In breve
- Seven easy games for kids, at home or in class, with things you already have.
- Start with would you rather: no setup, and everyone joins in.
- Keep rounds short, mix the ages in teams and end with a quiet game.
- Livello
- Easy, for ages 4 to 12
- Tempo
- About 1 hour
Costumes on, candy bowl full, and a room of kids who can't sit still. Time for games!
Here are seven easy Halloween party games for kids, for a party at home or a class party at school. You need almost nothing: toilet paper, some music, paper and pencils. Each game takes about ten minutes, and the rules fit in one sentence.
1. Would you rather, Halloween edition
Start here, because there's nothing to set up. Read a question aloud, everyone picks an answer, and then each player says why. The funniest reason wins a point. In a classroom, make it move: one side of the room for the first answer, the other side for the second.
Here are six we wrote for this party:
- Would you rather have a pet bat that sings or a pet spider that tells jokes?
- Would you rather be a ghost who can't stop hiccupping or a vampire who's scared of the dark?
- Would you rather go trick-or-treating on a broomstick or in a flying pumpkin?
- Would you rather live in a haunted house with friendly ghosts or in a castle full of bats?
- Would you rather eat a candy that makes you invisible or one that makes you float?
- Would you rather have a witch's hat that does your homework or a black cat that tidies your room?
When you run out, Would You Rather, Halloween Edition has 300+ spooky, silly questions for parties, costume nights and sleepovers, for ages 6 and up. Between the questions you'll also find group games, like the Monster Footprint Hunt and Pin the Fangs on the Vampire. And there's a whole Would You Rather series, with editions for Christmas, summer, campfire nights and more.
2. Mummy wrap race
Make teams of three or four and give each team a roll of toilet paper. One player on each team is the mummy. On "Go!", the others wrap their mummy from shoulders to shoes, arms and legs included, but never the face. The first team with a fully wrapped mummy wins. Or skip the race and vote for the silliest mummy.
3. Pass the pumpkin
Sit in a circle and pass a small pumpkin while the music plays. An orange or a ball works too. When the music stops, whoever holds the pumpkin does a quick challenge: answer a would you rather question, give their best witch cackle, or walk like a zombie to the door and back. Nobody is out, so it's perfect for little ones.
4. Monster freeze dance
Put on some spooky songs and let everyone dance like a monster. When the music stops, they freeze in their scariest pose. Anyone who wobbles or giggles lets out a big monster roar, and the dancing goes on. Kids who'd rather watch can be the judges. Call out a new monster before each song: a mummy, a vampire, a jelly-legged ghost.
5. What's in the cauldron?
Hide a few bowls inside cardboard boxes with a hand-sized hole in one side. Inside: peeled grapes for eyeballs, cold cooked spaghetti for worms, a damp sponge for a brain. Players reach in, feel, and guess. Tell the little ones the real answer right away, and check for food allergies before the party.
6. Ghost says
It's Simon Says with a spooky twist. The leader is the ghost: "Ghost says flap your wings like a bat." "Ghost says stir the witch's brew." Kids only move when they hear "Ghost says". No materials, no running, so it's a great classroom game. Let a different kid be the ghost each round.
7. Fold-a-monster
A quiet game to end the party. Fold a sheet of paper in three. The first player draws a monster's head at the top, folds it over so nobody can see, and passes it on. The next draws the body, the last draws the legs. Then unfold and meet your monster! Give it a name and a would you rather question of its own.
For a calm corner while the others play, set out a few pages from the Halloween Coloring Book for Kids and a cup of crayons.
Tips for every age
- Ages 4 to 6: pass the pumpkin, monster freeze dance and ghost says. Keep rounds short, skip games where players are out, and pair the youngest with an older kid.
- Ages 6 to 9: everything on this list. Would you rather is always a hit, because everyone gets to explain their answer.
- Ages 10 to 12: turn would you rather into a debate. Two players defend opposite answers and the room votes. Then let them write their own spooky questions for the younger kids.
Tips for every group
- Three to six kids at home: play in turns, so everyone answers every question. Grown-ups can play too.
- A whole class: make teams of four or five for the mummy race, use the two sides of the room for would you rather, and set up the cauldron as a station that teams visit in turns.
- Mixed ages: put big and little kids in every team, and give the oldest a job: host, DJ or judge.
Party mistakes to skip
- Games where kids are out. Little ones hate sitting on the side. Give them a silly job instead, like DJ or judge.
- Too scary, too soon. Keep it silly for the youngest and save the spooky stories for the big kids.
- Long explanations. One sentence of rules, one practice round, then play.
- Loud game after loud game. Follow a race with a quiet game, so the party doesn't get out of hand.
- Forgetting allergies. For the cauldron, use foods everyone can touch, and ask parents first.
Plan your party
Pick four or five games and switch between loud and quiet: would you rather to start, the mummy race when energy is high, fold-a-monster to finish. Keep one game in your pocket in case another one falls flat.
Looking for more after Halloween? Try our family game night ideas, four easy rounds for any evening. And for the grown-ups, there are six Halloween coloring pages, on us.
Questions about Halloween party games
What are good Halloween party games for a classroom?
Games with little setup and no running: would you rather (kids walk to one side of the room for each answer), ghost says, pass the pumpkin and fold-a-monster. Play the mummy wrap race in teams of four or five.
What age are these Halloween games for?
Most of them work for kids from about 4 to 12. For the youngest, skip games where players are out and pair them with an older kid. Would You Rather, Halloween Edition is for ages 6 and up.
How many games do I need for a Halloween party?
Four or five games of about ten minutes each are plenty, with time for food and costumes in between. Keep one more in reserve in case a game falls flat.
How do I keep Halloween games from getting too scary?
Keep the lights on for little ones, choose silly monsters over scary ones, and let anyone sit out a round. Would you rather questions are spooky and silly at the same time, so they work for every age.
Qualcosa da stampare per i bambini?
Materiali gratuiti
