Halloween Word Scramble (Free Printable with Answers)

The word list

All 22 words are loaded above. Mix in the names of your own class pets or party guests for an extra spooky touch.

How to use a Halloween word scramble

Halloween parties at school tend to be loud and sugary, and a quiet puzzle station gives the calmer children somewhere to land. It also works well on the afternoon before trick-or-treating, when everyone is too excited to read.

1. Decide on the number of words. Twelve will do for second graders, while all 22 suit older readers.
2. Print two different puzzles so neighbors cannot copy, and keep the answer key away from the table.
3. Hand sheets to children as they arrive at the party or at the end of the lesson.
4. Let children solve in pencil, in any order. Words they know best tend to come first.
5. Check answers as a group, reading each word aloud with a spooky voice.

Spooky variations

• Haunted house relay. Set sheets around the room as stations. Teams move round when a bell rings and solve the next word before moving on.
• Whisper clue. An adult whispers a clue about the answer, such as 'it carries a candle inside a carved face', and the first to unscramble it gets a point.
• Costume edition. Add the names of all the costumes in the room and see who can unscramble their own.

Tips for the party table

Keep a bowl of sharpened pencils on the table, since sticky candy fingers and ink do not mix. Turn on the word bank for children under eight, because many Halloween words like cauldron and broomstick are tricky to spell.

Two-word answers keep their spaces, so trick or treat shows up as three separate scrambles, which is a good clue for beginners.

Printing for October

Orange or purple paper makes the sheets feel like part of the party. Ink saver mode keeps the letters crisp on colored stock. The answer key prints on its own page, so you can slip it into a folder for the teacher. Letter and A4 both fit one puzzle per page.