MNN - Mother Nature Network

 

 

Raid your recycling bin for 2-liter soda bottles and decorate with markers, paint, and/or stickers in spooky Halloween designs. Add about a cup of sand or pebbles in each bottle so they will stand without falling over.

 

At the party, line up the bottles and using a small pumpkin, let the kids take turns trying to "bowl" the pins over. Get ready for laughs as the pumpkins roll every which way but straight!

 

This is a very cute game that even the littlest kids can enjoy. Cut out a bunch of paper witch hats from your stash of recycled paper ... using one color to make most of the hats and a different color to make two "special" hats. Hide all the witch hats throughout the game area. Now send the kids to find all the hats, and give out prizes for the kids who find the most hats and to the kids who find the "special" hats.  

 

This game is a Halloweenified version of musical chairs ... but without the running and pushing. Cut out pumpkins, witches, ghosts, brooms, scarecrows, and other Halloween symbols (one symbol for each child playing.) Place the cutouts in a circle on the floor or on a table in your game area. Put on some spooky tunes and ask the kids to walk around the circle of cutouts. At a random intervals, stop the music and tell the kids to freeze next to one of the cutouts. Then from a hat or jar draw out the name of one of the cutouts. The child standing next to the that cutout would be out (and they can take their cutout with them.) Repeat this process until there is only one child left; that's your winner. 

 

Gather up a bunch of scarecrown building supplies ... old pants, hats, shirts, shows, etc. Divide kids into groups and give them 15 minutes to create the scariest, funniest or silliest scarecrow they can. You can have one overall winner, or you can make each scarecrow a winner. 

 

Divide kids into groups of four. Each child in the group should draw a "job" that is written on a piece of paper in a jar. The jobs to be assigned are:

1. Mummy

2. Arm and leg wrapper

3. Tummy wrapper

4. Head wrapper

 

Next hand out the supplies ... recycled crepe paper and toilet paper work best. The object of this game is for each group to wrap their mummy faster than any of the other groups. Time is a factor, but they will also be judged on their mummy-wrapping skills. Choose a winner for the best mummy or a race for the fastest mummy wrapped.