How to Have a Kids' Halloween Party

Having a kids’ Halloween party can be a great deal of difficult work, but when you see the guests’ happy–or scared–faces, it all becomes worthwhile. Consider the age of the guests when preparing–with older kids, you can do your best to scare their pants off, but if you’re having little ones over, you want to focus on the more cutesy Halloween themes, like pumpkins and friendly ghosts. If you plan and prepare for the party in advance, you’ll be able to have as much fun as your guests.

Step 1

Set the tone for the party with your invitations. Use tame cards for young children and darker ones–featuring haunted houses or monsters–for older ones. If you want the children to dress up, be sure to clearly state this on the invitation.

Step 2

Decorate your home for Halloween. Place fake tombstones in the yard to make your home look spookier. Inside, keep the lights low and hang cotton cobwebs in the corners of your room. You can also feature jack o’ lanterns, witches or ghosts. Try purchasing a few items with a motion sensor–they’ll scare the kids who walk by.

Step 3

Serve creepy foods. Create foods that look like Halloween monsters. For example, if you dye shortbread cookies green and place an almond sliver at the end, it could be a “witch’s finger.” Drape white fondant over cupcakes to make them look like ghosts.

Step 4

Play Halloween-themed games. Young kids may enjoy playing “Pin the Nose on the Pumpkin” or bobbing for apples. Older ones may want to try “Light as a Feather, Stiff as a Board” or saying, “Bloody Mary” into the mirror. You can also adapt regular games to Halloween–play “Ghost Ghost Monster” instead of “Duck Duck Goose” or cut out paper pumpkins to put on the floor in place of chairs for a game of musical chairs.

Step 5

Hold a costume contest. Dressing up is one of the most fun aspects of Halloween. Reward your guests for a job well done. Create different categories of prizes so that everyone gets a prize. For example, you could offer prizes for the cutest, scariest and most creative costumes. You can create the categories after you’ve seen the costumes.