, design, and build new things.  I put up these Halloween STEM I Can Build Cards on the bulletin boards to inspire my little engineers.

I made the ghosts by putting a tissue over a cotton ball and wrapping a pipe cleaner around it!  Super simple and so cute!

Mummy craft! How cute is this little mummy?  It’s a fun craft you can do for small groups or even at the Halloween party.  I cut out the mummy for my students, but you can have your students cut the mummy out themselves if they are able to.  All students do is tear up paper towels and glue them to the mummy.  Once the mummy is covered, glue on two eyes, and it’s finished!  

>Grab the FREEBIE by entering your email in the box at the bottom of this blog post!<<

Halloween Playdough Tray! Playdough trays are the BEST thing ever, as my students would tell you.   I make one for every theme now because they LOVE them so much, and there are so many benefits (build fine motor strength, increase their vocabulary, use their imaginations, problem solve).  Grab some cookie cutters, googly eyes, cut-up black pipe cleaners (in the middle of the tray), spider rings, and play dough.  Let your students create Halloween sculptures with the play dough.

Halloween Fine Motor! I don’t know what it is about sparkly pom poms, but my students love transferring them into fun ice cube trays like these that I found at the dollar store.  The pom poms are different sizes, so students are learning about math and building fine motor as they use the tweezers.  Sometimes the simplest activities like this transfer activity are the biggest hit!

Halloween Sensory Table! In the sensory table are black beans, pumpkin gems, small scoops, mini erasers, spider rings,  googly eyes, tweezers, and small jack-o-lanterns.   Lots of fine motor work going on and science skills in the sensory table as they fill, dump, pinch, and scoop!

Halloween Potions! Grab a tray and spray some shaving cream in it. Then, drop in some food coloring or liquid watercolor to make it colorful! I added in some cups of bubbly water and droppers too. Throw in some Halloween manipulatives and you are ready to explore and play like a scientist!

Pumpkin Science Center! Explore all the parts of a pumpkin, how they grow, and so much more with the Little Learners All About Pumpkins Science Unit. 

Nocturnal Animals Science Center! Already studied pumpkins? No worries! Check out this nocturnal animals science center to learn about the critters that are out at night! Little learners will love all the hands-on exploration opportunities and learning about animals. 

Pumpkin Patch Dramatic Play! We changed the dramatic play center into a pumpkin patch. Read all about how we did it and what students were learning through play HERE. Grab the materials here!

Grab all the printable Halloween Math and Literacy Centers for your classroom HERE! Save time and go home after school because I’ve created it all for you.  Just print and prep!

Check out this post to see 15 ideas to have a spooky, fun time at your Halloween party!

If you need some amazing Halloween sensory bottles, check out this post on how to make them!

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Halloween Activities for Preschoolers to Enjoy this October

If you’re looking for some fun and engaging Halloween activities for preschoolers, you’ve come to the right place!

Be sure to bookmark or pin this page so you have it ready when you’re planning your preschool Halloween theme.

Related: Playful Fall Activities for Preschoolers

Table of Contents

Planning for Your Preschool Halloween Theme

It’s that time of year again!

The weather’s getting colder, the leaves are changing, and teachers and parents everywhere are being asked, “Is it Halloween yet?!”

You’re probably already being regaled with descriptions of the kids’ Halloween costumes, too, aren’t you? I love preschoolers’ enthusiasm for dressing up!

Use the kids’ enthusiasm for all-things-Halloween and plan some super engaging Halloween activities for preschoolers.

Why a Halloween Theme?

As I just mentioned, you’re probably already seeing how excited preschoolers can be about Halloween.

That excitement means they’re going to be interested in what you’re planning. Which means more engagement and more meaning for your students.

Plus, you can add such a variety of topics when you’re planning the Halloween activities:

• Bats
• Spiders
• Monsters
• Skeletons
• Nutrition
• Safety
• Pumpkins

Okay, I’ll stop there. But you can see how this holiday can be used to teach and explore so many topics.

Now, if you work in a school that doesn’t permit holidays, or there are other reasons you cannot include a Halloween theme . . . that’s okay.

Choose the related themes that make the most sense for you, your students, and the school where you work. For example, teaching a spider theme or a bat theme doesn’t have to correlate with Halloween at all.

Related: Free Printable Halloween Countdown Calendar

Special Materials to Have on Hand

I’m a big believer in using what you already have in the classroom to teach any and all themes.

But it is also nice to supplement when you can. So if you’re able to, consider bringing in some of the items listed below. You can do this by asking parents to donate or lend things, touching base with your administrator, bringing things in from home, or even talking to local businesses about contributing to your classroom.

Here are some suggestions (I may get commissions for purchases made through links in this post):

• Children’s Halloween costumes
• Old adult clothes to use in place of costumes
• Spider and bat rings
• Halloween-themed mini erasers
• Witch fingers
• Simple foam masks

Halloween Activities for Preschoolers

Keep reading for some of my favorite Fun-A-Day Halloween activities.

Everything is broken down into topic areas for easier browsing, and I’ll update as more ideas are added!

Halloween Literacy Activities

Read “Big Pumpkin” to the children – it’s one of my favorite Halloween books. Then set up a Halloween sequencing activity that works on retelling.

A printable Halloween emergent reader is just what you need to practice early literacy skills.

A Halloween fine motor activity would be perfect during center time, too. Break out those funny witchy fingers!

Grab the Halloween matching game printable and play along with the kids. You can also use these cards to work on early literacy skills.

Halloween book making with kids doesn’t get any more interesting than this “Where Monsters Live” book.

Use Halloween tracing and cutting strips to practice fine motor skills in a variety of ways.

Use the I See Halloween emergent reader to practice so many early literacy skills with the kids.

Sensory Activities for Halloween

Make some not-so-scary monster slime with the kids.

These spider theme sensory bottle ideas are a great way to introduce arachnids to children, even those who might be a little scared.

Dye some bowtie pasta and put together a Stellaluna activity in your sensory center.

Halloween sensory activities don’t need to be difficult. Try these two easy ideas and watch the kids have a blast.

Make crunchy and colorful Halloween slime with green foam beads and orange food coloring.

A Halloween sensory bottle with floating jack-o-lanterns is just what your sensory center needs in October!

Put together a “haunted” Halloween sensory play invitation for your students.

Math Halloween Activities for Preschoolers

Combine monster slime and number cards for this monster counting activity.

Explore Halloween math with a spider counting book in your math center or small groups.

Art and Crafts for Halloween

Your students will have way too much fun creating transient art with Halloween contact paper art.

Create Halloween art activities with the kids as they make coffee filter jack o’ lantern prints.

You can make a Halloween craft for kids using a cupcake liner and paper plate. Sweet and simple wreath for Halloween!

Add this simple bat craft to your list of Halloween theme activities. A great mix of science and art fun for the kids.

The Frankenstein monster pumpkin is three-dimensional art with a Halloween fine motor twist.

Make a glow in the dark sensory bottle using spider rings!

More Halloween Activities for Preschoolers

Here are some Halloween theme collections you might also want to consider for your October planning.

15 Fun and Easy Halloween Activities Using Mini Erasers

30 Halloween science and sensory activities

Preschool pumpkin activities for your pumpkin theme

Spider crafts and activities for kids

Creative Halloween activities for kids

Monster activities for kids to try this Halloween

Halloween Lesson Plans and More

If you’re looking for resources to help you as a preschool teacher, you need to check out The Pack from Preschool Teacher 101. It will save you so much time planning and organizing!

Preschool Teacher 101’s Halloween lesson plans have more than 100 pages of daily and weekly plans, center explanations, book suggestions, and related printables. Basically, everything you need to plan your Halloween activities!

Other Done-for-You Halloween Activities for Preschoolers

Monster Shape Art with Math and Literacy Activities

October Writing Journal Prompts

Bat Theme Lesson Plans

Spider Theme Preschool Lesson Plans

Skeleton Lesson Plans

Monster Lesson Plans

Even More Halloween Theme Activities

Well, I can’t just stop now, can I?

Here are some more resources you can incorporate into your big ol’ list of Halloween activities for preschoolers.

Halloween Books for Preschoolers

All good preschool themes include a tall stack of children’s books.

Here are some of my favorite Halloween books. Add in some of your own faves and I’m sure you’ll have quite the stash of books to read this month.

Halloween Songs for Preschool

You can’t plan Halloween activities for preschoolers without some song ideas. Many of the Halloween songs I wanted to share with you are on YouTube. But not ALL of them.

One of my absolute favorites to sing with the preschoolers is Charlotte Diamond’s “Looking for Dracula.” It is seriously amazing. You can check it out on her album 10 Carrot Diamond (along with some other wonderful preschool songs).

“Down By the Spooky Bay” from Super Simple Songs is a Halloween-themed version of the favorite “Down by the Bay.” It’s followed by even more songs the kids will enjoy this Halloween.

You can’t have a list of Halloween songs for kids without including “Five Little Pumpkins!” This version is from The Kiboomers.

“Who Took the Candy?” from Super Simple Songs is based on the classic “Who Took the Cookie from the Cookie Jar?” song. It’s followed by even more Halloween songs the kids will enjoy.

The Kiboomer’s “Skeleton Dance” is a sweet (not scary!) Halloween song. It’s reminiscent of “Dem Bones” and “Dry Bones.”

“Halloween Song for Kids” from The Singing Walrus is all about counting to ten. It includes traditional Halloween creatures and encourages the children to count along.

Even More Preschool Halloween Ideas

If you need even MORE Halloween activities for preschoolers, check out some of the posts linked below.

So many amazing ideas to choose from!

Spider Ring Counting Game

Masking Tape Mummy Craft

Halloween Charades for Kids

Bat Counting Game

Halloween Sensory Bin

Nutritious Halloween Snacks for Kids

Marshmallow and Toothpick Spider Web

Halloween Manipulatives and Toys

Here are a few toys and manipulatives you might want to integrate into your Halloween activities for preschoolers.

What are some of YOUR favorite Halloween activities for preschoolers?

For more ideas be sure to visit Fun-A-Day’s Halloween Pinterest board.

traditions, signs of what should and should not be done – YASIA

Halloween is celebrated on the night of October 31 to November 1, on the eve of All Saints Day. This holiday is considered the most terrible of the year and at the same time the funniest.

There is a holiday in Ireland. In the old days, this day symbolized the end of summer and the beginning of a new year. According to ancient Celtic legend, on Halloween, the deity of death comes to power, calling for help the souls of dead people. For this reason, it is on October 31 that the gates between the world of the living and the dead open, and the souls of the dead come to earth.

Living people were not very happy about the prospect of meeting with evil spirits, so they tried to drive them away with the help of fire and entertainment. People dressed up in scary costumes to confuse evil spirits and pass for “their own”.

Traditions and rituals of the holiday

An important attribute of the holiday is Jack’s lamp (pumpkin with carved eyes and mouth, with a candle inside).

An integral part of Halloween is costumes that embody ideas about evil spirits. They are saturated with black and red colors, made in the form of mantles – robes with a hood. Images of vampires, ghouls, witches are popular. It is also customary to dress up as movie characters or famous personalities and ask for treats. Children go from house to house and beg sweets from the owners.

Fortune-telling is common on Halloween. Girls throw an apple peel behind their backs and, by the appearance of the fallen peel, predict the first letter of the name of their future spouse. Women climb the stairs with their backs forward, hold a candle by the mirror, trying to see the features of the betrothed.

On this holiday, dishes are prepared with the main ingredient – an apple: caramel, syrup, toffee, sweets in the form of corn. Barmbrack bread is baked – an Irish flour product with raisins and grapes. Peas, wood chips, coins, ring and cloth are added to the dough. According to the subject, they predict the future. Peas say that you should not wait for an imminent wedding, a sliver – to family troubles, a coin – to prosperity, a ring – to an imminent wedding, fabric – to lack of money.

Frightening attractions are organized in many cities around the world on this holiday. In Ireland, fireworks are arranged, in Japan – ceremonial processions. In Russia, Halloween is popular among students. On this day, entertainment venues hold themed events.

What not to do on Halloween

According to a huge number of mediums and psychics, there are things that under no circumstances should be done on this day. So, religious people do not eat meat and meat products at this time, and also attend church without fail, pray and remember their dead relatives.

You must not let a black cat into your house, because in the form of an animal, evil spirits can come to you.

Do not leave cats at home at night.

Spiders must not be killed.

Do not leave clothes on a line, because after sunset, evil spirits can move into them. If you still forgot to take it off, be sure to rewash it.

Doors and windows should not be left open – evil spirits can get into the house through them.

You cannot refuse those who ask you for money or help.

Don’t turn around if you hear footsteps behind you – they could be the dead.

Things to do on Halloween

Those who are alive on this night can do with impunity a few things that are not approved at other times, but during the holiday they are not only permissible, but almost obligatory.

Drink hard liquor and gamble.

Pouring alcohol. This night, the border between the two worlds becomes so thin that it almost disappears. If you are going to walk on Halloween night, take a bottle of any alcoholic drink and a couple of plastic cups with you. If you are squeamish, you can just spill a little from the bottle at any intersection. Spirits also want to drink and if you pour them, they will be grateful to you. Individuals prone to extreme acts can pour a drink to any vagrant they meet. In England, it is still believed that the souls of the dead that night often use the bodies of homeless people to get out “into the world. ”

Make indecent proposals to people of any gender who are not regular partners. It is known that the rites of the Druids associated with this holiday included sexual orgies, but to achieve the desired result, it is enough to express the appropriate intention. In this way, you can ensure success in your current and future affairs, as well as get a guarantee that you will not die this year.

Go to the neighbors in search of snacks. On this night, the dead return to earth and wander around the places where they spent their lives, in search of food and warmth. The more the living will mow down under the dead and the more calmly people treat those who knock on their door, shouting out a ritual phrase, the easier it will be for the dead to get what they want. Help them and they will be grateful to you. It is known that this very night people are often visited by fateful insights.

Guessing, summoning spirits, falling into a trance and talking about death. Every person on this night has a chance to hear voices from the other side of the border, contact the dead and receive information that cannot be obtained otherwise. On this night, no one says “it’s just your fantasy”, “it’s impossible” and “stop talking nonsense.”

In addition, during the holiday, it is welcome to touch on topics that are usually considered taboo, first of all, the topic of death. Whoever is brave enough will be rewarded. In addition, you can and should drink mulled wine (with cinnamon, cloves and apple slices), light candles, watch movies, eat sweets and dance.

Halloween signs

To scare away ghosts, at home and sometimes outside, it is customary to wear things inside out.

In addition to the pumpkin, in order to scare away evil spirits, it was customary to leave a branch of a walnut tree near the house and, accordingly, the pumpkin itself, inside of which there was a lit candle. According to beliefs, spirits are even afraid of the smell of these attributes.

Black cats have always been treated in a special way on Halloween, as it was considered a bad omen to leave them in the house on this holiday.

If a bat or a spider was seen in the house, it was a sign that the spirit of dead relatives was watching them in the house.

They were very afraid of the owls that sat on the roofs of the houses and tried to drive them away as soon as possible, otherwise soon, according to legends, there will be a dead person in the house;

If the candles are constantly extinguished in the house, then this caused fear in people, because they believed that there were many evil spirits somewhere nearby.

If the bat circled around the house, then the household, on the contrary, rejoiced at this, as they believed that in the future they would have a good harvest.

Ozon: before Halloween, Russians have increased their interest in outfits for pets – Gazeta.Ru

Ozon: before Halloween, Russians have increased their interest in outfits for pets – Gazeta.Ru | News

October 29, 2022, 03:06

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Sales of fake wings for animals in October this year increased 20 times compared to the same period last year, RIA Novosti reports , citing the press service of the Ozon marketplace.