Halloween Activities for Special Needs Students

Halloween is an exciting festive time for numerous kids. But when it comes to kids with special needs, it can be stressful and challenging. A few common problems they face are safety issues, anxiety, sensory overload, communication barriers, etc. However, they don’t have to miss out on Halloween fest. Halloween activities are a crucial part of the holiday experience for special needs children. 

But make sure you choose activities that are suitable for the potential and age of your little one. We have created a list of Halloween activities for special needs students that are creative, educational and sensory-friendly. These activities are ideal to do in the classroom or at home.

Importance of Halloween Activities Special Needs

Here are the pros of Halloween activities for special needs:

Brings Enjoyment and Social Interaction

Halloween brings excitement and fun to special needs. They also allow them to communicate with their peers and become a part of a community. It helps them learn sharing, taking turns and other social skills.

Offers a Feeling of Inclusion

Halloween activities make special needs children feel included in the festive fun. 

Provides Incredible Sensory Experience

Numerous activities provide excellent sensory experiences. It is mainly good for kids struggling with sensory processing disorders. 

Tons of Learning Opportunities

Halloween games and activities offer a lot of learning opportunities to them. For example, disabled kids can learn about diverse Halloween traditions, costumes and more.

Increased Self-esteem

Active and successful participation in Halloween activities gives a sense of accomplishment and helps build confidence in special needs kids. 

What Are Some Examples of Halloween Activities for Children with Special Needs?

Few examples of Halloween activities for special needs are:

1. Halloween Stress Ball 

It’s a relaxing and creative activity for special needs who may feel overburdened by the festivity excitement. 

You will need: 

• Few balloons (avoid water balloons) per stress ball
• Green wool
• Few scrap paper
• Flour
• A plastic bottle
• Marker pens

Steps:

a) Create the DIY Stress Ball 

• Add flour to the bottle.
• Now, blow the balloon and put it over the bottle top.
• Turn the plastic bottle upside down and squeeze it slowly.
• Gradually, let the remaining air out and tie the knot carefully.

b) Decorate the Balls

Decorate the balls with Halloween faces using a black marker. Then, let it dry completely.

c) Squeeze them

Finally, squeeze the stress balls to get relief from stress.

2. Halloween Candy Math Free Printables

This activity is an excellent method to use a few Halloween candies to help kids practice math skills. These include addition, subtraction, sorting, graphing and counting.

You will need: 

• Few candies (individually wrapped) 
• Crayons
• Printer 
• Glue
• Paper
• Markers
• Scissors 

Steps:

• Print out the free printables.
• Stick to the instructions to perform the math activities. 

3. Halloween Felt Board Activities

Halloween Felt Board Activities encourage language skills, creativity and imagination in special children. You’ll find numerous templates and ideas online or DIY. Using felt pieces, it is easy to create diverse Halloween characters, stories, games and scenes.

Examples of these Halloween activities are:

Playing tic-tac-toe

• Chop 9 tiny black squares as well as a few purple and orange circles. 
• Arrange them on a felt board and create a grid.
• Allow the kids to take turns by putting their markers on the grid.
• Ask them to make 3 in 1 row.

Make a Spooky Haunted House

• Cut out a few tiny triangles, rectangles and squares for doors, windows and roofs as well as big black rectangles.
• Ask kids to create a haunted house by assembling these parts on the board. Adding bats, spiders and other spooky things is also a good idea.

Telling a Story

• Cut out a few objects, characters and backgrounds from felt board or you can use pre-made ones.
• Ask kids to use these pieces to tell their own Halloween story.

Sensory-friendly Halloween Activities for Special Needs

1. Monster Play Dough 

Involving your child in a Monster Play Dough activity is a great way to celebrate Halloween sensory-friendly. This creative and fun activity encourages creativity and helps develop fine motor skills.

Steps:

a) Prepare the Monster Play Dough 

Ask your child to use play dough of diverse shades and roll them up into small balls.

b) Shape it Up

Now, teach them to make the dough flat and create the desired shape out of it.

c) Decorate the Monsters

Finally, tell them to create spooky monsters using these tiny dough parts. They could be:

• Buttons
• Pom Poms
• Fake teeth
• Googly eyes

2. Halloween Circle Time Songs 

This activity includes sitting in a circle and singing Halloween songs to encourage learning and seasonal joy. It is famous in early elementary classrooms and preschools.

A few examples of Halloween-themed songs include:

Five Little Owls

This song is an excellent way to build a retelling experience, counting practice and awareness about number words. You can take a printout of it and printable props. Ask your kid to take action while singing Five Little Owls.

Going to the Patch 

This song is a great method to build alphabet-matching skills. 

You need:

• Pumpkin props (like real mini pumpkins or foam pumpkins labelled with each letter) 
• Printables

Place pumpkin props in the middle of the circle. Now, provide printable cards to each child. Sing songs together with children. Allow them to take turns hunting their pumpkin that resembles the card letter.

3. Magical Monster Slime

The Magical Monster Slime is one of the great sensory Halloween activities for special needs that help develop creativity and fine motor skills. It is also simple to clean up.

You will need:

• Googly eyes
• Elmer’s glitter glue in blue, purple, and red colour
• Black spray paint
• 3 baby food jars
• 3/4 cup liquid starch

Steps:

a) Prepare the Food Jars

Use spray paint on the top of the jars and leave them to dry.

b) Start Making Slime

• Now, add every colour of glue into a bowl.
• Add liquid starch to each shade and stir for 15 minutes.

Note: If you find slime too sticky, add 1 tsp liquid starch and knead till it no longer sticks to your hands. But if it is too clumpy, add 1bsp water and knead it till you get the desired consistency. 

c) Shape the Slime

Shape the slime created into spiders, ghosts and other monsters.

d) Add Decorations

Finally, add Googly Eyes or other decors to make them appear more spooky and put them into food jars.