Old Fashioned Halloween Party Games & Activities

I grew up in the country, where Halloween Trick or Treating was impossible as well as impractical. Not only were neighboring houses half a mile apart, we had neither sidewalks nor street lights so children could safely navigate the roads.

In our corner of the county, Halloween parties were popular events on October 31. Families would take turns hosting a Spook-tacular neighborhood party in their barns or other outbuildings. There would be colored streamers, lots of straw and Jack O 'Lanterns and tables of fun Halloween food. For entertainment, there would be music and dancing, and an evening's worth of old fashioned Halloween Games.

Over the years, Halloween has turned a bit more macabre in terms of entertainment and games. With everyone trying to out scare everyone else, some of the silliness and prank pulling of old-time Halloween festivities has fallen by the wayside. For something a little different this year, why not try hosting an old fashioned Halloween party for your children and their friends? You might be pleasantly surprised at how much fun it can be!

Eats and decorations

Old time Halloween decorations are amazingly simple. Some bales of straw, carved pumpkins, and orange & black crepe streamers is all you really need. Keep the decorations away from the center of the room; you'll need the space when it comes time to get those Halloween games started!

For food, keep it simple as well and serve up snacks and finger foods, punch, and bowls of Candy Korn. With this old - fashioned Halloween party, your guests will be constantly on the move. Easy to eat and portable food is a must.

And what about the entertainment? In addition to dancing to silly songs such as the "Hokey Pokey" and the "Monster Mash," there's all sorts of old fashioned Halloween Games that will have your guests giggling. And don't forget the prizes! With each game, there should be a prize for the winner. When I was a child, prizes usually included small bags of caramel corn, pomegranates, or bags of hand-pulled taffy. For consolation prizes, the hostesses handed out frosted pumpkin cookies.

Old-fashioned Halloween Party games

Begin the party with an old fashioned game of How much candy is in the jar? For this activity, fill up an old fashioned pickle jar with candy corn, wrapped Halloween taffies, or some other Halloween sweet. Hand out slips of paper to your guest as they arrive at the party, and have them write down how many candies they think might be in the jar. The winner gets to keep the jar AND all the candy inside.

In the old days, apples were always making an appearance at Halloween parties. Many of us had bushels of apples left over from harvest, which were put into use as edible props for Halloween games. So what can you do with an apple?

Bite the apple is always great for a few laughs. With this activity, a large apple is strung from the ceiling, and the guests take turns trying to bite into it without using their hands. It's practically impossible to do, since the apple wants to swing all over the place. Apple dunking is another innovative way of trying the eat an apple without using hands. For this activity, a dozen of apples are tossed into a large wash basin which is been filled with icy, cold water. Expect a lot of wet kids with this game! Apple peeling games are a traditional favorite. One variation has the children trying to peel the apple in one continuous strand, or even racing to see who can peel the apple the fastest. For apple peel divining have the kids throw that long loop of apple peel over their shoulder. The peel will drop to the ground, which, with a stretch of imagination resembles a cursive letter. What ever the letter is, that's the first letter of the name of their future wife/husband.

And let's not forget making caramel apples as an event; more activity than game, the children insert a popsicle stick in the center of an apple, then dip the apple in melted caramel. After the apple has been coated with the caramel, it should be quickly rolled through a pile of chopped walnuts. Set the apple aside to harden for at least 30 minutes, then wrap with cellophane to send home as an edible party favor.

Orange Relays or Pass the Orange is a silly game that has children passing an orange around the room. The trick of course, is that hands must be clasped behind the back! The children can be set up in two lines and race against each other, or the orange can be passed around in a circle.

Building scarecrows is an old fashioned activity that relies heavily on the imagination. Divide the kids into groups of four, and have them build a scarecrow from items that you have dumped in the center of the room. Bags of burlap, piles of straw, markers, and lots of old clothes and hats are the basic ingredients. Give them 15 minutes to create the scarecrows, and then vote on the best looking scarecrow of all.

For a game that is as silly to watch as it is to play, not much can top Push the Peanut. This slow moving game has the kids racing against each other to push the peanut across the finish line. There is a catch, of course ~ the peanut has to be pushed using their noses.

Remember no hands pie eating contests? Make up a batch of pumpkin pies topped with whipped cream and race to see who finishes the pie first. Since a great deal of food will be wasted with this game ~ our moms usually left out the crust, and distributed a single recipe of batter around 6 pie tins. After the pies came out of the oven, they would be topped with mountains of light & fluffy whipped cream.

Flour Tower is another messy, but old fashioned game that takes a bit of skill. For this activity, pack a paper cup with flour, and tip it onto the table. Gently set a penny on top of the flour. The objective of the game was to slice away at the tower with a knife without losing the penny.

For outside games, traditional favorites always seemed to be some kind of crazy race. Three legged races and sack races are standard favorites. Wheelbarrow races are a silly variation in which one child is held by the legs like a wheelbarrow and pushed towards the finish line by a second child. If you have a long driveway tricycle races are also lots of silly fun.

One of my favorite races were Water Races. This game has kids transporting a cup of water from one end of the yard to the other, a tablespoon at a time. The cups of water are placed on a table behind the guests, who have to dip their spoons into the cup, race across the yard with their tablespoons of water, and dump it into a second cup. The winner is the person who has the most water in the cup at the end of the race.

Most old fashioned Halloween parties had a Fortune Telling booth. Fortune telling added an element of spookiness to the parties, and were wildly popular. Fortune telling booths should be set in a quiet and darkened room away from the noise & activity of the party. Lit candles set the mood, as well as a few fortune telling props ~ such as cards, a crystal ball, or tea leaves. To add to the thrill, the fortune teller should be heavily costumed so none of the children suspect that she's really someone's Mom.

Party Favors

For a party souvenir, why not take some spooky photographs? Polaroid or digital pictures can be taken against the backdrop of an old door or screen, or while sitting on the hay bales next to a spooky skeleton. For a whimsical frame, press the photographs into a orange construction paper pumpkin.

When the bewitching hour is finally over, and it time for all your guests to leave, pass out some hand decorated Trick or Treat bags. The bags will help the children collect their prizes and candied apples, and keep them safe so they can be carried home easily. Don't forget to add a few treats of your own! Handmade popcorn balls or Spooky Rice Krispy treats, spooky lollipops and some Halloween pencils or stickers are great parting gifts.

An old fashioned Halloween party is really a wonderful way for children to spend a safe, but memorable October 31st. Great Halloween food, silly Halloween games, fun Halloween prizes, and a houseful of friends is always a winning formula for a frightfully good time!