Halloween is the one day when a noisy classroom is exactly what you want. Here are 23 games for a class party – from quiet language games that fit into an English lesson to balloon stomps and pumpkin relays for the last hour before the holiday.
Language games
Games that fit into an English lesson – each one practises real language. For games on the screen, see Halloween Games Online.
1Halloween sound stories
Play spooky sounds – wind, footsteps, an owl. Children listen and describe what they hear in a sentence: “I’m walking in the woods and I hear an owl.”
English: I can hear… / I’m walking in… and I hear…⬇ Halloween sounds
2Halloween storytelling
Give out Halloween picture cards and start a spooky story. Each child continues the story with his or her card.
English: past simple and linking words – and then…, suddenly…⬇ Picture cards
⬇ Story starters
3Halloween Guess Who
Stick a Halloween word on a child’s back. He or she asks yes/no questions to find out what it is.
English: Is it a…? Can it fly? Is it green?
4Halloween memory game
Show a busy Halloween picture for 30 seconds, then hide it. Who remembers the most things?
English: There is a… / There are two…⬇ Halloween pictures
5Trick-or-treat chain
The first child says “I went trick-or-treating and I got…” and adds a thing. The next repeats the whole list and adds one more.
English: I went trick-or-treating and I got a lollipop, a toffee and…
6Continue the song
Play part of a Halloween song and stop the music. Children take turns singing the next line.
English: song lyrics and rhymes
7Trick or treat draw
Fill a bag with slips marked “trick” or “treat”. A trick is a funny challenge – hop, sing, make a monster face; a treat is a small sweet.
English: action verbs and instructions – Hop three times! Sing a song!⬇ Trick ideas
8Day and night
Children are bats. When you say “Night!” they look for hidden sweets; when you say “Day!” they freeze.
English: listening to commandsActive games
For the gym, the playground or a classroom with the desks pushed back.
9Balloon stomp
Tie a balloon to each child’s ankle. Everyone tries to pop the others’ balloons and keep their own. The last balloon wins!
10Freeze dance
Play Halloween music and dance. When the music stops, everyone freezes – anyone who moves sits out a round.
11Wrap the mummy
Teams race to wrap one classmate in toilet paper like a mummy.
12Pin the nose on the pumpkin
A Halloween version of the classic: blindfolded players pin a paper nose onto a pumpkin poster. Closest wins!
13Pass the pumpkin
Pass a mini pumpkin around the circle while the music plays. Whoever holds it when the music stops is out.
14Pumpkin bowling
Roll a small pumpkin at pins made from paper rolls.
15Pumpkin relay
Push a pumpkin across the room with a broom – alone or in teams.
16Halloween candy hunt
Hide wrapped sweets around the room and let the children find them.
Music for Freeze Dance – The Kiboomers’ Halloween Freeze Dance
Treat games
Sweet, sticky and a little messy – best at the very end of the party.
17Guess the number of sweets
Fill a clear jar with sweets. Everyone guesses how many are inside – the closest guess wins the jar.
English: numbers – I think there are…
18Balloon candy surprise
Put small wrapped sweets inside balloons before you blow them up. Children pop the balloons to find the surprise.
19Syringe juice relay
With clean plastic syringes (no needles) and red juice, children race to move the “potion” from one cup to another.
20Musical sweets
Like musical chairs: pass a sweet round while the music plays. Whoever holds it when the music stops keeps it.
21Pumpkin seed scoop
Blindfolded children scoop the seeds out of a real pumpkin, then count them. The most seeds wins a small prize.
English: counting
22Apple bobbing
Catch an apple floating in water using only your mouth. Have towels ready!
23Doughnuts on a string
Hang doughnuts on strings; children try to eat them with their hands behind their backs.
Before the party: check for food allergies, keep balloons away from children under three, and have a mop and towels ready for the apple bobbing.
- Start the party with two language games while everyone is fresh, and keep the treat games for the end.
- Teach the phrases first – Trick or treat! It’s my turn. You’re out! – and insist on English during the games.
Everything else for the holiday – games, worksheets, listening and videos – is in the Halloween section.