Inside: My Top 7 all-time favorite Halloween Activities for Toddlers & Preschoolers, everything from learning activities to sensory play! Your kids will ask for these activities on repeat.
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If you’re doing preschool at home this Fall or you’re looking for some activities to do with your toddler, today I’m sharing our go-to Halloween activities to do at home!
These activities include:
- sensory play
- learning
- open-ended play
- reading
- food play!
Halloween Activities for Toddlers at Home
The ideas in this post are easy to set up and will help keep your toddler busy while at home!
I typically like to include a learning activity in the morning and a sensory activity in the afternoon.
Of course we don’t do an activity every day, but some days I’m really glad to have these ideas on standby!
I’ll also share with you my go-to preschool at home curriculum which includes all the lesson plans and printables you need to have a successful preschool year at home.
For me, the best thing about using a curriculum that’s planned out, is that it’s one less thing on my plate.
I use and absolutely love The Preschool Playbook.
- The units are broken up into weekly themes (everything from Apples to Outer Space to Bugs to Thanksgiving
- Each theme comes with lesson plans for the week
- The plans include activities for each day
- The activities range from learning to sensory play, crafts and simple cooking ideas (like assembling food)
I can quickly choose a theme, preview the activities for the week, and not have to waste any time searching for resources, printing things out, or putting anything together.
The Preschool Playbook is all done for you. All you have to do is pick the time of day you want to do the activities.
7 Must-Try Halloween Activities for Toddlers & Preschoolers
Below you’ll find some fun activities to try this spooky season. Last year I hosted a Halloween playdate and the sensory bin (shared below) was hands-down the favorite among the little ones. When I need my 3 year old to just sit for a minute though, the playdough tray is my go-to. I set it on the kitchen table, so I can watch her while I cook, and it keeps her busy and entertained!
Halloween Play Dough Tray
Supplies:
- Divided tray (mine is from Dollar Tree)
- Black and orange play dough (get my recipe, here)
- Googly eyes
- Pretend eye balls, spiders & skeletons
- Dried pasta (I found mine at HomeGoods)
- Play Dough supplies (roller, plastic knife, extruder, cutters, etc.)
Bat Letter Match
This is a fun and easy Halloween learning activity for toddlers.
You can easily do different variations on this activity with pumpkins, ghosts, or cats – whatever you think your child would like!
Instructions:
- Draw bats or use the bat template in the Preschool Playbook
- On each bat, draw a matching uppercase and lowercase letter (ex: E and e)
- Using dot label stickers, write uppercase and lower case letters
- Invite your preschooler to match the dot stickers to the letters on the bats
Halloween Morning Basket
What you’ll need:
- a basket
- Halloween books
- ten frame number counting cards
- googly eyes
- felt pumpkin
- mini Halloween stamps & coloring sheets
Shop this Halloween-themed morning basket
Read: How to Get Started with Morning Baskets
Halloween Play Shelf
What you’ll need:
- a low bookshelf
- Halloween-themed books
- Mini pumpkins
- Small trick-or-treat bags
- Halloween trinkets like silly glasses and spider rings
- Stencils, bookmarks, and Halloween stickers
The purpose of a play shelf is to inspire independent play.
Rather than having toys and seasonal items tucked away, try displaying them in a way that encourages toddlers to use their imagination.
- If you don’t have a low bookshelf, their play kitchen or toddler table also works!
- Use what you have on hand and don’t feel limited to the list above.
- My kids like to pretend to trick-or-treat or play library with the items on the shelf!
Halloween Sensory Bin
This sensory bin is a fun indoor Halloween activity for chillier days.
I love to incorporate sensory play into our routine, especially in the Fall/Winter when we need to change it up!
If you’re concerned about the mess, put an old shower curtain or table cloth on the floor underneath the table.
What you’ll need:
- a wide shallow bin
- dried black beans (uncooked)
- googly eyes of different sizes
- small plastic spiders and/or spider rings
- Halloween treat cups or muffin cups
- Halloween erasers or other trinkets
- various scoops & measuring cups
Get my sensory table on Amazon!
This Halloween sensory bin is simple to put together and the black beans are a low-effort item with a big wow factor when you add in the googly eyes.
When we’re done with the sensory bin, I store the mixture in a Ziploc bag and keep it for next year!
Halloween Book Basket (or shelf)
This is as simple as taking out all of your seasonal Halloween books and displaying them in a basket or shelf!
My kids get so excited when the seasonal books are taken out, and keeping everything stored together makes it easy to clean up as well.
In the morning my toddler likes to grab a bunch of books from the Halloween basket and sit on the couch with me while we read through them (and I drink my coffee!)
Shop my Halloween book collection on Amazon
Halloween Snack Box
Here are 2 fun snack box ideas to send to preschool or take with you on errands.
Orange Snack box:
- Halloween Oreos or Trader Joe Joe’s
- Cubed cheese
- Mandarin orange
- Goldfish or other cheddar crackers
Jack-o-Lantern Snack box
- Halloween pretzels & hummus
- MadeGood snickerdoodle cookies
- Freeze-dried strawberries
- Snap pea puffs
- Babybel cheese
Shop my toddler snack & lunchboxes on Amazon
What to Read Next:
- Themed Morning Baskets for Preschoolers
- 3 Year Old Preschool Activities at Home
- Fun Fall Preschool Activities to Try
- Healthy Halloween Snacks for Toddlers
-
Morning Basket Startup Guide$15.00 -
The Preschool Playbook$55.00
-
Ultimate Bento Box Lunch Guide$10.00
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