With night arriving earlier, kids are inside after supper. Those few minutes before bed are just enough time for some fall and Halloween games for kids. Of course, these can be played anytime and in any weather.
X and O’s are a fun game for older preschool kids. Little Sister hasn’t figured out how this game works but she likes to put the green and red apples on the board. Kids may have seen the x’s and o’s of tic-tac-toe at the playground and when there during the day, may have made one side all x or all o. Often, kids make up their own game using the pieces.
A super game for kids of any age is Simon Says. Instead of Simon giving the instructions, it could be a Halloween character. Witch says touch your nose, or maybe Wizard, Zombie, or Skeleton. This game encourages careful listening because the instruction has to have the magic words Simon (or other character) says.
A deck of cards can be used to play Monster, Monster. Use just the cards with numbers from 2 to 10. For two people, each person gets half the cards. Each player turns over a card and the one with the higher number takes both. Kids don’t have to know numbers, they can look and see which card has more designs.
Concentration, Memory, or Pairs is an adaptable game for younger preschoolers. This can be played with a few pairs from a deck of cards or you can make some with fall and Halloween images. Included below is a game page that you can print off, glue onto stiff paper or light cardboard, and cut out. Make sure the stiffer paper is plain or kids can find matches using what’s on back. For kids that are really good at this, use more pairs. This is a good game to play with grandmas and grandpas.
Fall and Halloween games for kids might be tricky, but aren’t they a treat?