Halloween games and activities for ESL kids lessons

Teaching Halloween in an ESL kids lesson

Happy Halloween!

This page has a selection of Halloween games and activities that can be used in an ESL Kids classroom. Some have specific teaching functions, others are just fun games (good for parties!). At the end of each game is a Teaching Point (TP) Section.

All games and activities are listed in alphabetical order.

Halloween games & activities:

Candy jar guess

Put Halloween candies in a jar and get the students to guess how many there are and share them out afterwards. Special Halloween shaped candy (especially eye balls!) would be really great.
(TP: V: large numbers)

Costume party

Something all kids love to do – dress up in a Halloween costume. Prizes can be given for best, scariest, funniest, etc.
(TP: None)

Guess the pumpkin weight

After carving the pumpkin have students try and guess the weight – use scales. Students can weigh other things first to help their guess.
(TP: V: weigh, heavy, light, numbers. F: weighing things)

Halloween cards

Supplies: card, [hide_on_uk]colored[/hide_on_uk][hide_on_us]coloured[/hide_on_us] pens/pencils, glitter. Students make cards for other students in the class. Help out with writing fun messages inside the cards.
(TP: V: Halloween card. F: writing messages)

Halloween concentration

Play the concentration card game using Halloween flashcards.
(TP: V: Halloween vocabulary)

Halloween walk

Form line on one side of room. Cross room in following ways

1. Fly like a bat
2. gallop like a cowboy on a horse
3. hop like a bunny
4. roll like a pumpkin
5. dance like a princess
6. creep like a cat
7. walk like a skeleton
8. float like a ghost
9. stomp like a monster

(TP: V: Action verbs with Halloween vocabulary)

Handprint ghosts

Have the children paint their hands white and press onto black construction paper. When they dry have the children turn them upside down and add faces.
(TP: V: ghost, paint, handprint, face vocab)

Haunted house classroom

You can have a lot of fun turning your classroom into a Haunted House. Rearrange the furniture, turn out all the lights, hide volunteers in strategic places around the room to scare your students, then lead the students in (one or two at a time) and listen to the screams! Eerie music is essential, as is a very dark room. If you can get some glow-in-the-dark stars and arrows to illuminate a path around the room, and to mark the edges of tables, chairs, and any other dangerous areas.
(TP: None)

I went into a haunted house

Students sit in a circle. Student A says, “I went into the haunted house and saw a witch“. Student B continues, “I went into the haunted house and saw a witch and a black cat“. Continue around the circle.
(TP: V: various Halloween vocabulary)

Making masks

Making masks is always fun and is also a good review for parts of the face, [hide_on_uk]colors[/hide_on_uk][hide_on_us]colours[/hide_on_us] and names of characters (Dracula, monster, witch, etc.). Simple masks can be made with paper plates and string. A competition can be held and prizes given for the best, the funniest, the scariest, the most [hide_on_uk]colorful[/hide_on_uk][hide_on_us]colourful[/hide_on_us], the biggest.
(TP: V: Face vocab, [hide_on_uk]colors[/hide_on_uk][hide_on_us]colours[/hide_on_us], Halloween characters)

Melt the witch game

Materials: a moveable chalkboard, [hide_on_uk]colored[/hide_on_uk][hide_on_us]coloured[/hide_on_us] chalk, sponges, bucket of water.

Directions: draw a witch’s head, or whole body on the chalkboard. Fill the bucket with water and sponges. Have children stand close enough to the board to be able to hit it accurately with a wet sponge. Place water bucket and sponges near this spot. Tell the children to take turns throwing wet sponges at the witch to try and “melt” her away.

As the witch becomes wet and water drips down the board, it will appear as if she is melting. Be sure the children are squeezing out to the sponges before throwing.
(TP: V: throw, witch, melt, bucket, sponge)

Mummy dress-up

Let the children wrap each other in toilet paper and pretend to be a mummy. You’ll need to buy a big pack of toilet paper rolls or kitchen paper rolls in advance.
(TP: V: Mummy, toilet paper, wrap up/around)

Paper pumpkin

Have the students stuff plain brown paper lunch bags with crumpled newspaper, then have them paint the bags with orange paint, and then tie the bags with thick green yarn to make them into a pumpkin decorations.
(TP: V: Face vocab, pumpkin, jack-o-lantern)

Pass the pumpkin

Students sit in a circle. Provide a plastic pumpkin for children to pass while the teacher beats on a drum or plays some music. Children pass the pumpkin to the tempo of the music. Alternate between fast and slow. When the music stops the child who has the pumpkin stands and takes a bow. Continue.
(TP: None)

Pass the vampire bat

Supplies: one straw for each child / bat shapes cut out of tissue paper.

How to play: divide the class into 2 teams and line up each team. Students pass the tissue bats down the line, teammate to teammate, by inhaling and exhaling on the straw to hang onto or release the ornament. No hands! The first team to successfully pass the bats up and down the line wins!
(TP: V: bat, straw, line up, pass. AA: Before the game you can get the students to make the tissue bats)

Pin the tail on the black cat

This is a take on ‘pin the tail on the donkey’. Put a picture of a tailless-less black cat on the wall, blindfold the students, spin them around and see if they can pin the tail in the right place. The nearest wins a prize/points.
(TP: V: black cat, tail, pin, blindfold, spin)

Play-Doh

Make jack-o-lanterns, witches, other characters, etc.
(TP: V: various Halloween objects)

Scary stories

With more advanced students, have students tell their scariest story.
(TP: F: Story Telling. AA: Have the students write their story and draw accompanying pictures)

Spelling banner

Prepare two banners that say whatever you want them to say, i.e. Happy Halloween, Trick or treat, etc. Also prepare a set of letters for the same words cut out in two different [hide_on_uk]colors[/hide_on_uk][hide_on_us]colours[/hide_on_us] hidden randomly around the room.

Divide the class into 2 teams with two captains – the captains sit and wait for their teammates to bring the letters for their banner. If a student is on the “red” team and sees a letter for the “green” team he/she just leaves it alone. The first team to cover their banner letters wins.
(TP: F: spelling)

Spooky finger

Only do this with older kids as it is quite scary! Make a small hole in the bottom of a small cottage cheese container – any similar container will do – and put some cotton in the bottom. Stick your middle finger through the hole and bend it inward. Let the rest of your fingers grip the container naturally. Arrange the cotton around your finger to hide the hole. Cover the container and ask one of your unsuspecting students to remove the lid. When s/he does, move the finger up and down.
(TP: AA: let your students make a finger box)

Trick or treat game

Place slips of paper in a brown lunch bag. On each write down a different “trick” such as “hop on one foot” or “close your eyes and touch your nose.” Have each child in turn, say, “trick or treat” and draw a paper from the bag. When s/he performs the “trick” say “treat” and give him/her either a Halloween sticker or a candy.
(TP: V: action verbs, trick, treat)

What’s in the box?

Paint a cardboard box black with a hole cut out to put hands into. All sorts of things can be placed in the box and the students have to put their hands in the box and try to guess what the object is. Great fun!
(TP: None)

Who am I ghost?

Blindfold one student. The other students stand in circle around the blindfolded student. Spin the student around and then stop him/her facing another student. The first student says, “Whooooooo! (like a ghost). Who am I?”. The blindfolded student must guess who that student is and call out his/her name.
(TP: F: asking people to identify themselves)

Word find

Supplies: timer, paper, pens. Divide students into teams. Take a Halloween related word such as: Dracula, Frankenstein, Jack-O-Lantern, etc. and find as many words as possible using the letters of that word. Give a time limit (e.g. 2 mins). The team with the most words wins! For example: Frankenstein: (in, ran, ant, nest, tin…).
(TP: F: Spelling)

Halloween lesson plan

Free Halloween lesson plan

Check out our wonderful Halloween lesson plan which is tailor-made to use in your kids ESL classroom. The lesson plan includes downloadable flashcards, worksheets, song and a classroom reader.

Halloween songs

ESL Kids Halloween songs to download – We have two great songs which you can download and use in your lessons: “Three little witches” – sung to tune of ’10 little elephants’ – great for little kids and “Happy Halloween!” – a great song for older kids!