BACK TO A - Z LISTING

MORE THEMES COMING SOON
Check back often
   

Gardening
Gingerbread Man
Graduation
Groundhog Day
Halloween
Ice Cream
Independence Day
Insects
Kwanzaa
Literature Themes
Luau
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
Mice
Mother's Day
Muticultural
 


Halloween Art Ideas

  

Spider Web 

Materials Needed:
Black Construction Paper 
White Paint 
Scissors 
Round, Metal Cake Pan or Pie Pan 
Marble 

Procedure:
Cut a piece of construction paper to fit into the bottom of the cake pan.
Place about a half teaspoon of white paint in the middle of the paper. 
Drop the marble into the cake pan and tilt the pan back and forth. As the
 marble passes through the paint it leaves trails of white on the paper.
(You can also have the kids glue plastic spiders on their pictures when they are dry!) 

     

Pipe Cleaner Spiders

Show children how to  twist pipe cleaners together to form a spiders
body and legs. Encourage them to create their own pipe cleaner spiders.

     

Handprint Spiders

Trace around each child's hands onto black construction paper.  You may want to use a white
 crayon to make the outline more noticeable.  Then have the child cut out their handprints;
cutting off the thumb.  Then glue the hand cutouts together with palms together -
fingers sticking outward.  Glue on wiggly eyes in center and viola... a handprint spider!
~ OR ~
You can use black paint instead of construction paper!  As seen below.


(Photo submitted by Nanette)

    

Masks

Set out the following items:  Yarn, Paper plates, felt-tip markers, and any other accessories needed, to make
 masks interesting, can be placed on a table in the art area. If desired, yarn can be used as hair on the masks.

    

Fingerprint Spiders

Have the children make fingerprints on a piece of paper using black washable tempera paint. When the
 paint dries, have the children draw on eight squiggly lines for legs on their fingerprints to represent spiders.

 

Scary Spider

Draw around your child's hand on a piece of black construction paper. Cut out the handprint.
 Make eyes either by cutting small circles from white construction paper or using paper
 reinforcer rings. Glue the eyes to the palm of the handprint (with fingers pointing down,
 the top of the palm will become the head). Create a spider web by drawing with
 white chalk on a piece of orange construction paper.
 Glue the spider to the web with the fingers pointing down. 

 

Black & Orange Painting

Provide black and orange paint at the paint easels.
OR
Let the children finger paint using black and orange paint.

 

 

Halloween Finger Painting

Provide red and yellow paint for the children to mix
 with their fingers onto a pumpkin cutout shape.

 

Batty Bottles

Little ones will go batty over these Halloween water globes. To make one,
 fill a small, clear plastic bottle with water. Squeeze in one drop of liquid
 detergent and enough red and yellow food coloring to tint the water orange.
 Add a generous pinch of bat- and moon-shaped confetti (found at party-supply
 stores). Then hot-glue the cap onto the bottle. When the glue is dry,
 a youngster shakes the bottle to see the bats fly. Happy Halloween!

 

Foot Ghost

Trace child's foot out on white paper turn it around and put
 eyes and a circle mouth at he heel ... you have a GHOST.
~OR~
White tempera paint footprints on black paper. Cut out, leaving a bit of black to
 make an outline. Use the circle shaped notebook paper reinforcements for eyes.

 

I Spy Pumpkin Pie

I spy pumpkin pie--and smell pie, too! These crafty pumpkin pies smell just
 like the real thing. Fill a paper bowl with torn, orange tissue-paper pieces.
 Spray the pieces with cinnamon-scented air freshener. While the pieces
 are damp, sprinkle on pumpkin-pie spice. Trace the top of an empty
 bowl onto a piece of orange paper; then cut out the circle. Punch holes
 through the circle; then glue the circle onto the rim of the "pumpkin-filled" bowl.

 

Halloween Ghost

Materials Needed:
1 pc. egg cups
markers
string or thread
white tempera paint
white tissue paper or crepe paper
glue

Directions:
Cut egg cartons into twelve single pieces. Poke a hole in the center
 of each cup for string. Let the children paint each egg cup. Do this early in
 the day or the previous day. They must be allowed to dry.  the faces can
 be drawn on with black marker or painted on with black tempera paint.
 Tissue paper, crepe paper, or white kleenex can be glued to the bottom
 of each egg cup to give some flowing motion when they are hung.
 Hang the ghosts by stringing a knotted piece of string or thread through
 a small hole in the top of each cup. These can be hung
 separately or hung in a ghostly mobile.

 

Cotton Ball Pumpkin Patch

Put cotton balls in a bag with powdered orange tempera paint and shake around.
 Glue these cotton balls onto paper with green yarn for a pumpkin patch.
(Variation: Orange pom poms can be substituted for the cotton.)

 

Pumpkin Pie

Cut out a pie shape. Give children shakers with cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg
 in them. Children spread glue over the paper pie shape and then shake spices on.

 

Pumpkin Pie Playdough

Ingredients Needed:
5 1/2 cups flour
2 cups salt
8 teaspoons cream of tartar
3/4 cup oil
1 container (1 1/12 ounces) pumpkin pie spice
Orange food coloring (2 parts yellow, 1 part red)
4 cups water

Directions:
Mix all of the ingredients together. Cook and stir over medium heat until all lumps
 disappear. Knead the dough on a floured surface until it is smooth.
 Store in an airtight container. Place a batch of this dough in your playdough
 center. Add some fall cookie cutters, small pie tins (save from pot pies),
and rolling pins to the area. (Invite your little ones to make fall cookies or
 pumpkin pies. Remind them that these goodies only smell good. No tasting please!)

 

Halloween Gourds

Take small softball size gourds. Cut out faces, cut small hole in the bottom
 of the gourd, make sure to clean out gourds, place yellow tissue paper
 inside the gourds. Then you take small clear Christmas lights, put each
 bulb (or how may that you want) in each of the small holes in the bottom
 of the gourds, arrange in a small wooden shallow bowl or basket, arrange
 corn, leaves, small pumpkins in bowl or basket, plug in the lights.

 

Glowing Ghosts

Although the materials for this project are ordinary, the results are extraordinary.
 To make a ghost, cut through two thicknesses of waxed paper to make identical
 ghost-shaped cutouts. Tint white glue by adding a few drops of fluorescent paint
 or food coloring. Spoon tinted glue onto one of the ghost cutouts. Place black
 construction paper cutouts on the glue to resemble a ghost's eyes and mouth.
 Sprinkle the glue with clear glitter, if desired, before aligning the remaining
 ghost-shaped cutout and placing it on the first. When the ghost has dried,
 punch a hole in the top and suspend it from the ceiling with thread.

 

Pumpkin Book

Page 1 "Pumpkin, pumpkin big and round."
(fingerpaint a pumpkin, cut and glue on page with words)

Page 2 "I'm glad that you grow on the ground."
(cut 4 small pumpkins & add yarn vine on page w/ words)

Page 3 "I'm glad that you don't grow in a tree."
(trunk and fall leaves precut, glue orange pumpkins w/ words)

Page 4 "'Cause then you might fall down on me." 
(draw self with bump on head and pumpkin broken on the ground on page w/ words)

 

Jack-o-lantern Stamps

Use the cutouts from making a jack-o-lantern (eyes, nose, mouth) for pumpkin
 prints just insert a popsicle stick, dip them in paint, and use them as stamps.
 You can docollages with the shapes, or have the kids actually make the class'
jack-o-lantern face on a sheet of paper pre-cut in pumpkin shape.

 

Pumpkin Patch

Hard boil some eggs. Dye them orange (like you do with Easter eggs).
 Cut paper towel tubes (not toilet paper tubes) into smaller rings about one inch
 in diameter. Decorate the rings with green paper or Easter grass.
 Place the eggs on the decorated tubes.

 

Spider's Web

Materials Needed:
String or yarn,
6 6 in. pieces of string and 4 12 in. pieces of string,
diluted white glue or liquid starch,
dishes,
waxed paper

Directions:
Let the children dip pieces of string into dishes of glue or starch.
 Then have them lay their strings on waxed paper to create the spiders web.
 Lay the string in the shape of a spiral overlapping the ends. Lay the large
 pieces of string over the spiral in the shape of a cross. When
 the strings dry, they will become stiff and hold their shapes.

 

Hanging Spider

Materials Needed:
paper plates
black construction paper, cut into long thin strips
scissors
glue
string

Directions:
Cut eight long strips of black paper and a circle for the spider's head.
 Glue the two small paper plates together, top to top, with the legs
 and head placed between them. Paint the body black and glue a long piece
 of string to the middle of the back so the spider can dangle from the ceiling. 

 

Spider Hats

Materials Needed:
Black and orange construction paper
glue
scissors

Directions:
Cut eight strips of black paper 1 1/2" x 9" 2. Cut one strip of black paper 2" x 22"
 (you could substitute two 11" pieces glued together). Cut the following:
 Large black circles, medium orange circles, and small black circles.
  Glue orange circle to edge of large black circle. Glue small black
 circle to edge of orange circle. Measure the 22" piece around child's
 head, overlap and glue ends together. Glue the eyes to the hat band
 with black eyes touching as shown. Fold the leg strips in half. Fold one
 end of each leg strip back 1". Glue the straight end to the inside edge of the
 hat band. Fold and glue the remaining legs.
 You will have four legs on each side of your hat.

 

Fall Scarecrows

Place these cute little scarecrows on your porch to welcome all the trick-or-treaters!
 Using a brown grocery bag, cut off the bottom of the bag, then flatten the bag.
 Fold in the corners, then staple. Stuff the bag with newspaper, etc. and staple
 the bottom closed. Turn the bag over and decorate with buttons, markers,
crayons, construction paper, fabric scraps, and anything else you can think of.

 

Ghosts

Trace hands on white paper. Cut out hands and put a face on the ghost.
 (FINGERS pointing down, wrist is top of ghost). Cut a 1/4 a circle (or circle )
 from yellow paper for the moon. Hold paper vertical. Decorate the bottom of the
 paper with a fence (brown), pumpkins. Take black construction paper and
 glue moon up in corner, fence on bottom and ghost up in the sky.

 

Playdough Fun

Let children assist you with making playdough. Add orange kool-aid powder
 to dough. give children Halloween cookie cutters to use with the playdough.

 

Pipe Cleaner Spiders 

Provide the children with pipe cleaners to make spiders. Have the children
 twist the pipe cleaners together to form a body and legs.
 Discuss how many legs a spider has.

 

Balloon Jack-o'-Lanterns 

Blow up an orange balloon and let the child use a black marker, stickers, or finger
 paint to create facial features. Ask the child how does the jack o lantern feel? 

 

Paper Plate Jack-o'-Lanterns 

Have your children paint a paper plate orange. When dry, have the child glue on
 pieces of black construction paper for the facial features. These pieces may be
 cut with scissors or torn, depending on your child's ability level. For older children,
 try using glue to form the facial features and sprinkle glitter, or various items
 (i.e. buttons, beans, noodles, pebbles) on the glue.

 

Sponge Painted Ghosts 

Cut out or buy ghost shaped sponges. You will need black construction
 paper and white tempera paint when showing the child how to dip the
 sponges in the paint and press on the paper to make ghost prints. 

 

Spider Paper Plates 

Use a smaller and larger paper plate to make these spiders. Staple the
 smaller plate onto the larger plate, as if the smaller plate will be the
 spider's head. Have the child paint both sides black. Then add black streamers
 for legs and white construction paper for eyes. Hang them from the ceiling.

 

Pumpkin Seed Art 

Collect pumpkin seeds from inside a pumpkin. Let them air dry
 and have the children use the pumpkin seeds to make a collage. 

 

Pumpkin Seed Shakers 

You need: dried pumpkin seeds from inside your pumpkin, two paper
 plates (for each child) and a stapler. Have the children put some seeds
 on one of the paper plates (bottom side down). Next, have them place
 the other plate on top of the first plate (bottom side up). Help the
 children staple their plates together with the seeds inside. Let the
 children paint, use markers or crayons to decorate their shakers. 

 

Fingerpainted Pumpkins 

Give each of your children apiece of white butcher paper or construction paper.
 In the center of each piece of paper, place a spoonful of orange finger paint.
 Let the children use their hands and fingers to create designs with the paint.
 When they have finished, allow their papers to dry. Then cut the papers
into pumpkin shapes and display them around the room.

 

Fingerprint Pumpkins 

Have the children make orange fingerprints on a piece of paper.
 Use a non-toxic orange ink pad. Show the children how to use
 one finger at a time. Use a green pen to draw stems on the paper
 and draw vines to connect some of the pumpkins. (You can do this for
 younger children or have older children draw the vines and stems themselves.) 

 

Fingerprint Spiders 

Have the children use a black non-toxic ink pad to make fingerprints on a piece of
 paper. Have the children draw on eight legs on their fingerprints to represent spiders. 

 

Spider Web

Materials Needed:
Round Metal Cake Pan or Pie Pan,
Black Construction Paper,
White Paint,
Scissors,
Marble.

Directions:
Cut a piece of construction paper to fit into the bottom of the
cake pan. Place one-half teaspoon of white paint in the middle of the paper.
Drop the marble into the cake pan and tilt the pan back and forth. As the
marble passes through the paint it leaves trails of white on the paper.
 (I have also had the kids glue plastic spiders on their pictures when dried!)

 

Spider Gum Drops 

Supply the children with large black gum drops and eight toothpicks per child.
 Have the children push the toothpicks in the gum drops to represent the spiders legs. 

 

Spider Webbing 

Provide children with a chair and some yarn or string. Ask them to
 create a spiders web by wrapping the string around the legs of the chair. 

 

Halloween Cookie Cutter Painting 

Buy an assortment of Halloween cookie cutters. Let the children
 dip the cookie cutters into paint and then press onto paper. 

 

Halloween Pasta Collage 

Check out your local grocery store to find pasta in Halloween shapes. Let your
 kids create a cool collage with the pasta and whatever else you decide to add. 

 

Paper Chains

Cut orange and black construction paper into 1" by 5" strips.
 Tape or paste one orange strip into a ring. Thread a black strip through
 the orange ring and paste or tape it closed. Continue adding rings to
 the chain, alternating the colors. When your chain is long enough,
 drape it across a doorway or window. Paste a Halloween picture
 at each end of the chain where it is attached  to the doorway or window.
 You can also buy orange & black streamers at party stores.

 

Popcorn Packaging Ghosts

Cut a piece of white heavy thread (such as fishing line) and tie it around
 the popcorn about 1/3 of the way down to separate the neck from the body.
 Pull the string tight to scrunch in the popcorn. Then use a black marker
 to make eyes, mouth, and arms. String them onto a necklace.
 Make a mobile or put on a popsicle stick and make tiny puppets.

 

Boo Mask

A mask that a child can hold up to his face and remove when desired.
 Eyes look through the O's in BOO. Cut out of black paper.
 Add popsicle stick handle and colorful streamers on the side.

 

Paper Bag Pumpkin

Using a large grocery bag (or a little lunch bag) crumple newspaper and stuff.
 Twist top of paper bag and tie with elastic. Have children paint
 the bag orange. Paint the face black. Paint stem green.

 

Finger Paint Pumpkin

Put blobs of red and blobs of yellow finger paint on pieces of shiny white
 finger paint paper. If you do not have finger paint, you can use tempera
 Add a small amount of liquid starch to thicken and brighten the tempera.
 Let the children finger paint all over the paper, noting the different shades
 of orange made. Let the papers dry. Cut out the biggest pumpkin shapes
 possible from the painted papers. Encourage the children to
 draw their own scary, happy, or silly faces on them.

Use as suggested in the Bulletin Board Idea below to create a pumpkin patch mural.

 

Pumpkin Patch Bulletin Board Idea

Make a class pumpkin patch mural. Have each child make a finger paint pumpkin.
 Trace a large, simple oval shaped leaf on green construction paper for each child
and let the children cut out their own leaves. Mount the pumpkins on your bulletin
 board. Make the vines by twisting lengths of green crepe paper streamers and
stapling them to the bulletin board. Staple the leaves on the vines,
arching them for a three dimensional effect.

 

Seed Scenes

Dye pumpkin seeds in a mixture of one cup of water, one teaspoon of vinegar, and
 several drops of food coloring. Dry them overnight on a paper towel. Let the children
 glue the seeds on dark sheets of construction paper to make mosaic collages.

 

Make-a-Face Pumpkins

Make a several large pumpkins from cardboard that has been
 painted orange. Give the children an assortment of geometric
 paper shapes. Let them use them to create a variety of jack-o’-lantern
 faces on the pumpkins, different ones each time they play!

 

Pumpkin Patch Picture

Materials Needed:
Cotton Balls, Orange Paint Powder, Pie Pan,
Brown Construction Paper, Green Yarn, Yarn.

Directions:
Put the paint powder in the pie pan. Roll the cotton balls
around in the paint and then set aside. Spread glue onto the brown
 piece of paper. Put on the orange cotton balls (pumpkins) and the
 green yarn (vines). Or you can also just use orange pompoms.

 

Witches Broom

Paper Grocery Bag, Paper Towel Rolls, Scissors, Tape, String. Depending on
the length you want the broom handle to be, you can tape two or more paper
towel rolls together. Cut off the bottom of the paper grocery bag, then cut
fringes into that side. Roll the uncut side of the paper bag around the
bottom of the tube; attach with tape, then tie with string.

 

Pumpkin Seed Pictures

Dye pumpkin seeds many colors. Place the seeds with paste and
 paper on a table in the art area. Have children create their own pictures.


 

Halloween Carriers

Use these cute carriers to to carry homework, treats, etc. Paint or color the
 bottom of two paper plates orange. Decorate the bottoms with a face. Staple
 half the plates together leaving half of the plates open. Cut a 6" x 2" green
 strip of construction paper (can use regular paper and color green)

 

Rattling Skeletons 

Use white paper to form 5 paper chains, and then connect to make a skeleton.
 Trace children's hands and feet on white paper, cut and glue to the ends
 of the arms and legs. Cut an oval shape and draw on the face.
 These work best when made with small groups of children.

 

Tissue Ghosts 

Supply each child with two pieces of tissue paper and a piece of string or yarn.
 Have each child ball up one of the tissues, then place it in the center of the
 second tissue. Next, have the child, or assist the child, in tying the yarn
 around the second tissue to hold the balled tissue within the second tissue.
 The child may use a marker to make eyes. 

 

Bean Ghost Pictures

Materials Needed:
Black Construction Paper 
Large Lima Beans
Fine point Markers 
Glue 

Procedure:
Glue the beans onto the paper, and use a fine point marker to
 make a face on the bean. This is the ghost. If you want,
 you can have the child draw a scene on the paper too! 

 

Milk Jug Skeleton

Materials Needed:
8-9 clean plastic 1 gallon milk cartons
craft knife or heavy duty scissors
hot glue gun
hole punch
string

Head:
Choose a jug with a pair of circular indentations opposite the handle
 and turn it upside down. In the corner, opposite the handle,
 use the craft knife or scissors (parents only) to cut out a
 large, smiling mouth, centered under the indented "eyes".
 Make two small slits in the top of the head and tie a loop
 of string through them for hanging the finished skeleton.

Chest:
Cut a vertical slit down the center of a right-side-up jug, directly opposite the handle.
 Cut and trim away plastic to make the rib cage. Glue the head and chest together
 at the "neck" by connecting the spouts of the two jugs with a thick band of hot glue
 (adults only). Hold the jugs together for a few minutes until the glue cools.

Shoulders:
Cut off two jug handles (leaving a small collar on the ends) and attach them
 to the chest section with hot glue. Punch a hole at one end of each shoulder.

Hip:
Cut all the way around a jug, about 4.5 inches up from the bottom.
 Take the bottom piece and trim away a small smile shape from each
 side to make a four-cornered piece. Punch holes in two opposite corners.

Waist:
Cut out two spouts, leaving a .5 inch collar on each. Glue the spouts
 together and let dry. Then, hot glue the waist to the bottom
 of the chest and the top of the hip section.

Arms and Legs:
Cut eight long bone shapes from the corner sections of three jugs
 (cut into the curved shape of the jug to make the bones even more realistic).
 From four of these, cut out the center to make forearms and shins.
Punch a hole through the ends of all eight bones. Tie two arm sections
 to each shoulder, and two leg sections to each hip with string.

Hands and Feet:
Let the kids trace their hands and feet onto the side of a jug, then cut out the
 shapes. Punch holes in the hands and feet and tie them onto the arms and legs.

 

Halloween Centerpiece

Take a block of Styrofoam (about 6 x 4 inches) and have the child paint it green.
 This will be your base. Then have them paint walnuts orange (this will be the
 pumpkins) have them paint popsicle sticks white (this will be the pickets in a fence).
 Also, take a tootsie roll pop and cover it with a white tissue. Tie around the base
 of the ball of the lollipop to make it look like a ghost figure. Draw a face on the
 rounded end of the lollipop. Now assemble the parts. Stick the popsicle sticks
 into the block of green styrofoam in a row. Place the tootsie roll pop ghost
 into the styrofoam and then glue on the orange walnuts. Purchase small,
 plastic black cats to stick into the styrofoam. You now have a little, holiday
 centerpiece for each child. The older the child, the more involved you can make it.

 

Jack-o-lanterns

Trace 2 hands on ORANGE paper and cut out. Trace around 2 hands on GREEN
 paper and cut out. Cut out faces (black ) and stem (green) for pumpkins. Glue
 on BLUE paper - Put green hands, fingers pointing up on bottom for bushes
 and pumpkins above bushes with fingers pointing down.
 STEM goes on top of hand where wrist is.

 

Halloween Painted Rocks

Have the children hunt around outside for different shaped rocks.
 Long, slender rocks for ghosts, oval shapes for spiders,
 and just about any stout rock will make a great pumpkin!

Pumpkin

stout, roundish rock
orange tempera paint
black marker
small amount of raffia
3-4 silk leaves
tacky or hot glue
3/4" piece of green chenille stick
bits of Kleenex tissue

The texture of the rock for the pumpkin can be smooth, bumpy, or even jagged,
 as was in our case. Before you begin, stand the rock up in the position you
 would like it to be when your craft is complete. Ours was a little tricky,
 we just leveled him off using the raffia and tissue. Paint the rock
 orange and let it dry. Using a black marker, draw on pumpkin's face.
 Glue silk leaves to the bottom of your pumpkin. Using bits of
Kleenex for leveling and bunches of raffia, glue rock onto "straw bed".
Top off your pumpkin rock with green chenille for the stem
 by folding in half and gluing on top of pumpkin's head.

Ghost

long, slender rock
white tempura paint
black marker
handful of cotton batting
tacky or hot glue
white glitter glue

Paint rock white and let dry. Draw face onto ghost with black marker.
 Glue cotton batting to the bottom of the rock to give the appearance of a ghostly
 trail following him. Smear white glitter glue down the sides of the ghost.

Spider

oval rock
black tempura paint
pair of wiggle eyes
6-8 12"-long black chenille sticks
red glitter glue
small piece of paper plate or white paper
scissors
tacky or hot glue

Paint rock black and let dry. Wrap chenille sticks around body to secure legs
 in place. Bend sticks to form legs. Glue chenille sticks in place on the bottom
 of the rock. Glue on two wiggle eyes. Cut little fangs from paper plate or paper
 and, using red glitter glue, glue onto rock-face, underneath wiggle eyes. use red
 glitter glue to create a few drops of blood on fangs and paint around mouth to finish up.

Note: Be sure to keep these cute crafts out of the reach of small children
 under the age of 3 years. Wiggle eyes can be easily removed and swallowed,
 or worse yet, choked upon.

 

A Fistful of Ghosts 

With a flick of the wrist, a hand print becomes a ghost! Make a paint pad
 from a folded, wet paper towel and white paint. Press the little finger side
 of the hand onto the pad and then onto background paper with a bit of a swish.
 The little finger makes a head and the bottom of the hand creates the ghost!

 

Ghost Magnet 

Make a ghost cut out of black construction paper and place in an old
 oatmeal canister with one teaspoon white paint and marbles and
 shake. Makes a really cute spooky ghost. Mount them on fun foam
 and add glitter and a magnet for a spooky refrigerator magnet. 

 

Glue Ghosts 

Have the child draw a ghost outline on a piece of waxed paper, and then have
 them fill in the outline with white school glue. Dry overnight, and then have the
 child add facial features. Place on a string and you have a spooky ghost necklace.

 

Cool Whip Lid/Grocery Sack Ghost

Materials Needed:
Cool Whip Lid or other similar sheer white lid
3 Black Construction Paper circles for eyes and mouth
2 sheer white plastic grocery sacks
2 white pipe cleaners (chenille stem)
Scotch tape
Glue stick
Black yarn
Hole punch

Directions:
Glue eyes and mouth on front of lid. Cut off any writing or graphics,
 and handles from grocery sacks. Lay the sacks on a flat surface.
 With scissors, shred 2" strips up sacks leaving at least 1" area
 in tact next to the seam. Glue the pipe cleaner/chenille stem into
 the seam. Turn lid over on flat surface. Bend and insert the pipe
 cleaner/seam into the ridge around the bottom 1/2 of the lid. Tape to
 secure in place. Repeat with the 2nd sack and stem, and insert in the
 ridge around the upper 1/2 of the lid. Punch a hole through top of the
 lid. Thread a length of yarn through the hole appropriate for hanging.
 The kids preferred to have a loop on the end of a 1 1/2' length so
 they could hold on and run with them. They "fly" nicely and appear
 as though the kids are being "chased" by a little ghost!

 

Handprint Ghosts

Let the children paint their hands white and make handprints on sheets
 of black construction paper. When they dry, have the children turn the
 handprints upside down and add details to create their own personal ghosts.
 Children can dip one finger in black paint (or press a finger on a black
 stamp pad) and make eyes and mouths for their ghosts.

 

Giggly Ghosts 

Have the children tear off a wad of the quilt batting. Have the children
 form the "ghost" any way they want. Next, have the children cut eyes,
 legs, arms, etc. from the construction paper and glue onto their ghost.
 Finally, cut some of the elastic and tape to the top of the ghosts and
 hang them from the ceiling. The kids love to watch them bob up and down.

 

Cheesecloth Ghosts 

Dilute white glue with ½ to ¾ cups of water. Let the children dip a piece
 of cheesecloth into the diluted glue. Have the children drape the wet
 cheesecloth over the 16 oz. cups. Let the "ghosts" dry for two days.
 Carefully remove the cup from the hardened cheesecloth. Let the
 children decorate their ghosts. Hang the completed ghosts from the ceiling.

 

Ghost Windsock

Draw thick straight lines every two inches along the short side of 12" x 18"
 pieces of white construction paper. The lines should end about halfway up
 the paper. Let the children cut the strips to make "tatters" in the ghost’s sheet.
 Have them draw a face in the middle of the uncut part of the paper. Staple the
 edges of the paper together to form a windsock. Punch holes at the top and run
 yarn through them. Hang the ghost windsocks where they will catch the wind.

  

Halloween Ghost

Materials Needed:
1 pc. egg cups
markers
string or thread
white tempera paint
white tissue paper or crepe paper
glue

Procedure:
Cut egg cartons into twelve single pieces. Poke a hole in the center of each
 cup for string. Let the children paint each egg cup. Do this early in the day
 or the previous day. They must be allowed to dry. The faces can be drawn
 on with black marker or painted on with black tempera paint. Tissue paper,
 crepe paper, or white kleenex can be glued to the bottom of each egg cup
 to give some flowing motion when they are hung. Hang the ghosts by
 stringing a knotted piece of string or thread through a small hole in the top
 of each cup. These can be hung separately or hung in a ghostly mobile.

 

Gg Is For Ghost 

On black construction paper have the children paint white ghosts.
 When the ghosts are dry, ask the children to give their ghost a name
 that begins with the letter G and tell a goofy story about their ghost.

 

George The Ghost 

Cut a ghost shape out of green construction paper. Draw a goofy face
 on the ghost. Then use green glue to put green glasses on the ghost.
 Write the letter "G" on the ghost. Use both upper and lower case
letters. You now have a "Goofy green ghost wearing green glasses."

 

Juice Can Monsters 

Gather one clean frozen juice can per puppet. Construction paper or fabric for body,
 Glue, felt or paper strips for arms and legs, Buttons, feathers, fabric, glitter, paper,
 and other assorted decorations. Cover the juice can by gluing on construction
 paper or fabric, then place the can upright on a table (with the opening at the
 bottom). Glue felt "arm" strips midway down both sides of the can and
 "leg" strips to the front of the lower edge. Set out the rest of your
 decorations and watch as your children create some interesting characters.

 

Monster Child 

A great idea for monster madness is to get a paper bag (large enough to
 fit over a child sized head) Cut an oval shape around where their eyes
 are (this shape makes it easier for them to see) Collect recycled
 material and let the children create their own monsters. 

 

Ugfuzz 

Use the front of the box, where it opens, as the mouth. To make the fur,
 spread some glue over part of the box. Firmly press a piece of dryer
 lint into the glue. Keep gluing dryer lint onto the sides and top of
 the box until it is covered. Use construction paper to cut out eyes
 and teeth for the monster. Tape the eyes and teeth to the box.
 Punch a hole near the center of the bottom of the box. Push the
 bendable end of the straw partway through the hole. Bend the straw
 and tape it to the inside of the top of the box. Push up on the straw
 to make the Ugfuzz's mouth open. Instead of dryer lint you could use
 these ideas to dress your monster: cotton balls, pipe cleaners,
 strips of ribbon, tissue paper, pompoms, fiberfill, and fabric strips.

   

Spooky Garbage Bag Cats

Materials Needed:

Black Plastic Garbage Bags
Newspaper
Rubber Bands
Black Electrical Tape
Orange Contact Paper or Orange Paint Marker
String
Animal Face Pattern

Directions:
Place a rubber band tightly around the each corner of a garbage bag,
 about 6" from the end. Stuff the garbage bag with several pieces of
 newspaper. Rubber band off to form the head. Spread open the
 banded off sections of the bag and tape down part of each to form
 the ears. Cut the bottom of the bag up to the rubber band every
 3" to for streamers. Use Animal Face Pattern to paint on a face
 with paint markers or to cut a face out of contact paper and apply
 to garbage bag. Poke a hole through the top of the bag for
 a string. Reinforce hole with black electrical tape.

 

Fabric Softener Sheet Ghosts

Ever wondered what to do with old fabric softener sheets?
 Why not make a spooky little Ghost! And they smell great too!
 Don't have enough sheets? Use white tissue paper instead.

Materials Needed:
Three used fabric softener sheets
Some string or an elastic band
A black marker

Directions:
Crumple two of the sheets into a ball. Put the other piece on the table,
 spread out and flat The put the ball of tissue paper in the center
 of the flat peace. Pull up all the corners and squeeze the paper
 just under the ball (it should look like a ghost shape now). Tie the string
 or elastic band (just under the ball). Add eyes and a mouth with the marker.

 

Halloween Pasta Necklaces 

Find Halloween shaped pasta. Let your children string the pasta
 shapes on a piece of yarn to create a necklace or bracelet.

 

Creepy Crawly Spider Bracelets

Materials Needed:
Black Construction Paper
Wiggly Eyes
White paper (for "fangs")
Paper Fastener
Stapler/staples
Scissors
White Crayon
Glue
Pencil

Directions:
Fold black construction paper in half. Along folded edge, lay child's hand
 palm down (midway through palm) and trace fingers with white crayon. Cut out
 the outline of the fingers. Unfold and you have a complete image of a spider with
 eight legs. Now turn the spider over and with the pencil, roll the legs around the
 pencil...this makes the legs curl under and gives a more creepy, crawly effect.
 Cut a 1" strip of black paper from the remaining scraps, and form it into a circle
 for the bracelet part. At the appropriate length, staple the ends together.
 Attach the bracelet to the underside center of the spider using the paper
fastener. Glue on the wiggly eyes and the "fangs" that you design and cut from
 the white paper to the topside of the spider's head. The child puts his/her fingers
 or wrist through the bracelet...the kids can make their spiders creep and crawl
 with a back & forth rocking motion of their wrists. The paper fastener
allows the spider to turn back and forth or 360 degrees, too!

 

Halloween Wreath

Materials Needed:
8" styrofoam wreath
2 2" strips of orange fabric 44" long
1 2" strip of black fabric 12" long
Metallic trim (optional)
1 yucky rubber spider
Craft glue

Do not worry about the type of fabric you are using. It is the color effect we are
 after, anything that is orange and black will work. Wool, felt, satin, cotton, etc.

Directions:
Wrap the orange strips around the wreath to cover the base entirely.
 Glue ends down in the back. Do not worry about raw edges showing.
 Wrap metallic trim around the wreath in the same manner and bring
 ends to the back and glue down. This step is optional but I think it gives
 some extra "snap" to the end result. Tie black strip in a bow and attach
 at the top with glue. Tie black thread around the body of your yucky spider
 and hang down from the middle of the wreath. Glue the thread ends in
 the back of the wreath as well. Let the spider hang free. This is the spider's
 web. It is so simple and the kids will have fun hanging all sorts of yuckies from the
 wreath. It also costs next to nothing if you use odd and ends from around the house.

 

Pumpkin Yarn Bug
(Recommended for ages 6-12)

Materials Needed:
Orange Yarn
Craft Foam, Stiffened Felt, and/or Heavy Paper
Empty Egg Carton
Old 3½" Floppy Disk or Heavy Cardboard Cut to the Size of One
Tacky Glue
Scissors
Pumpkin Bug Faces
Pumpkin Bug Stems
Bug Feet

Directions:
Print Pumpkin Bug Faces, Pumpkin Bug Stems, Bug Feet. Many inkjet
 printers will allow you to run stiffened felt. This will work good for the feet,
 face, and stem. If using craft foam, print it on regular paper and staple it
 onto foam and trim around outlines. You can also use heavy index paper.
 Make a pompon by wrapping yarn around floppy disk (or heavy cardboard)
 as least 100 times. Mix the yarn colors any way you would like. Cut a 6"
 piece of yarn and slide it under wrapped yarn. Tie tightly into a double knot.
 Turn floppy over and cut completely through yarn on this side. Turn yarn blob
 sideways and smooth down strands. Cut out 1 section of the egg carton.
 Trim so it sits securely upside down. Use tacky glue to glue the egg cup
 upside down on the feet. Cover the top and some of the sides of the cup
 with tacky glue. Separate the strands of the pompon to fit the egg cup up inside.
 Press pompon into place. Arrange yarn. Attach face and stem to yarn bug.

 

Halloween Door Hangers

Hang one on your door at Halloween to let the
 trick-or-treaters know if you are home.

Materials Needed:
White Pattern
Color Pattern
Black Foam Door Hanger
White, Yellow, Orange and Red
Craft Foam
Tacky Glue
White Paint Marker
Scissors

Directions:
Print white pattern and color pattern. Staple to craft foam and cut all pieces.
 Glue pieces both sides of foam door hangers using picture above as a guide.
 Write "Gone Spookin" on one side and "Treat Stop" on the other side.

 

Witch Hat 

Cut out triangular shapes from black material to represent a witch hat.
 Let the children decorate the hats with glitter and foil. 

 

Broom Art 

Supply the children with a broom, a large piece of butcher paper and some paint.
 Tape the paper on the floor and add the paint. Have the children use the broom
 to paint the paper. You may want to have the children take off shoes
 and socks, and roll up long pants... this is REALLY MESSY!!!

 

Window Watchers

Materials Needed:
Construction Paper, 
Crayons, 
Scissors, 
Glue, 
Colored Tissue Paper (orange, red, or yellow)

Procedure:
Draw a Halloween character (bat, cat, pumpkin, ghost, etc.) on a piece of
 construction paper (just make sure the eyes are at least an inch around);
 cut it out, including the eyes. Trace the cutout onto another piece of paper
 and cut it out too, including the eyes. You now have the front and back.
 Glue tissue paper over the eyeholes on the backside of the front cut out.
 Glue the front and back together (make sure to line
 up the eyes) so the tissue paper is hidden inside.

 

Paper Plate Masks

Make a silly, scary mask using paper plates and cardboard egg cartons. Cut
eye holes in a large paper plate. Cut apart the cups of an egg carton and
arrange them on the plate to make a nose, beard, and bumps. When you have an
arrangement you like, use glue or masking tape to attach the cups in place.
Paint the mask with finger paints and add facial features. Let the paint
dry. Punch a hole in each side of the paper plate and string a piece of
elastic or string through each hole to go around the head.

 

Paper Plate Bat

Paint a small paper plate with black finger paint, and let it dry. Cut
triangle shapes from black construction paper, 3 for each wing and lay them
out so you can glue the two top corners to another triangle. Fasten the
wings to the back of the paper plate and draw a face with white correction
fluid or chalk. Punch a hole in the top to hang.

 

Paper Plate Masks

Materials Needed:
Paper Plates, Popsicle Sticks,
Yarn, or Rubber Bands, Glue or tape, Crayons,
Markers, or Paint, Scrap Paper, Fabric, Buttons.

Directions:
Cut out holes for eyes. Decorate as desired. Use a popsicle stick as a "handle"
 to hold up the mask, or use yarn or rubber bands to tie it to the face.

 

Puzzle Pins (or tie slides)

You'll need: puzzle piece, pin 1" long (or 1/2" long piece of PCV pipe),
black fine tip, permanent marker, acrylic paints, glue. Choose an
appropriate piece of the puzzle. Base coat the backside of the piece (this
will become the front of the pin). With a pencil, draw the face onto the
piece (Dracula, witch, pumpkin, black cat, ghost, Frankenstein). Paint with
appropriate color. After paint has dried, use marker to outline your face
(do the line work). Glue pin (or pipe) to back of piece.

 

Wooden Pumpkins

You'll need: 8" of 3 1/4" X 4" landscaper timber (or 8' of 2"X6" rough
lumber), felt (paper) for leaves or silk leaves, green pipe cleaners, 1"
Dowel (cut to 2" lengths) glue gun, acrylic paints (orange, green, black)
WEEK 1: Have boys paint their pumpkins orange. (use sponge to dab paint on
makes a less messy area) Have them paint the stem green.
WEEK 2: Glue stem to top of pumpkin. Curl pipe cleaners around pencil to
form tendrils. Cut leaves from felt.
WEEK 3: Glue tendrils & leaves to top of pumpkin, paint on faces (or use
black fun foam to make faces and glue into place)

 

 

 

Pre-K Fun Theme Pages are for educational reference only! 
No copyright infringement is intended.
I do not claim any of these as my own ideas.  
They are shared from friends and fellow group members.  
Thanks for sharing all your great ideas!

    

Site designed and maintained by Shelly Boone. Copyright 2002-2012 - All rights reserved
Graphics by M1Knight and Thistle Girl Designs   Anti-copy scripting from DynamicDrive.com