Halloween & Dia de los Muertos for 3-5 year olds

There is something special about the last day of the month of October.  Maybe it’s because the seasons are changing.  The leaves are falling off the trees, and everything seems spooky and creepy.  But I love this time of year because it makes me think of people I’ve loved in the past.  What do you like about Halloween / Dia de los Muertos?

Watch video, download books to read together, and explore things to do with BookSpring.

Read Together at Home

Here are some books to read together!  You can download and save them and keep them forever, to read again and again.

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Things to Do Together

  • Learn more with our partner Austin PBS: Play the Dress Up Time! Game
  • Have a ghost race: use cotton balls as the ghost and mark a finish line on the floor or a table. Using a straw, who can blow their ghost across the finish line?
  • After the race, cover the cotton ball with a Kleenex and tie a piece of string below it. Use markers to add a face to your ghost.
  • Make a list of the things you expect to see decorating people’s yards (you could draw these on a piece of paper) – when you go for a walk count how many of each item you see (keep a tally on the piece of paper).
  • If you celebrate Dia de los Muertos, take this time to talk about the family who are no longer with you – what are your best memories of them? What was their favorite food? Drink? A place to go?

Ways to move together

  1. Frankie says – a variation of “Simon Says”. The challenge is to change the movements to fit the Halloween mood. Remember, you should only follow the instruction if it starts with “Frankie says”, otherwise you are out. Some ideas:
    1. Move like a ghost
    2. Show your scariest face
    3. Roll like a pumpkin
    4. Ride a broom
    5. Miaow like a cat
    6. Howl like a werewolf

Share Together

At the end of the week, reflect on what you read, and what you did.

  • Did you…
  • I learned…

Share with BookSpring

How did this activity go for your family?  Please share your photos and stories with everyone by emailing them to weeklythemes@bookspring.org, or sharing them with us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram with #BookSpring #ReadTogether.

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Halloween & Dia de los Muertos for 3-5 year olds
Halloween PDF downloadable books for 3-5
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