Easy Jack-o-Lantern Sensory Bag for Kids

Learn how to make a Jack-o-Lantern Sensory Bag for kids. Toddlers and preschoolers will have fantastic fun with this sensory activity this Halloween season.

Not only is this the perfect way for little hands to explore their sense of touch with a mess-free activity, but it’s also a great idea if you want to work on fine motor skills.

If you want to make your Halloween themed lessons a breeze, then check out the Halloween Activity Pack. For only $10 you get 86 pages of hands-on activities and craft templates that are perfect for math and literacy centers, fine motor skills and more. Check it out today.

Disclosure: Adult supervision is required for all activities at all times. Some of the links provided in this blog are affiliate links. I will be paid a commission if you use this link to make a purchase.

More Halloween Themed Sensory Play Ideas to try

Kids of all ages will love playing with these Halloween themed sensory experiences. Here are some more fun ideas to try if you’re looking for some simple fun.

For more ideas, take a look at these 26 Sensory Activities for Halloween.

Materials Needed

Clear hair gel
Ziplock bag
Black permanent marker
Orange food coloring
Clear packing tape

How to Make a Jack-o-Lantern Sensory Bag

1. Remove the white strip from the top of the bag.

There are a few different ways to remove this white strip from plastic bags, but I prefer using eucalyptus oil. Just dab some eucalyptus oil on a tissue and rub it over the white strip. The white just melts away and leaves your squish bag completely mark free.

2. Fill the sensory play bag with hair gel.

I found one bottle of hair gel was the perfect amount for a sandwich sized sensory bag. If you are using a larger ziplock bag, then you’ll need 2 or more bottles of hair gel.

3. Add in 5 drops of orange food coloring, (Or combine red and yellow), and mix with the hair gel.

While clear hair gel would be ideal, I didn’t have any on hand. So I used this blue hair gel to see what would happen. When I added the food coloring into the hair gel I found that it still had that beautiful orange color.

You can also add pumpkin seeds into your jack o’lantern sensory bag, to give young children another element to play with. However I removed mine because my kids didn’t like it. They just wanted to squish the gel around as it was.

4. Close the ziplock bag.

Squeeze as much excess air out as possible before sealing it shut. Having too much air in the bag will make it more likely to pop open when your younger kids play with it.

Another extra precaution to take is to use duct tape around the edges of the bag. This is a great way to give the bag some extra stability when it’s being played with. As well as minimizing the risk of any accidental messes that may happen if your kids are very rough with their sensory bag.

5. Draw on the face.

Use a black marker or sharpie to draw on the nose, eyes and mouth shape.

If you prefer, you can also make these shapes out of black craft foam. Then place the foam pieces inside the sensory bag. Your kids will then have so much fun pushing and squishing the foam pieces around until they make the face they want.