The ghosts are coming and will be out in full force this Halloween! With these paper ghosts, kids can string ghosts across your living room wall or across the classroom and down the hallway. Kids can even craft strands of ghosts to hang up in their own bedrooms (with the help of a parent) and across their bookshelf. For parents and teachers, there will be no escaping the boo-rific ghosts that will be swinging from the ceilings.
Grade Level
This project is best for second and third grades.
Lesson Description
Children will use a ghost pattern to trace a ghost onto a piece of paper. Children will then cut the ghost shape out, decorate its face, and will use glue or tape to attach the ghost’s hands to the yarn to make a hanging ghost decoration.
Materials Needed
- White construction paper
- Ghost pattern – enlarge the ghost pattern below or redraw one with arms straight up for hanging
- Pencil
- Glue or clear tape
- Black marker - thin tip for making the face
- Long strand of yarn
Hanging Ghost Directions
- Using the ghost pattern, have children trace the ghost onto white construction paper.
- Use the scissors to cut out ghost.
- Have children color in the ghost’s face with a black marker.
- To hang up the ghost, fold down the tips of the ghost’s hands over the yarn and use glue or clear tape to keep the hands securely attached to the yarn.
- When all the ghosts have been attached to the yarn, hang the ghosts along a wall or across a room to display the children’s artwork.
Alternative Methods and Ideas
- Use stiff white felt instead of construction paper to make the ghosts.
- Make other Halloween items to hang on the ghost line, such as black cats that can be attached to the yarn if you make them with long ears or orange pumpkins that can be attached to the yarn by the green or brown stem.
- If your classroom has a strong draft, staple the ghosts onto the yarn. This is will prevent the ghosts from falling during class.
Lesson Connections
Health: Food. Review the five basic food groups. Have children make up chart of the five different food groups for ghosts.
Language Arts: Read a ghost poem or a ghost story to the children. Share Halloween joke and riddles with the classroom.
Math: Create math worksheets with adding or subtracting ghosts. Have kids count how many ghosts are in hidden in a picture.
Social Studies: Discuss why ghosts are an important and historical part of Halloween.
