31 Fun and Cheap Halloween Activities to Do with Kids
August 31, 2023 6 Minute Read
Halloween is coming soon — are you ready to get in the frightfully fun spirit? We’re sharing easy ways to scare up good times each and every day in October for very little moolah. Boo-yeah!
1 / Craft cotton swab skeletons.
All you need is black construction paper, cotton swabs, glue, scissors and a marker. Print pumpkin head template here.
2 / Roast marshmallows.
Conjure up a backyard bonfire and toast marshmallows — eat them plain or squish them into s’mores.
3 / Scare someone.
Kick off Halloween month by hiding behind a door and jumping out at just the right moment to give someone a fun fright.
4 / Wear a costume.
Be it princess, pirate, werewolf or witch, costumes are not just for Halloween night!
5 / Jump in a leaf pile.
6 / Learn about Day of the Dead.
If you already celebrate Día de los Muertos, you know it takes place on November 1 and 2, with a focus on remembering loved ones who have died. In some of our Bakeries, you’ll find pan de muerto — a Mexican bread typically enjoyed during Día de los Muertos celebrations.
7 / Tell a ghost story.
“It was a dark and stormy night, when suddenly there came a knock at the door...”
8 / Sip mummy juice.
For a monstrous spin on kid-favorite drinks, wrap juice boxes in white gauze. Glue on googly eyes for an extra eerie embellishment.
9 / Create Frankenstein’s monster fruit cups.
Bring snacktime to life by using a black permanent marker to draw the iconic face (don’t forget the neck bolts!) on a clear fruit cup.
10 / Devour bloody finger hot dogs.
Kids will eat up the gross factor — and it’s so easy! Use a sharp paring knife to cut out a shallow fingernail-shaped layer from the tip of the hot dog, revealing the paler interior. Carve two sets of shallow angled lines to look like knuckles. Boil or fry the hot dog, then add a tiny piece of white cheese for a fingernail. Serve in hot dog buns with plenty of ketchup.
11 / Chomp a snack with a bite.
Add a playful supernatural touch to lunchboxes or snacktime by using a sharp paring knife to cut out two little fangs from the red wax covering on a round cheese snack. Draw on eyes and v-shaped eyebrows with a black permanent marker.
12 / Listen to wicked good music.
Turn up the beat with some of our favorite scary tunes. Find it on Spotify®.
13 / Watch a classic Halloween movie or a scary series.
Show an encore viewing of a family favorite, like Hotel Transylvania, Coraline or Monsters, Inc. Or, try something a bit newer: ParaNorman, Frankenweenie or the animated version of The Addams Family 2. Older kids (and parents) can binge Netflix® hits, like Wednesday, Stranger Things or Locke & Key. And after the kiddos go to bed, some parents might want to revisit the addictively watchable first season of the Netflix original, The Haunting of Hill House. Creepy!
14 / Serve caramel apple nachos.
These caramel apple nachos are a delicious way to use up fresh-picked apples for a flavorful fall snack. Try the recipe here.
15 / Make ghost lollipops.
This retro craft never goes out of style. Cover a lollipop with tissue paper or a tissue, then secure with ribbon. Draw on eyes if you like.
16 / Paint a pumpkin.
That’s not a pumpkin...or is it? Disguise a gourd as something else with some creative painting. Think strawberry, donut or even a watermelon! You can do this earlier in the month because keeping the pumpkin whole means it will stay fresh longer.
17 / Plant flower bulbs.
There’s perhaps nothing more satisfying than watching colorful shoots and blooms pop up in the spring. Of course, tulips, daffodils and crocuses are perennial classics — or you could even try black dahlias...
18 / Treat yourself to cider and donuts.
19 / Learn a fall fun fact.
Illinois produces up to five times more pumpkins than any other state. The Land of Lincoln devotes more than 15,000 acres to gourd growing, according to the United States Department of Agriculture. That’s 500 million pounds of pumpkins every year!
20 / Make apple cider frozen pops.
Simply pour into molds, add a stick and freeze for pure refreshment on those sunny fall days.
21 / Create a boo-tiful bat wall.
Download our free bat template, then print and cut out each bat. Trace around it with white crayon or chalk onto black construction paper. Cut out as many bats as you like, then let your fancy take flight by taping up a cauldron (that’s what you call a group of swarming bats!).
22 / Concoct eyeball slime.
Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble with this super slimy creation. Mad science!
You’ll need:
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup white or clear PVA school glue
- Food coloring
- Craft googly eyes
- 1⁄4 tsp. baking soda + 1⁄4 tsp. more, if desired
- 1 Tbsp. saline solution (NOT contact lens solution — must contain boric acid and sodium borate), plus more, if needed
What You’ll do:
- In medium bowl, mix water and glue until completely combined.
- Add food coloring and mix until evenly combined. (If using white glue, the overall color will be lighter. Use clear glue for jewel-tone colors.) Fold in googly eyes.
- Stir in 1⁄4 teaspoon baking soda to improve firmness of slime. Add additional 1⁄4 teaspoon if you prefer it thicker.
- Mix in saline solution (you may need more depending on the brand). Stir until slime forms and pulls away from sides of bowl. If slime feels too sticky, add a few more drops of saline solution by squirting solution onto your hands, then kneading it into slime.
- Knead until desired consistency is reached. Store in an airtight container up to 1 month.
23 / Halloween Snack Mix
Equal parts salty and sweet, this fun mix is super flexible. Add your own spin with a mix of cereals, pretzels and your favorite candies. Candy pumpkins and candy corns are classic choices, or go with chocolate candies or peanut chocolate candy-coated candies.
24 / Solve our photo hunt.
Can you spot the hidden objects in this image?
25 / Read an Edgar Allan Poe poem by candlelight.
We recommend “The Raven,” even if it’s just a few stanzas (first stanza printed here).
Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
"Tis some visitor,” I muttered, “tapping at my chamber door —
Only this, and nothing more.”
Want to keep reading? All Poe’s work is now public domain and can be accessed through Project Gutenberg.
26 / Tell a Halloween joke.
Q: Why didn’t the skeleton go to the prom?
A: He had no body to go with.
Q: Where do baby ghosts go during the day?
A: Day-scare.
27 / Sink your teeth into a new kind of apple.
Sure, you know honeycrisp, granny smith, fuji, gala and McIntosh. But have you met the new guys in town? It’s the right time to meet Cosmic Crisp® and Opal®, too. Eat them by the bite, or try sautéing slices. Melt butter in a skillet, then add apples, a spoonful of brown sugar and a sprinkle of cinnamon, and cook until soft.
Shop Apples
28 / Bake apple oatmeal cookies.
Our recipe is a sweet riff on classic apple pie flavors in cookie form.
29 / Send a boo gram.
Tie a surprise note or bewitching drawing to a piece of candy, then drop it off on a neighbor’s doorstep.
30 / Flip up spiderweb pancakes.
Transfer your favorite pancake batter into a clean condiment bottle or a zip-top plastic bag. If using a bag, snip off a 1⁄4-inch corner. Squeeze the batter into a skillet in thin lines to make a spiderweb design. Once bubbles begin to form in the batter, flip and cook about 1 minute on other side. For an extra dose of creepy deliciousness, garnish with blackberries embellished with tiny candy eyes to look like spiders.
31 / Trick or treat!
This is the night we’ve been waiting for all month. Put on a costume, set up a candy bowl and turn on the porch light. Let’s go haunt the neighborhood!
Check out our Halloween Shop.