Halloween Crafts for Preschoolers

Halloween crafts for preschoolers are a great way to nurture your child's creativity while helping to get into the spirit of the holiday.

Choosing Halloween Crafts for Preschoolers

The Internet is full of sites offering kid-friendly Halloween craft ideas. When selecting Halloween crafts for preschoolers, however, it's helpful to remember the following tips:

• The finished project should be something that appeals to a child's taste. Bright, colorful designs are more appropriate for preschoolers than ghoulish and scary Halloween decorations.
• The craft should be fairly quick, since children this age have short attention spans.
• The craft should use safe materials, such as non-toxic crayons or foam stickers. If you need to use an item that represents a potential safety hazard, such as an iron or scissors, provide plenty of supervision.
• Preschoolers love messy crafts, but it's always a good idea to make sure your work area is protected and your young crafter is wearing old clothes.

Decorate a Pumpkin

Obviously, it's not a great idea to allow your child near a large carving knife. However, there are still plenty of safe ways your preschooler can decorate a special pumpkin. For example:

• Draw a face on the pumpkin with washable markers.
• Use acrylic paints to paint a cute design on the pumpkin.
• Add character to your pumpkin using self-adhesive foam stickers.
• Use pieces from a Mr. Potato Head set to decorate the pumpkin. All you'll need to do is poke a few holes in the appropriate spots.
• Cut images from old magazines and decoupage them onto the pumpkin using a foam paintbrush and Mod Podge.

Make a Mask

All children love to play dress up, so encourage this creative impulse by helping your preschooler to make a special Halloween mask. Enchanted Learning has an impressive selection of designs, including a cat, robot, lion, pig, dog, and koala. Print the masks onto heavy weight cardstock, cut out the shape, and let your child use markers or crayons to decorate. If you wish, you can even add special details using glitter, buttons, ribbon, or other found objects.

Another great site for printable Halloween masks is the Pastiche Family Portal. This site offers Frankenstein, a mummy, a clown, and a baby ghost among many other fun and interesting designs.

Decorate Your Own Trick or Treat Bag

For kids, Halloween is all about the candy. Help build anticipation for a big night of trick-or-treating by creating a decorated canvas Halloween tote bag. Since the bag is reusable, this is a project your preschooler will be able to enjoy for many years to come.

Supplies:

• Tote bag made from 100 percent synthetic fabrics
• Fabric crayons
• Drawing paper
• Iron
• Newspaper

Instructions:

1. Have your preschooler draw a pumpkin, ghost, or other Halloween design heavily on a piece of paper. Remember that any letters or words will transfer backwards, however.
2. When finished, place the paper upside down on the tote bag.
3. Place newspaper underneath the fabric.
4. Set the iron to cotton setting and iron over your design until the image can be seen through the paper. Keep the iron moving continuously.

Create a Special Gift

These decorated candy jars are guaranteed to be a hit as a sweet handmade gift for teachers, daycare providers, or other special people in your child's life.

Supplies:

• Clean glass or clear plastic jars in various sizes
• White or orange tissue paper
• Black marker
• Mod Podge
• Foam paintbrush

Instructions:

1. Use the foam paint brush to apply a thin layer of Mod Podge to the entire jar.
2. Cover the jar with torn strips of tissue paper. Use white paper to make a ghost and orange paper to make a pumpkin.
3. Let the jar dry overnight.
4. Add a ghost face or pumpkin carving design to the front of the jar using the black marker.
5. If desired, seal with another coat of Mod Podge.
6. Fill the jar with an assortment of Halloween candy.