🎃 The Ultimate Family Halloween Checklist

Candy, Costumes… and a Little Shadow Magic

Pumpkins glow, capes rustle, tiny feet race down the hall.
Halloween isn’t just one night of sugar, it’s a whole day of wonder you can shape together.

Here’s your family-friendly Halloween checklist: simple, imaginative ideas for candy, gifts, costumes, food, and one unforgettable screen-free tradition right in your living room.

🍬 Treats that feel thoughtful (not just sugar)

Fill your bowl with variety so every child feels surprised:

• Classic chocolates and chewy candies

• Glow sticks, glow-in-the-dark rings, or bracelets

• Temporary tattoos and Halloween stickers

• Mini notebooks, pencils, or erasers with spooky designs

• Allergy-friendly snacks (dried fruit, popcorn bags, pretzels) in a teal-marked bowl

• Small LEGO packs or building kits (great for older kids)

Pro tip: Create a “swap station” at home. After trick-or-treating, kids can trade for their favorites. It stretches the joy, encourages sharing, and reduces late-night sugar crashes.

🦇 Little gifts for little ghouls

Halloween doesn’t have to be only about candy. Keep a drawer of small treasures for party favors, classroom exchanges, or trick-or-treat alternatives:

• Spooky bookmarks, enamel pins, or charm bracelets

• “Story tokens” — paper coins kids redeem for reading a silly poem or a shadow scene

• Black paper + silver or white markers/crayons for DIY shadow puppet drawings

• Glow-in-the-dark stickers for bedroom walls

• Mini puzzles or Rubik’s cubes in Halloween colors

• Small bubble bottles shaped like pumpkins or bats

🎃 Costumes: quick, comfy, and unforgettable

Running out of time? These three costumes come together in minutes and still feel special:

• Cozy Bat: hoodie + paper ears + pinned felt wings

• Pumpkin Pal: orange tee + green scarf + freckles with face paint

• Shadow Storyteller: dark clothes + flashlight + silhouettes folder (perfect for SHAPLABOO!)

• Ghost-on-the-Go: white sheet with cut-out eyes (classic, but add a hat or glasses for humor)

• Scarecrow: plaid shirt, straw hat, a little hay or raffia tucked in pockets

• Wizard in a Flash: dark robe, paper hat, and a cardboard wand wrapped in foil

If you want to go all out, add one signature detail: a dramatic cape, oversized hat, or glowing accessory while keeping the rest simple and comfortable.

🏠 Decorations that set the scene

A Halloween house doesn’t need to be scary — just magical. Try:

• Paper bats taped to the wall in a “flying swarm” pattern

• Mason jars with LED candles wrapped in black lace or gauze

• A “pumpkin family” of different sizes with painted faces

• Shadow silhouettes on the windows (witches, cats, pumpkins) backlit by lamps

• String lights in warm orange or purple for cozy glow

• “Spider webs” stretched across mirrors or bookshelves

• DIY garland from black and orange paper shapes

• A blanket fort that doubles as a “shadow stage”

🧃 A Halloween menu kids will actually eat

Keep the food fun, festive, and easy to serve:

• Pumpkin Grilled Cheese: jack-o’-lantern cut-outs in bread

• Mummy Dogs: hot dogs in puff pastry with mustard eyes

• Monster Mouths: apples + peanut butter + marshmallow teeth

• Witch’s Brew: sparkling water + apple juice + grape “eyeballs”

• Ghost Bananas: half bananas with chocolate chip eyes

• Spider Cupcakes: chocolate cupcakes with pretzel “legs”

• Jack-o’-lantern quesadillas: cut face shapes in tortillas before toasting

Serve picnic-style on a low table so children can grab snacks between games or performances.

📖 The 20-minute living-room showstopper

Shadow Theater with A Tale for Halloween

When the sugar high meets bedtime fatigue, it’s the perfect moment to dim the lights and turn your wall into a stage.

With SHAPLABOO’s A Tale for Halloween, silhouettes leap from the book into a cozy, spooky-sweet performance, no screens required.

How to play:

1. Dim and aim: flashlight slightly above the book for crisp shadows

2. Cast and voices: hand out silhouettes (witch, cat, pumpkin) — let kids choose voices

3. Make it yours: pause after each scene and ask, “What happens next?”

4. Try color: with a StoryLighter, switch to red or green for dramatic effect

5. End softly: close with the audio track to help everyone wind down

It’s lively enough for laughter and gentle enough to settle kids toward sleep.
Bonus: the set includes an audio performance for extra atmosphere.

A TALE FOR HALLOWEEN Classical spooky story which would immerse you and your kids into the vivid holiday of Halloween.

PRICE: from $29.99 USD

A simple Halloween timeline (steal this idea)

• 3:30 PM — After-school snack and quick costume check

• 4:00 PM — Craft a last-minute prop, like a paper bat mask or glow-stick bracelet

• 5:30 PM — Dinner: Jack-o’-lantern quesadillas and pumpkin-shaped grilled cheese

• 6:15 PM — Trick-or-treat neighborhood loop (times vary by community, some start closer to 6:30–7:00)

• 7:30 PM — Swap station and hot cocoa

• 7:45 PM — Shadow Theater: A Tale for Halloween (10–20 minutes)

• 8:10 PM — Pajamas, brushing teeth, one whispered “again”… then lights out

Safety and sanity tips

• Add reflective tape to costumes for safe walks

• Bring flashlights or glow sticks for dark streets

• Label treat bags and do a quick allergen check

• Keep a “quiet corner” with pillows for shy or tired kids

• Choose comfortable shoes for trick-or-treating

✨ Want the full Halloween kit?

Subscribe and we’ll send it directly to your inbox. As a treat, you’ll also get 10% OFF your order. Perfect for picking your Halloween story set.

Why this Halloween will last

Candy disappears. Costumes get packed away.
But the story you perform together? That has become a tradition.

Explore more adventures:

• A Tale for Halloween

• Mystery Mansion

• The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

Happy haunting and sweet dreams,
The SHAPLABOO Team