“What are you watching, Mama?”
The way I was grinning at my iPhone piqued her curiosity, so much so that she hopped out the bathtub just to see what all the fuss was about. I was watching that oh-so-nostalgic cartoon, The Skeleton Dance. For a second I wondered whether she would be spooked by skeletons dancing, but as it turns out, 3½-year-olds think skeletons are absolutely hilarious.
It got me thinking about other Halloween videos I could conjure up for her viewing pleasure. I went back through my childhood and beyond to unearth some of the timeless stuff that endures year after year.
(In case you’re wondering, I think I’ll hold off on introducing her to the lunatics dancing The Time Warp for just a few more years.)
10 Awesome Halloween Videos to Watch With Your Kids
1. Skeleton Dance
There’s nothing like a bunch of bones dancing around. It never, ever gets old.
2. Spooky Spooky
I normally hate music specifically tailored to toddlers/preschoolers. But this song is not only tolerable, it’s enjoyable. It could have something to do with the theremin or the deliberately cheesy graphics. Whatever it is, you won’t be sorry. (Unless of course you can’t get the song out of your head. It’s addictive.)
3. Monster Mash
It was a graveyard smash.
4. Anything Can Happen on Halloween
Nostalgia overload. I am unapologetically a huge Worst Witch fan, and this song will always symbolize the first cold, overcast days of fall, when the leaves are changing color and we spent the afternoon hanging Halloween decorations in the windows of our house.
5. Mickey Mouse Haunted House
Disney knows what its doing with the dancing skeletons. And Mickey Mouse. This cartoon features both.
6. Donald Duck Trick or Treat
Donald Duck gets what’s coming to him when he plays a trick on Huey, Dewey and Louie.
7. Scooby Doo’s Headless Horseman of Halloween
Really, any Scooby Doo episode would suffice for Halloween viewing.
8. Headless Horseman Song
The part where Ichabod Crane is peppering his egg forever? Perfection.
9. Dance Magic
Consider this video a gentle nudge into the awesomeness that is Labyrinth. This film made my Movies My Kids Will Watch list, and I’ve been singing this song to Alexa since she was an infant.
10. Egyptian Melodies
It’s like Skeleton Dance, but with mummies.
