Article for The Kids Window who are celbrating Halloween with a range of fun kids Halloween costumes
and childrens Halloween fancy dress outfits and accessories.
Halloween is a time when ghosts, witches and goblins seem to pop up everywhere. Sometimes the festivities can be a little too intense for younger children. Here are some non-spooky Halloween activities that are lots of fun for toddlers to do.
Create Fun with Colored Pasta
- You can add 1 cup of uncooked pasta noodles to a plastic bag.
- The zip top plastic bags are perfect for coloring macaroni noodles.
- In a plastic cup mix 2 tablespoons of isopropyl rubbing alcohol and 4-6 drops of food coloring together.
- Add this liquid to the noodles, zip the bag and shake gently until the color is absorbed by all of the pasta noodles. This will take 2-3 minutes.
- Set a colander in the sink and pour the colored noodles into it very carefully. The excess color will be drained from the noodles.
- Then you can use a slotted spoon to lift the noodles and place them on a cookie sheet that you have lined with some paper towels.
- Let the noodles dry overnight before using them.
The best colors for Halloween crafts will be noodles that are colored orange, green, yellow and black.
Let your toddlers glue the pasta onto paper plates to create jack o’lantern faces. You can also help them string bracelets that they can wear.
Edible Treats are Fun to Make and Fun to Eat
Use some canned frosting, marshmallows, graham crackers and Halloween candies to create fun treats that can be eaten.
Bean Bag Throw
You will need an old white sheet or tablecloth for this game and some pumpkins that you cut from orange poster board.
Use wide tipped markers to draw some pumpkin targets in several places. You might want to draw some vines and leaves on the sheet with green markers, or just make some circles that resemble bull’s eyes. Now spread the cloth on the floor or place it on your lawn. Give the kids 2-3 poster board pumpkins to toss at the sheet. Whoever gets their pumpkins the closest to the targets will win the game.
* If you are using the vines and leaves drawings then the winner is the person that comes closest to landing their pumpkin back on the vine.
Additional Ideas
You can make a simple fishing pole from a small branch and a piece of yarn. Set up a table or a box in the corner of the room and cover it with a Halloween inspired cloth. Have someone sitting behind the table who stays out of view during the game. They should have a supply of small candies and toys with them. Then let each child take turn fishing. Each time the fishing line is cast over the table a small surprise can be tied or taped to the tip.
Put some dry ice in few hollowed out pumpkins and set them around the room. Make sure that toddlers can not reach the pumpkins. The dry ice will produce a smoky haze that will surprise and delight small children.
Trick or treating is just one of the activities you can do for Halloween. If you are throwing a party, you should have a few games so the kids can have fun.
The first game is called wrap the mummy. The objective here is to see who can wrap the mummy the fastest. Since the mummy could be quite big, it is best to group the participants in groups of two. With the materials in hand, you tell them to begin the moment you start the clock. Whoever finishes first wins a prize.
Next is the Great Monster Off. While most the kids come dressed to parties, tell your guests not to so they can play this game. With materials that you will be providing them, the kids will make their own. You can then give awards for those who have the cutest, scariest, funniest and most creative outfits.
One of the more common games for kids and adults as well is Apple Bobbing. You again group the kids in teams of two and after one kid bobs an apple, he or she has to do a certain task before the other member is able to do it. The one who finishes first will win the prize.
Since there will be water spilling on the floor, make sure that you have other adults other than yourself to supervise. Accidents do happen and this should be avoided when it is all about having fun.
Another Halloween game is called Wonder Brain which is very similar to musical chair. The only difference is that you don’t have to sit down when the music stops because the participant gets eliminated only when the item is still in their possession.
The reason why they call it wonder brain is because you are letting them carry a fake brain. There are many ways to do this and one example is by using a few paper towels, a freezer bag and some red dye. The game begins when the kids form a circle. The brain is passed from one kid to the next and when the music stops, whoever has it is out until the last person standing becomes the winner.
The kids can also play pumpkin toss. Here, you hang a large pumpkin on the ceiling with holes in the middle. The kid who is able to shoot the most number of rolls of socks or bean bags is the winner. To make it more challenging, award points for the eyes, nose and mouth. Who scores the highest number of points wins.
The last game is called Pin the Skeleton which is just like Pin the Donkey. The mechanics of the game are the same which includes blind folding that person. Since the skeleton does not have a heart, you have to pin this onto it and whoever is able to do this successfully wins.
There are other Halloween games which you can plan for the kids. You can even make certain variations to those mentioned and still let them enjoy a fun filled activity. So before the party begins, make sure that you already have a program ready. It will be a good idea to have 4 or 5 games so everyone will be able to participate instead of just watching from the sidelines.
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