Even if October is a long month, there are only a limited number of days so we’d better start with these kids Halloween action songs. A zillion times may not be enough.
After reading about a Halloween bus, here are some verses to go with the tune The Wheels on the Bus. Use typical Halloween characters and name some costumes kids might wear.
The witches on the bus go cackle, cackle, cackle,
Cackle, cackle, cackle,
Cackle, cackle, cackle.
The witches on the bus go cackle, cackle, cackle,
On the Halloween Bus.
The ghosts on the bus go boo, boo, boo….
On the Halloween bus.
The cats on the bus go meow, meow, meow…
On the Halloween bus.
The pirates on the bus go Arr, Arr, Arr…..
On the Halloween bus.
The vampires on the bus go Aah, aah, aah…
On the Halloween bus.
The skeletons on the bus go rattle, rattle, rattle…
On the Halloween bus.
The kids on the bus go Trick or Treat…
On the Halloween bus.
Move like these characters. Add zombies, monsters, mummies, super heroes, and anything else. If you need a quiet verse at the end, be pumpkins on the bus and make a really wide and silent grin.
Another kids Halloween action song isn’t exactly a song, but it uses one and makes a fun game. Use the tune Where is Thumbkin (Frere Jacques) and sing Where is Pumpkin? Either inside the house or outside in a specific area, kids can play hide and seek. Of course, the one looking is the one singing and the one hiding is oh so quiet and still. When found, kids get to shout Boo!
Where is pumpkin? Where is pumpkin?
Are you in here? Are you in here?
I’ll keep looking, till I find you.
Where are you? Where are you?
When adults are the ones looking, we can be surprised and scared when we find them.
At Halloween, monsters get to do the mash. Put on any fast and loud music and let kids dance doing whatever action they think monsters might do. This video is from the Monster Mash song written in 1962. Do you know any other kids Halloween action songs and games?
It’s okay if a book is a little bit scary when snuggled on a lap. What sound do chickens make when they are afraid? Sandra Boynton’s Eek! Halloween tells the story of a flock of nervous chickens. The chickens see some typical Halloween sights just like we do and they feel what we do. But, we don’t usually see animals dressed up do we?
Another book a teeny tiny bit scary is A Teeny Tiny Halloween by Lauren L. Wohl and Henry Cole. The text almost has its own voice. The words teeny tiny are written in very small type. When reading, we can show kids how those words are so little and whisper them. The words fall, fall, fall, are like leaves but falling on the page, not the ground. Voices can fall too.
Get ready to read and sing the next book, The Spooky Wheels On The Bus by J. Elizabeth Mills and Ben Mantle. At Halloween, the things on the bus do not make the usual sounds nor look the same. As for the passengers, who do you think would ride a spooky, Halloween bus?
Another book to sing is The Itsy Bitsy Pumpkin by Sonali Fry and Sanja Rescek. A pumpkin is way too big for a water spout. Also, it has no legs to climb like a spider. How can a pumpkin move? Kids might have an idea. They could try moving like that too.
Halloween wouldn’t be the same at our house without this reading books Halloween treat: Halloween With Moris and Boris. Bernard Wiseman’s book is so well loved we’ve had to repair it multiple times. Moris the Moose doesn’t understand Halloween so Boris the Bear tries to explain. Moris still gets quite mixed up and sometimes Boris has to keep his temper. But the two friends enjoy themselves.