Trick or Treat!

There are so many wonderful Halloween picture books that I usually use this theme two weeks in a row just to use most of my favorites.

	Mouse's First Halloween by Lauren Thompson Age Level: Toddler and up
Synopsis: "One spooky night in the fall, Mouse creeps out and hears bats flying flit! flit! flit! and apples dropping plop! plop! plop! and children singing 'trick or treat!' What could it be?"

	Plumply, Dumply Pumpkin by Mary Serfozo Age Level: Toddler and up
Synopsis: Peter finds the perfect pumpkin so that he and his Dad can make a jack-o-lantern.

Song

Jack-O-Lantern
(Tune: "Frere Jacques")

Jack-o-lantern, jack-o-lantern,
Burn so bright, burn so bright.
You are burning brightly,
You are burning brightly,
Through the night, through the night.

	Shake Dem Halloween Bones by W. Nikola-Lisa Age Level: Preschool and up
Synopsis: A rhythmic tale about different updated fairy tale characters who attend a hip-hop Halloween ball.

	Skeleton Hiccups by Margery Cuyler Age Level: Preschool and up
Synopsis: Ghost tries to help Skeleton get rid of the hiccups.

Flannel Board

The Twelve Days of Hallowe'en
(Tune: "The Twelve Days of Christmas")

On the first day of Hallowe'en
My true love gave to me
An owl in a rotten oak tree

On the second day of Hallowe'en
My true love gave to me
Two trick or treaters
And an owl in a rotten oak tree

On the third day of Hallowe'en
My true love gave to me
Three black cats
Two trick or treaters
And an owl in a rotten oak tree

On the fourth day of Hallowe'en
My true love gave to me
Four skeletons
Three black cats
Two trick or treaters
And an owl in a rotten oak tree

On the fifth day of Hallowe'en
My true love gave to me
Five haunted houses!
Four skeletons
Three black cats
Two trick or treaters
And an owl in a rotten oak tree

On the sixth day of Hallowe'en
My true love gave to me
Six witches stirring
Five haunted houses!
Four skeletons
Three black cats
Two trick or treaters
And an owl in a rotten oak tree

On the seventh day of Hallowe'en
My true love gave to me
Seven pumpkins glowing
Six witches stirring
Five haunted houses!
Four skeletons
Three black cats
Two trick or treaters
And an owl in a rotten oak tree

On the eighth day of Hallowe'en
My true love gave to me
Eight monsters marching
Seven pumpkins glowing
Six witches stirring
Five haunted houses!
Four skeletons
Three black cats
Two trick or treaters
And an owl in a rotten oak tree

On the ninth day of Hallowe'en
My true love gave to me
Nine ghosts a-booing
Eight monsters marching
Seven pumpkins glowing
Six witches stirring
Five haunted houses!
Four skeletons
Three black cats
Two trick or treaters
And an owl in a rotten oak tree

On the tenth day of Hallowe'en
My true love gave to me
Ten mummies groaning
Nine ghosts a-booing
Eight monsters marching
Seven pumpkins glowing
Six witches stirring
Five haunted houses!
Four skeletons
Three black cats
Two trick or treaters
And an owl in a rotten oak tree

On the eleventh day of Hallowe'en
My true love gave to me
Eleven caskets leaning
Ten mummies groaning
Nine ghosts a-booing
Eight monsters marching
Seven pumpkins glowing
Six witches stirring
Five haunted houses!
Four skeletons
Three black cats
Two trick or treaters
And an owl in a rotten oak tree

On the twelfth day of Hallowe'en
My true love gave to me
Twelve bats a-flying
Eleven caskets leaning
Ten mummies groaning
Nine ghosts a-booing
Eight monsters marching
Seven pumpkins glowing
Six witches stirring
Five haunted houses!
Four skeletons
Three black cats
Two trick or treaters
And an owl in a rotten oak tree

	In a Dark, Dark Wood: An Old Tale With a New Twist by David A. Carter Age Level: Toddler and up
Synopsis: "In a dark, dark wood, / there was a dark, dark house" begins this well-known ghost story with its dramatic build-up and Eek!-producing finale.

	Haunted House by Jan Pienkowski Age Level: Toddler and up
Synopsis: Pop-up book of scary things hidden in a haunted house.

Song

A Little Baby Ghost
(Tune: "Eensy Weensy Spider")

A little baby ghost
Went out one Halloween.
Along came a witch
That the ghost had never seen!
But, mommy ghost came flying,
She heard her baby cry…
And the witch that scared her baby
Went flying off so high!

	Pumpkin Eye by Denise Fleming Age Level: Toddler and up
Synopsis: Simple rhymes describe the sights, sounds, and smells of Halloween.

	Frank Was a Monster Who Wanted to Dance by Keith Graves Age Level: Preschool and up
Synopsis: Frank the monster indulges his love of dancing by strutting his stuff on stage until his head unzips, his brains flop out, and he continues to lose body parts.

Song

When I'm Trick-or-Treating
(Tune: "Sing a Song of Sixpence")

When I'm trick-or-treating,
I know what to do.
I walk on the sidewalk,
And bring my flashlight, too!
I don't eat my candy,
Until I'm home at last…
I check it with an adult there,
And then I eat it fast!

	When the Goblins Came Knocking by Anna Grossnickle Hines Age Level: Toddler and up
Synopsis: Last Halloween was a scary experience because of walking pumpkins, haunting ghosts, flying witches, and other disturbing sights, but this Halloween will be different.

	10 Trick or Treaters by Janet Schulman Age Level: Toddler and up
Synopsis: Little do these ten trick-or-treaters know that they are the ones who will be frightened on Halloween night when a toad hops near, a skeleton tries to join their dance party, and a monster asks to share their candy.

Song

Three Little Witches
(Tune: "Ten Little Indians")

One little, two little,
Three little witches
Flying over haystacks,
Soaring over ditches.
One little, two little,
Three little witches --
Happy Halloween!

One little, two little,
Three little witches
Flew o'er the fence and
Tore their britches,
Sewed them up with
Sixty stitches --
Happy Halloween!

	Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson Age Level: Preschool and up
Synopsis: A witch finds room on her broom for all the animals that ask for a ride, and they repay her kindness by rescuing her from a dragon.

	Two Little Witches: A Halloween Counting Story by Harriet Ziefert Age Level: Toddler and up
Synopsis: A simple counting story for group sharing and beginning readers. One little witch plus another little witch add (one at a time) a clown, skeleton, striped cat, and so forth, to their retinue until there are "ten trick-or-treaters going trick-or-treating in the dark on Halloween night."

Films

	Georgie by Robert Bright Running Time: 6 Minutes Age Level: K-2
Synopsis: A tale about a nice ghost named Georgie who lives in the attic of a home belonging to elderly Mr. & Mrs. Whittaker. One day Mr. Whittaker repairs the creaky stairs and the squeaky door which leaves Georgie without a purpose and decides to find another house to haunt but has no luck.

	By the Light of the Halloween Moon by Caroline Stutson Age Level: Pre-K-2 Running Time: 6 Minutes
Synopsis: A story about a black cat trying to catch a little girl's toe one spooky Halloween night.

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More Books to Read On Your Own

Hoodwinked
by Arthur Howard
Age Level: Kindergarten and up
Synopsis: Mitzi the little witch decides to get the creepiest pet possible. After going through bats, toads, and warthogs, Mitzi is in despair. She just wants a friend to share her secrets, and it seems all hope is lost until one rainy night something unexpected scratches at her door.

The Halloween Play
by Felicia Bond
Age Level: Preschool and up
Synopsis: Roger, the charming mouse, plays the Halloween pumpkin in the school play, and learns that even the smallest task can be important.

A Halloween Day
by Anne F. Rockwell
Age Level: Preschool and up
Synopsis: The ten preschoolers in Mrs. Madoff's class wear their Halloween costumes to school, filling the room with a cat, a pirate, a witch, and other characters.

Halloween Motel
by Sean Diviny
Age Level: Preschool and up
Synopsis: When a family mistakenly checks into the wrong motel for Halloween, they do not realize that just how scary the other guests are.

Halloween Party
by Linda Shute
Age Level: Preschool and up
Synopsis: Costumes, monsters, and food abound at the tempting, teasing, terrible Halloween party that happens once each year.

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Notes

This is such a popular story time theme with great books and crafts, that I usually do it two weeks in a row. I hand out song sheets with "The Twelve Days of Halloween" and use flash cards. Parents and kids have fun with it, especially when I get the cards mixed up.

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More Songs for at Home

I'm a Bat
(Tune: "You Are My Sunshine")

I love the night time
The dark, black night time.
And that is when I fly around.
I am nocturnal.
I love the night time.
'Cause I'm a bat.
I fly without a sound.

In the Graveyard
(Tune: "My Darling, Clementine")

In the graveyard,
In the graveyard
When the moon
Begins to shine
There's a doctor,
Crazy doctor
And his monster,
Frankenstein

Oh, my monster,
Oh, my monster
Oh, my monster,
Frankenstein
You are very,
Very scary
Don't come near me,
Frankenstein

Ten Little Monsters

One little, two little,
Three little monsters
Four little, five little,
Six little monsters
Seven little, eight little,
Nine little monsters
Ten of them can't scare me!

Ten little, nine little,
Eight little monsters
Seven little, six little,
Five little monsters,
Four little, three little,
Two little monsters,
One of them can't scare me!

None of them can scare me!