Toddler Halloween Party

22 years ago

My daughter is 26 mos & I am having a Halloween party at home. Most of the kids will be 2-3 with a few, maybe 3 will be up to age 6. I have the decorations, our costumes & music covered. I'm also sticking to a jack-o-lantern theme - nothing too scary for tots. I am going to make a Halloween cake out of bundt pans as a centerpiece & dessert for the adults. Lunch will just be pizza for both parents & kids. I was thinking of using Entenmeanns Halloween cupcakes as dessert for the kids. I am going to fill a cauldron up with ice & juice boxes & then maybe a cider for the adults.

My problem is that I was hoping to find some very simple & non messy activities for the toddlers. I have found lots of games for older kids & the only appropriate activities I can think of for toddlers are pin the nose on the pumpkin, I'm going to have a pumpkin pinata & I have Halloween coloring pages for the few min while everyone is arriving until the official activities begin.

I thought of trick or treating by setting up stations where they will go to different adults to get a Halloween treat (they did this at my church MOms & Tot slast yr & it worked out well), but how much candy can they get if they are already doing a pinata unless in the pinata I use only candy & as trick or treating I use small toys & set up maybe 3-4 stations (Oriental Trading catalog has cute toys)?

I am planning the party to last 1-1/2 to 2 hrs. but I think I still need more actitivies, although I'm not sure how much time these things are going to take up - any ideas?

Michie

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Comments (4)

sheilajoyce_gw
22 years ago
2 hours is a very long time...Try a drop the clothespin in the milk bottle type challenge (of course, milk bottles and clothespins are scarce these days, so use something else). One station could be to throw a nerf ball into a hoop or waste basket. They could learn the Hokey Pokey and enjoy doing it with moms' help. Someone could do some face painting. How about teams of kids, each with a paper cup, to see who can fill up a bucket of water a cup at a time from another bucket of water--out on the patio. Bubble blowing--out on the patio.

It takes a LOT of strength to open a pinata. Be prepared to make it happen.
arabellamiller
22 years ago
They could decorate pumpkins with self adhesive materials. Stickers, foam shapes with peel-off backs, that kind of thing. You could also use glitter glue and markers, but I'm guessing that's more mess than you'd like? They make self-adhesive foam in letter shapes, so you could have a sandwich bag with the letter of each child's name in it. That also makes it easier to figure out whose pumpkin is whose.

As stated above, Pinatas are hard to open. Indoors can be a confining space to swing a bat as well. They make pinatas with pull strings. Less fun, yes, but still cool.

I like the face painting idea, also Halloween tattoos are fun.

Enjoy your party.

AM
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Katie S
22 years ago
I teach 2 year olds at a preschool, and also have four kids of my own, with my third being 2. A few things that 2's love:

Cover a table or two with craft paper and let them decorate it with markers or crayons

Shaving cream sculptures (just let them play with it on a table, great for doing right after a messy craft or messy cupcakes) have a bucket of water nearby to rinse off hands in afterwards.

Dance on bubble wrap (amazingly fun to pop by jumping and dancing, does not have to be haloween music)

Make popup finger puppets by putting a halloween sticker onto the top of a popsicle stick, then cut a little slit into the bottom of a dixie cup, and insert the stick into the hole so that the sticker part is inside the cup, and the stick is coming out of the bottom like a handle. The child can hold the cup and the stck and make the sticker popup and say "Boo!" This can keep them busy for soooooooo long!!!!!!!!!! It is one of my favorite crafts for this age. my oldest is six and STILL gets a kick out of it! I cannot tell you what a big hit this has been with every child I have tried it with! (We make them for evry holiday: a groundhog in Feb, flowers in Spring, santa in a chimney, family photos anytime.......)

Another great fave, this will keep them busy for quite a while: buy or make cupcake with plain icing and let the kids decorate their own cupcake with sprinkles and candy, etc. WATCH FOR CHOKING HAZARDS!!!!!!!!

Make ghosts out of lollipops with tissues and rubber bands.
draw on eyes, etc.

make sure you have mirrors out, if possible-- at this age seeing themselves in costume is great entertainment as well!!!

Good luck!!! I would be tempted to skip the pinata and the trick-or-treating, or at least do them minimally. Everyone gets so much candy at this time of year!

Toddler Halloween Party

Comments (4)

sheilajoyce_gw

arabellamiller

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