Halloween
Halloween is celebrated on 31 October.
The name is a short version of All Hallows’ Even, the evening before All Hallows’ Day (also called All Saints’ Day) on 1 November. Many things we do at Halloween come from Samhain, the ancient Celtic New Year.
It is a time when we enjoy being scared by witches, ghosts and other creepy creatures! We might dress up, have a party, read scary stories or make some yummy treats.
In the United States, a traditional Halloween activity is Trick-or-treating. Costumed children go from house to house, asking for treats with the question, Trick or treat?
Trick or treating is becoming more popular in New Zealand.
Scary stuff at your library
The Library has lots of items on Halloween including:
- Halloween cooking
- Halloween decorations
- Children’s stories about Halloween.
We also have scary movies. Check out our movies for kids about ghosts and haunted houses.
If you like scary reading, check out our catalogue for horror tales and ghost stories for kids.
Halloween websites
Halloween for kids at Christchurch City Libraries- Learn about Halloween and find out what resources Christchurch City Libraries have, including scary stories and movies.
- Halloween in the Encyclopaedia Britannica
- Get the facts on how and why we started celebrating Halloween.
- Halloween at Encyclopedia.Com
- Lots of in-depth information about Halloween and its history.
- Halloween at Fact Monster
- Information about Halloween and how it started.
- Halloween at PBS Kids
- Have all the fun of Halloween with Arthur, Sid and Super Why. Play games, find costume ideas, make music and share your scary Halloween story.
- Halloween Crafts
- Get crafty this Halloween with hundreds of ideas for decorations, costumes and games from Kaboose. You can even make a costume for your dog!
- Halloween Games
- Graduate your Halloween games class at FunSchool!
- Halloween Hauntings
- A website created for students, by students. It has original poems, stories, jokes and more.
- Halloween information for adults at Christchurch City Libraries
- Find some more in-depth information on our website about the resources we have for adults on Halloween
- Halloween Jokes
- What does a vampire have for breakfast? Go to this site to find out.
- The Haunted House Party
- Read this story of a boy who hosts a Halloween party and gets lots of uninvited and spooky guests.