~ Activities ~

Spiced Halloween Rice Box

Rice boxes are kinda like a bit of magic for very small kids and for their caretakers. That is if you don’t mind cleaning up a bit of mess, get that vacuum cleaner or broom ready! Rice boxes are simple to make and provide hours of entertainment. When the kids are done playing you simply put the lid on and store it for next time. You can make them with any theme or no theme at all, just provide cups for scooping and pouring.

We made our Halloween themed rice box with:

rice
ground cinnamon & cloves
cardamom seeds (I have a huge surplus supply of these. They smell insanely wonderful and were the perfect contribution to our box)
cinnamon sticks
star anise
acorn tops left over from our Tree Fairy project
small red lentils
pumpkin seeds
tubes from glow bracelet packaging, paper towel tubes would work great too.
Halloween & Autumn themed objects such as: bat confetti, mini pumpkins, cauldrons, silk leaves, an apple head left over from our Spiced Apple Head Puppet project, and the Good Witch Glenda along with one of her munchkin friends.
We also added a few trucks and cars after we got started playing.
Don’t forget you need a sturdy box with a lid so you can close the whole thing up when it is not being played with.

Instructions For Creation:

The kids and I gathered on the floor around the box and began by dumping the rice into the box. We added some ground cinnamon and cloves and then everyone had a turn stirring the box. Little kids love to stir.

Next we filled our cauldrons with the red lentils, cardamom seeds, bat confetti and pumpkin seeds. The cauldrons act as great little cups and scoops with a fun Halloween theme. More than one child has made a potion in a cauldron, chanting and stirring with a cinnamon stick.

Finally we carefully added in all of our other elements and it was time to play!

Spiced Pumpkin Playdough

What kid doesn’t love playdough? I couldn’t get enough of it when I was a kid. This playdough smells amazing and has a wonderful squishy texture. Even better, it is colored and scented with herbs and spices. Use it for an activity at your party or give away little bags of it to your guests.

Orange Halloween Heads

Just like the pomanders of old, these will smell amazing but they have a Halloween twist.

Materials:

one orange for each participant
whole cloves
a skewer or toothpick to poke holes.

To Make:

Poke holes with the skewer/toothpick and insert the cloves. For young children, you will either need to pre-poke the holes or have an adult work along side them poking holes where the child wants them. Older children should be able to poke their own holes. You can set your creations on a table, on the doorstep or tie a ribbon around it to hang.

Flubber

For years I have created flubber at Halloween parties both at preschool and at elementary schools. The kids love it!

I always make it a production because part of the fun of flubber is the creation. You start with two liquids and end up with a bizarre globular substance that is stretchy, bouncy and totally entertaining. Click here to learn more about flubber and to get the recipe. Please closely supervise children while they play with flubber. It should not be ingested. White vinegar helps to dissolved flubber should it get anywhere undesirable.

MYO Pinata Stuffed With Entertaining Treats

We also usually make a pinata for our party. I always get the kids involved. In fact yesterday we started our pinata for this year’s party. I have never had such a great time blowing up a balloon! With each big breath I took and breathed into the balloon, the kids eyes got bigger and they practically squealed with delight. This is the simplist of pinatas.

To make your own simple pinata you will need:

a big balloon, we used a 12” size
newspaper cut or ripped into strips
1 cup flour
3 cups water
optional salt & cinnamon
orange, green and black construction paper
String for hanging

Instructions:

Cook up your paste ~ Combine the flour and water whipping until there are no lumps. Add a good sprinkle of salt and cinnamon if you would like. Cook it all up on the stove top, whisking often until the paste thickens. Let it cool.

Blow up your balloon. Have the kids paint a section of the balloon with the cooled paste. Then have them add a strip of newspaper and paint over the top of the newspaper so that it is wet with paste. Do this all over the balloon. This is a super messy project, luckily clean up is easy. Let it dry and repeat until you have enough coats to insure your pinata is strong but not so strong that the wee ones can’t break it. I usually do two coats for preschoolers.

Next you get to decorate your pinata. I usually do a jack-o-lantern for the little kids. To keep it really simple, I just use strips of orange paper and apply them with the paste just like I did with the newspaper. I usually do an extra layer or two on the top where I am planning to attach the strings for hanging. Pop the balloon and cut a hole at the top for stuffing your pumpkin. Add your treats. Poke hole for hanging your pinata at the top and attach your string. Finally decorate the pumpkin using your construction paper with a face and leaves. I usually hide the hole with some big green leaves.

What to stuff your pinata with? Here are just a few ideas:

spiced pumpkin playdough: put it in little bags along with a little cinnamon stick or star anise and tie shut with a ribbon or raffia.
goji popcorn balls
glow necklaces
stickers
little notebooks and pencils

~ Herbalicious Halloween Treats ~

Here is a little collection of herbal Halloween treats. We don’t usually have edible treats at our preschool party, however I wanted to find a few tasty ideas to share should you be looking for something tasty to add you to your day. I think we will be making the caramel apples this weekend at home. My kids have never tasted a caramel apple and I am feeling a bit negligent.

Spiced Apple Cider

The warming spices in this brew will enhance digestion and boost immunity.

Recipe & Method:

equal parts fresh pressed apple cider & water
cinnamon sticks, orange slices, cloves, allspice, and fresh ginger

For each cup of apple cider/water add one cinnamon stick, 1 orange slice, 4 cloves, 2 allspice berries and about a 1/8" piece of fresh ginger. Heat and simmer this all together in a pot for about 15 minutes, strain and drink. You may have to play around with the spice quantity to find a blend that suits you.

Ginger Snaps Made With Fresh Ginger

I love ginger snaps, don’t you?

These cookies from Smitten Kitchen look amazing. Lots of herbalicious additions going on here.

Ghost Bananas & Pumpkin Tangerines

Have you seen these adorable treats from Weelicious? They are so cute! I know my kids would just love them. Wondering if currants and raisins work instead of chocolate chips? Don’t get me wrong, I love chocolate yet with all the candy floating around on Halloween any way to reduce some quantity of it is high on my list.