Halloween Party Games for 10-Year-Olds

by Katharine Mitchell, Demand Media

    Hosting a Halloween party for a group of 10-year-olds can be fun, at least until the party food is thoroughly grazed and candy wrappers crinkle underfoot. By planning ahead and setting up holiday-themed games, hosts can avoid sugar-high chaos by engaging guests in games centered around Halloween challenges.

    Mummy Wrap

    Divide children into teams of two, assigning one person to be the mummy and the other the technician. Give each team a roll of white crepe paper. Instruct the technicians to use the entire roll of paper to wrap the mummies. Indicate that heads should not be wrapped and that arms and torsos must be wrapped separately. Explain to the mummies that they must race to the finish line, after being fully wrapped, without breaking any of the paper. Award the winning team, then play again, with teammates taking on opposite roles.

    Pop and Guess

    Write the names of popular Halloween ghouls, monsters and other figures on slips of paper, including favorites such as Dracula and Frankenstein. Blow up orange and black balloons and insert a piece of paper into each balloon and tie them. Divide kids into two teams and ask them to select who goes first. The first player must pop a balloon and act out the name written on the slip of paper inside. His team has three minutes to guess the monster or ghoul. If the team doesn't guess, the opposing team has the opportunity to guess before sending one of their own players to pop a balloon and continue the game.

    Bobbing for Apples

    Revive the old-fashioned party game of bobbing for apples. Fill a large metal or plastic tub with cold water. Dump a bag of apples into the water. Instruct the children to hold their hands, fingers interlaced, behind their backs while they attempt to catch an apple in their teeth and successfully pull it out of the water. Award the winner with a bag of candy or other Halloween treat.

    Pumpkin Hockey

    Divide guests into two teams. Give each guest a broom to use like a hockey stick. Place a small pumpkin or other autumn squash in the center of a playing field. Mark off two goals on each side of the field. At a signal, teams try to sweep the pumpkin into their respective goals. The team with the most goals wins.

    About the Author

    Katharine Mitchell began writing in 1994. She has has written for "Fodor's," "The Insider's Guide to Beijing," "Time Out", "City Weekend" and Matador. She attended the Summer Literary Seminar in St. Petersburg, Russia. Mitchell has a Master of Fine Arts in fiction from the University of Montana and a Master of Arts in English from the University of Mississippi.

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