Sharing Parental Experiences

Whatever your age Halloween is a time for fun. Halloween makes the perfect theme for a kids’ party.

Arriving with your face painted increases the fun element. Especially if you match it to a fancy dress outfit. And a do-it-yourself outfit is fine. You don’t have to hire a costume. Learn more about children’s face painting ideas

Favorite Halloween face painting designs include ghost, vampire, the devil, wolf, cat and a skull. For more inspiration check out face painting ideas

Here are some ideas for kids party games. Choose games that are suitable for the age group of children attending. Some games may not be appropraite for everyone.

*Freeze
Put on some music. Don’t use scary sound effects if very young children are attending the party. The children start dancing. When the music stops the children have to stand still. Anyone caught moving during the freeze is eliminated. A variation is to require the kids to pose when the music stops. Before the music starts again they’re told what they must be when the music stops. It could be a cat, a pumpkin, bat etc.

*Pass The Pumpkin
This is a play on “pass the parcel”. The children stand or sit in a circle. Play some suitable Halloween music and the children start passing round the pumpkin. The one holding the pumpkin when the music stops is out. The game continues until only one child is left.

* Pumpkin Penny Toss
Before the party carve out a large pumpkin and have a large opening at the top. For this game each child is given the same amount of pennies. Taking it in turns each child stands behind spin]the designated mark|a markerand toss the penny into the pumpkin. At every successful throw the child receives a piece of Halloween candy.

* Bite The Apple
Ducking for apples is a popular Halloween party game but it ruins those wonderful face painting designs. This version keeps the participants dry. The children have to try and take a bite from a hanging apple. For an indoor game, tie a piece of string to the each apple stem and then loop it securely over a broomstick. The broom stick is placed at a suitable height. For an outdoor version hang the apples from the branch of a suitable tree.

* Skeleton Scavenger Hunt
Before the party starts hide skeleton parts around the house and/or backyard. The parts can be bought from a toy store/craft shop or handmade. Divide the children up into teams and allow them a set amount of time to find as many skeleton parts as they can. The team that finds the most skeleton parts wins.

* The Wiggly Worm
The children are divided into teams of equal numbers. Between 6 and 10 is ideal. Each team forms a line, one standing behind another. To create the worm the child at the front of each line puts their left hand between their legs and the child behind holds it with their right hand. This is repeated right down the line. When you shout “boo” the teams must run around a designated marker and back. The team that gets back to the starting position first wins. Of course they must have kept their “worm” formation.

Game prizes do not have to be candy. Other possibilities might be a Halloween themed pencil, homemade spooky shaped cookies or a scary mask.

Decorating the home in a Halloween theme does not have be expensive. Part of the fun of Halloween is to make your own decorations.

A great way to restrict the children to certain rooms of the house is to put up handmade “Keep Out – Haunted Room” banners across those rooms that you don’t want the kids to go into.

As we said earlier theming a Halloween costume with a face painting design really helps the children get into the Halloween mood. And remember the younger kids normally don’t like anything too ghoulish. There are childrens face painting ideas whatever a child’s age. Make sure you practice your chosen design before the day of the party.

I’m sure you can make it a great Halloween party.