Spooky Season Play Ideas for Little Learners

Oct 18, 2025

Hi friends

Spooky season has officially arrived — and the kids have been loving every bit of it! From colourful sensory bins to sticker creations, this time of year always brings out the best kind of play.

Below are a few of our favourite Halloween-themed activities that have kept our days filled with curiosity, creativity, and laughter.

🕷️ Spooky Sensory Bin

Nothing says Halloween quite like a colourful sensory setup!

This year, I mixed orange, green, and purple beans to create a vibrant base. Then I added bones, spiders, mini pumpkins, and tiny cauldrons.

The result? Hours of scooping, pouring, and imaginative storytelling.

Why we love it: sensory play builds fine-motor skills, supports language development, and gives children space to explore textures and colours in a hands-on way.

Tip: Swap beans for rice, pasta, or chickpeas dyed with food colouring for a fresh take on this invitation to play.

🎨 Halloween Sticker + Paint Sticks Tray

Sometimes the simplest invitations lead to the most creativity.

For this tray, I laid out orange paper, Halloween-themed stickers, and paint sticks in classic spooky colours — black, orange, green, and purple.

The children quickly turned their papers into witches, bubbling potions, and spooky stories all their own.

Why we love it: easy-to-set-up art invitations like this build independence and confidence, giving kids freedom to create without rigid expectations.

Check out these stickers!!!

🧩 Halloween Puzzle Time

Puzzles are always a hit in our dayhome, but this Halloween one has been extra special.

It offers just the right balance of challenge and fun for a mixed-age group — and it’s been a wonderful way to foster collaboration and problem-solving.

🛍️ Here’s one of our current favourites:

Halloween Floor Puzzle

Why we love it: big, sturdy pieces are perfect for little hands, and the bright Halloween illustrations keep everyone engaged.

Tip: Look for seasonal puzzles with big, easy-to-grasp pieces for younger learners and smaller pieces for preschoolers who love a challenge.

🧁 Play Dough Creations

Play dough is a daily favourite here, but adding themed rolling pins and loose parts made it extra exciting this month.

The kids used Halloween-themed cutters and rolling pins like these from Michaels:

🕸️ Spiderweb Rolling Pin
👻 Ghost Rolling Pin

They’ve been busy stamping spiderwebs, ghosts, and pumpkins into their dough, and even building “spooky bakeries” together.

Why we love it: play dough encourages creativity, strengthens fine-motor muscles, and supports storytelling through tactile exploration.

🎧 Spooky Storytime

After all the hands-on fun, we love winding down with some spooky-season listening and reading.

The Yoto Player has been a big hit here — it gives children the independence to choose and play stories themselves.

Click here for 10% off your First Order!

Here are some of our Halloween favourites that we’ve been enjoying on repeat:

🎧 Yoto Cards:

📚 Book Versions We Also Love:

💡 Tip: Mixing Yoto stories with read-alouds helps children connect the words they hear with the ones they see — a great way to support early literacy.

A Season of Playful Magic

Sometimes, all it takes is a few themed materials and a touch of creativity to make the season feel magical.

Whether it’s spooky sensory play, open-ended art, or storytelling through sound, these simple setups help children learn, laugh, and connect through play — no stress required. 💛

Wishing you a cozy, creative, and just-the-right-amount-of-spooky October,
Kayla
Capable Learners Dayhome

💬 P.S.

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