Halloween Activities in Chicago, Illinois for Preschoolers
- Navy Pier, in downtown Chicago, has an annual lights-on, family-friendly version of its haunted house on weekend afternoons in October. Columbus Park also operates a haunted house with several rooms for kids of all ages over Halloween weekend. If you want to be really "safe," the 14th District Police Station holds a haunted house daily from October 28-31.
- If your preschooler enjoys music, consider a visit to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's "Hallowed Haunts" family concert. After hosting spooky pre-show festivities for kids in the "Haunted Ballroom," the symphony (performing in costume!) will present a fun-filled program of such Halloween favorites as Mussorgsky's "A Night on Bald Mountain," Bach's "Toccata in D Minor", and Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries." Young attendees are encouraged to come in costume.
- Numerous libraries in Chicago host Halloween events for preschoolers. Garfield Ridge Library hosts an annual "Halloween Happenin'" with spooky books, trick-or-treat games and ghoulish snacks. Chicago Lawn Branch Library hosts a Halloween party with games, stories and a costume contest. Jeffery Manor Library invites preschoolers for midday Halloween fun that includes stories, songs, finger plays, rhymes, and crafts, and Mount Greenwood, Vodak, and Walker libraries also offer storytelling and craft events around Halloween.
- The celebrated MSI gives a spooky touch to many of its exhibits during Halloween weekend. Activities include "Get Slimed!" in which kids create ghoulish green slime, "Trash for Treats!" where recyclables may be exchanged for organic candy, and "Code Boo!" which has kids use Morse Code to decipher "frightening and fiendish" Halloween messages at the entrance of the U-505 exhibit. Be sure to check out the daily pumpkin smashing in the Rotunda at 11:30 a.m.