Toddler Activities: Halloween Ghost

Description

Toddler Activities using black construction, glue, chalk and some imagination...make a ghost for Halloween! Whether you make a cheery ghost,jack-o-lantern or a cat the results of this activity looks really neat.

Materials

chalk ghost
  • Black Construction paper

  • Pencil

  • Elmer's Glue

  • Colored Chalk

  • Newspaper to work on

  • Art smock or old shirt

  • Paper Towels

  • Aerosol Hair Spray to set the chalk (optional)






Steps

making the chalk ghost using glue
  • Read a Halloween story like an old classic like Georgie or any fun Halloween story.
  • Using a pencil, draw a ghost shape on black construction paper.
  • Trace the lines with Elmer's Glue. Use a line thick enough so that it is almost a solid line so that you can easily see the shape.






  • using glue to make the chalk ghost
  • Let the glue dry thoroughly.
  • Using chalk, have your child color in their ghost.
  • Using a paper towel, gently smear the chalk in each area to give it a "ghostly" look. This step best done with adult assistance
  • If you want to seal the chalk that so that it doesn't get on hands and clothing especially if it is being sent home, lightly spray the picture with an aerosol hairspray to set.




Tips and Suggestions

  • Children often draw small when they first make pictures. Tell them you are making a page like a color book where the picture needs to be large enough to color. You might even refer to an actual color book and show how the picture fills the page.
  • You can direct your child as they draw. Show where to start and direct them as them make the body, eyes and if they choose, feet and hands.
  • Once a year I buy aerosol hairspray for art. Any inexpensive brand will work. Spray in a well ventilated area, preferably outdoors.
  • I usually have the children use colored drawing chalk which is a little heavier, more colors and easier to blend. This type of chalk can be found at Education stores or at Office Supply stores but for this particular try with my toddlers I just used Crayola chalk.
  • This is an activity that can be done by three year olds however I have even done this activity with fourth graders. As the children get older they create more complex pictures and are encouraged to add details like pumpkins, bats, a full moon. Other Halloween subjects that children have selected to draw are pumpkin patches and black cats.
  • For children or schools which don't celebrate Halloween, this is a great activity using any subject matter. Fill in with the chalk to create a neat effect.

Educational Tip

Halloween is not celebrated in all countries, and among those that do, the traditions and importance of the celebration can vary significantly. Celebration in the United States has had a significant influence on how the holiday is observed and celebrated in other nations.