10 Easy Halloween Crafts & Activities for Preschoolers

Halloween with preschoolers should be more fun than frightening! These 10 easy Halloween crafts and activities are designed for little ones ages 3–5, with plenty of opportunities to paint, cut, glue, move, explore and play.

Whether you're a parent, grandparent, preschool teacher, daycare provider or simply someone lucky enough to spend time with a preschooler, these not-too-spooky ideas make it easy to enjoy some Halloween fun together.

You'll find more than just crafts here. We've included fine motor activities, sensory play and a movement game too, because preschoolers learn best when they're busy exploring, creating and having fun.

Most importantly, don't worry about making anything perfect. Follow their lead, enjoy the giggles and make a Halloween memory together.

1. Ghost Sponge Painting

Let’s make a friendly little ghost! Start by having a grown-up draw a simple ghost outline on black construction paper.

Dip a small round sponge or cotton ball into white paint, then let your preschooler dab, dab, dab inside the outline until their ghost is filled with fluffy white paint. Once it dries, add eyes and a big silly smile to bring your ghost to life.

You'll need: Black construction paper, white washable paint, a small round sponge or cotton ball, and a marker or googly eyes.

Skills: Fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, creative expression and texture exploration.

Make it together: Sit alongside your preschooler and take turns adding dabs of paint. Talk about what kind of personality your ghost should have. Is it happy, surprised or extra silly? When it's dry, let your preschooler decide what face will make their ghost their own.

2. Paper Plate Witch

Let’s make a silly witch face! Start by painting a paper plate green and set it aside to dry.

Cut a large triangle from black construction paper for the witch’s pointy hat. Next, cut strips of orange paper for her hair and glue them along the upper sides of the plate. Add the hat on top with the orange hair peeking out underneath.

Finish your friendly witch with googly eyes and a big smile.

You’ll need: Paper plate, green paint, black and orange construction paper, googly eyes, child-safe scissors, glue and a marker.

Skills: Scissor skills, fine motor control, hand-eye coordination and creativity.

Make it together: Let your preschooler decide what their witch should look like. Cut the paper pieces together, experiment with different hair lengths and give her a personality. She can be silly, surprised, sleepy or anything your little artist imagines.

3. Spider Web Rescue

Uh-oh, some toys are trapped in a spider web! Place a few small toys or pretend spiders inside a bin. Have a grown-up stretch tape, yarn or string across the top in different directions, leaving small openings between the strands.

Now it's rescue time. Let your preschooler reach through the web to carefully pull out each toy. For an extra fine motor challenge, give them tongs or child-safe tweezers and see if they can rescue everything without getting caught in the web.

You'll need: A bin or basket, tape, yarn or string, small toys or pretend spiders, and optional tongs or child-safe tweezers.

Skills: Fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, problem-solving, patience and persistence.

Make it together: Take turns choosing which toy to rescue next. If something is tricky to reach, work together to figure out another way to get it through the web. The goal isn't speed. It's experimenting, problem-solving and having fun together.

4. Ghost Toss

Ready to get some Halloween wiggles out? Make a few little ghosts, then see how many you can toss into a bowl or bin.

Crumple a piece of aluminum foil into a ball to give each ghost a little weight. Wrap it with toilet paper, a paper towel or a dryer sheet, then secure it underneath the ball with a rubber band or twist tie to create the ghost's head and flowing body.

Set out a bowl or bin as your target and take turns tossing the ghosts. Move the target closer for an easier game or farther away for an extra challenge.

You'll need: Aluminum foil, toilet paper, paper towels or dryer sheets, rubber bands or twist ties, and a bowl or bin.

Skills: Hand-eye coordination, gross motor skills, aiming, distance awareness and turn-taking.

Make it together: Make your little ghosts together, then take turns tossing them into the target. Cheer each other on, count how many land inside, or experiment with moving the target to different distances. Keep it playful rather than worrying about who gets the most.

5. Toilet Tube Bat

Turn an empty toilet paper tube into a friendly little Halloween bat! Start by painting the tube black and let it dry.

Cut bat wings and two small pointy ears from black construction paper, then glue them onto the tube. Add googly eyes and draw on a silly smile or tiny fangs.

For the finishing touch, attach black pipe cleaners for the bat's feet so you can hang it upside down, just like a real bat.

You'll need: Empty toilet paper tube, black washable paint, black construction paper, black pipe cleaners, googly eyes, child-safe scissors, glue and a marker.

Skills: Fine motor skills, scissor skills, hand-eye coordination, creativity and animal exploration.

Make it together: Cut and assemble the pieces together, then let your preschooler decide what kind of face their bat should have. When it's finished, find a place to hang it upside down and talk about how real bats sleep and rest.

6. Cheerios Pumpkin

Turn cereal into a colorful pumpkin! Start by cutting a large pumpkin shape from cardboard or orange construction paper.

Spread glue over the pumpkin, then let your preschooler place orange Cheerios or cereal pieces onto the shape one at a time. Keep adding and pressing until the pumpkin is covered with a bumpy cereal mosaic.

Let it dry, then admire your pumpkin masterpiece.

You'll need: Cardboard or orange construction paper, orange Cheerios or similar cereal, and child-safe glue.

Skills: Fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, color recognition, texture exploration and creative expression.

Make it together: Pour out a small pile of cereal and work side by side filling the pumpkin. Your preschooler can decide where each piece belongs while you talk about the colors and textures. Don't worry about filling every little space. Their pumpkin doesn't need to be perfect to be special.

7. Tissue Paper Monsters

Let your preschooler's imagination run wild with a silly monster of their own! Start with a paper plate and tear or cut colorful tissue paper into small squares.

Spread glue over the plate, then press the tissue paper pieces all over until it's covered. Now comes the fun part. Add one giant eye, two eyes or a whole bunch of googly eyes. Cut out pointy ears, antennae, a silly mouth or any other monster features your preschooler dreams up.

There are no rules for what a monster should look like, so every one can be completely different.

You'll need: Paper plate, colorful tissue paper, child-safe scissors, glue, googly eyes and construction paper for extra features.

Skills: Fine motor skills, scissor skills, creative expression, color exploration and imaginative thinking.

Make it together: Make a monster alongside your preschooler and let them make the creative decisions. Ask questions like, "How many eyes should mine have?" or "Does your monster need ears?" Then give your monsters names and make up something silly about them together.

8. Apple Print Jack-o'-Lanterns

Turn an apple into a pumpkin stamp! Have a grown-up cut an apple in half, then dip the flat side into orange washable paint.

Press the apple onto black paper to create a pumpkin shape. Make several prints and let them dry a little. Then turn each pumpkin into a jack-o'-lantern by adding eyes, a nose, a mouth and a stem. Make each face different. They can be happy, surprised or completely silly.

You'll need: Apple, orange washable paint, black construction paper, marker or crayons, and a shallow plate or tray for the paint.

Skills: Fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, stamping, creative expression and cause-and-effect exploration.

Make it together: Take turns making apple prints and see how each one comes out a little differently. Once they're ready for faces, let your preschooler design the expressions. You can even make up names and personalities for your little pumpkin family.

9. Pumpkin Suncatcher

Brighten up a window with a colorful jack-o'-lantern suncatcher! Have a grown-up cut a pumpkin shape from black construction paper, then cut out the middle so only the pumpkin outline remains.

Cover the open center with clear contact paper or strips of clear tape, sticky side facing out. Let your preschooler tear or cut orange, yellow and red tissue paper into small pieces and press them onto the sticky surface until the pumpkin is filled with color.

Add triangle eyes, a nose and a mouth to turn it into a jack-o'-lantern. Hang it in a sunny window and watch the light shine through all those colorful pieces.

You'll need: Black construction paper, clear contact paper or tape, orange, yellow and red tissue paper, child-safe scissors and glue if needed.

Skills: Fine motor skills, scissor and tearing skills, hand-eye coordination, color exploration and creative expression.

Make it together: Let your preschooler choose the tissue paper colors and arrange the pieces however they like. Once it's hanging in the window, look at how the colors change when sunlight shines through. It's a Halloween decoration you made together that you can enjoy all season.

10. Gross-Out Halloween Sensory Play

Get ready for some squishy, slimy Halloween fun! Set up four covered bowls filled with different creepy-feeling surprises, then let your preschooler reach inside without peeking and guess what they're touching.

Fill one bowl with completely cooled cooked spaghetti, another with peeled grapes, another with gummy worms and the last with gooey pumpkin guts. For even more sensory and fine motor fun, give your preschooler child-safe scissors to snip the cooled spaghetti after the guessing game is over.

Keep the bowls covered until they've explored them all, then reveal what's really inside.

You'll need: Four bowls, cooked and completely cooled spaghetti, peeled grapes, gummy worms, pumpkin guts, covers for the bowls and optional child-safe scissors.

Skills: Sensory exploration, fine motor skills, descriptive language, imaginative thinking and prediction.

Make it together: Take turns reaching into the mystery bowls and describing what you feel before making a guess. Is it cold, slippery, squishy or stringy? The funny guesses and reactions are part of the fun, so enjoy the experience together instead of worrying about getting the answers right.

More Halloween Fun Is Really More Time Together

The best part of these Halloween crafts and activities isn't the finished ghost, pumpkin or monster. It's the time you spend making it together.

Let your preschooler make the creative decisions, enjoy the mess, laugh when things don't turn out quite as planned and celebrate what they create. Those little moments together are what Aunt Linny is all about.

Looking for more simple ways to create and play together? Explore our Preschool Crafts & Activities for more ideas for ages 3–5, or visit our Free Preschool Printables for something you can print and enjoy today.

And when you want plenty of ideas ready whenever you need them, discover Aunt Linny's Craft Vault with 99 Preschool Crafts & Activities.

For Preschool Teachers & Childcare Programs

Are you a preschool teacher, daycare provider or watcher of preschool kids? Aunt Linny also offers a Single-Location Professional License, giving your staff access to activities they can print and use again and again at one location.