We are big fans of StoryToys apps, since they offer such a great mix of game play and reading. The new Haunted House 3D Pop-Up Activity Book app is no exception. It’s a wonderfully creepy ebook with 8 pop-up scenes that require some sort of action. From tickling monsters to decorating jack-o-lanterns, the activities leave no Halloween creatures out.

Like other StoryToys apps, this one is available in 4 languages: English, French, German, and Spanish. The narration is professional and especially creepy to match the occasion. These 3D apps really offer an incentive for children to improve listening skills, since each activity page includes new, sometimes multi-step directions. There is also a puzzle section and a sticker section for hours of additional fun.

My favorite thing about this app is that it is long enough to offer surprises each time my little guy uses it, so he won’t get bored after the first couple times. Since he, like most kids, absolutely loves Halloween, I know he will revisit the Haunted House 3D Pop-Up Activity Book all year long.

Bonus: Take advantage of the half-price deal and get this quality app for just $0.99 until November 2nd!

Find Haunted House 3D Pop-Up Activity Book in iTunes and Google Play

Available for iPhone, iPad, and Android

Recommended for ages 5-9

Price: $1.99; ON SALE for $0.99 from October 25th-November 2nd

Check out all of the 3D apps from StoryToys on their website and Facebook.

The first is La Fiesta de Halloween ($3.99), a great story about vampires, monsters, spiders, and more getting ready to have a Halloween party at a haunted house. The ghosts provide the tunes and the skeletons dance.

In La aprendiz de bruja ($1.99), a young girl is learning what it takes to become a witch. She mixes up potions and learns to fly on a broomstick. She practices spells on her cat and accidentally turns him into all kinds of odd things.

Lastly, Cazavampiros ($2.99) is a story about hunting for a vampiress in a creepy castle. It’s fun to search each room for clues and finally find the girl who’s guilty of stealing candies.

As with all PlayTales books, these Halloween stories are interactive and you can choose to read them yourself or have them read aloud. PlayTales offers options for ages 1-12, but these Halloween stories are appropriate for ages 4 and up.

All titles can be downloaded through the PlayTales app for the individual prices listed above, or through PlayTales Gold! app with a monthly, semi-annual, or annual subscription. PlayTales is available for Apple and Android.

NOTE: To find Spanish titles, go to “Store,” change language to español, then perform a search.

Just print it out, have your kid color it, cut each individual card and have fun coming up with different story lines using the Halloween and Fall words. So much creativity to be had!

Click here for the full printable version of the activity sheet above.

For more Spanish educational materials for niños visit Monarca Language and like them on Facebook.

It’s almost that time of year again — Halloween and Day of the Dead are almost here! Even though some of us may still be trying to figure out what (and if!) to dress up as, the celebration has actually begun at Disneyland with Halloween Time.

Halloween Time at the Disneyland Resorts is when The Happiest Place on Earth gets a bit spooky with Disney villains, Mickey Mouse and his friends in Halloween costumes and  even a Día de los Muertos celebration.

Tickets have already gone on sale for the special after-hours Mickey’s Halloween Party which begins tonight, Sept. 27  at Disneyland Park, featuring the “Halloween Screams” fireworks spectacular, all part of the Halloween Time fun at the Disneyland Resort, through Oct. 31.

This will be our fourth year in a row going to Mickey’s Halloween Party and it feels like a family tradition full of so many memories now. My girl was three years old the first time we went and I thought she might be too young for it, but she still remembers the mad dash to be the first ones in the trick-or-treat lines and how scared she was when the “Halloween Screams” firework spectacle started and it was a ghost dog flying through the air instead of Tinkerbell!

As she grows older, it’s fun to see how much braver and mature she becomes. Last year she finally asked to go to the Haunted Mansion Holiday and, even though she admits it was a bit “spooky,” she still boasts about having been inside. Now she says she’s ready for more — though not Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy just yet. Papá will have to ride that one alone while we dance along with “Mickey’s Costume Party” cavalcade and check out some of our favorite Disney character’s costumes!

Mickey’s Halloween Party is definitely fun for the whole family, but I highly suggest you make purchase your tickets in advance. It starts tomorrow and there will be only 13 special nights in September and October, but it’s a separate ticket admission from a regular day at Disneyland Park. If you purchase your ticket in advance, you’ll not only guarantee it won’t be sold out on the night that you want to go, but you also get a discount rate.

For more information on dates, rates and all special events happening during Halloween Time and Mickey’s Halloween Party, go here.

Courtesy of the Disneyland Resorts, I’ll be attending with my family the first night of Mickey’s Halloween Party tonight. Follow our spooky party adventure on Instagram and get a peek at all the fun that Disneyland Park has put together for Halloween and Día de Muertos.

Even if you don’t engage in trick-or-treating or frequent a haunted house, you can’t escape the Halloween madness at this time of year. While your kids are planning their disfraces, why not add to the holiday fun with some spooky bedtime stories? Here are some fun – and not TOO spooky – Spanish titles to get you and your little ones in the spirit of Halloween.

Click on the individual links or browse them all in La Tiendita.

Un Fiasco de Bruja by Lorna Balian – A fun story for preschoolers about a witch who can’t seem to get her spells right.

Marcelina y la noche de Halloween by Christel Desmoinaux – A young witch learns all about the history of Halloween and how to celebrate with her abuelita.

Froggy y el día de Halloween by Jonathan London – The classic character and his friends enjoy trick-or-treating.

Un Gato Negro en Día de Brujas by Maria Graziani – Two friends try to find the owner of a black cat who is lost on Halloween.

Bruja por un día/Witch for a Day (Mila & Luna) by Prunella Bat – A chapter book from the Mila & Luna series. Fun seasonal read for elementary niñas!

Manual de Brujas by Monica Carretero – Use this activity book to have a fun, imaginative chat about what witches do.

The Monster in the Mattress and Other Stories/El Monstruo en el Colchon y Otros Cuentos by Diane de Anda – A book with various story activities. Try to figure out why odd things are happening to brothers Rudi and Tony. 

Meet Bebe Bilingual , an online collection of educational products for kids around the world. The creator of Bebe Bilingual is Kimberly Schwede, a graphic designer and illustrator who gains much of her inspirations from her travels. Bebe Bilingual’s products can be found in English, Spanish, and French. You can check out her Etsy store for super cute bilingual placemats, flashcards, lunch boxes, wall art and more!

She has shared this original Halloween coloring sheet so our bilingual kids can learn their skeleton parts in Spanish! So cute!

For a printable version of this Halloween coloring page click here.

Music with Sara and friends have done it again! They’ve created the most adorable and fun-to-watch video for their catchy tune, Los Monstruos. Sara tells us that Los Monstruos is actually her most-requested song by students ever since she wrote it four years ago.

Last week we premiered the song here and today we bring you a first view of the video that will have your kids going “¡Uuuuuuuu!” {insert scary voice}. Oh, and click on the Close Caption option to read the lyrics! You can also scroll down and find them below.

“Los Monstruos”
by: Music with Sara
Artwork by: Kristine Cruz-Munda
Animation by: Emmanuel L. Munda
copyright 2012: Music with Sara and D-1 Productions

http://www.musicwithsara.com
http://www.ahappymommy.com

Download your copy of “Los Monstruos” here:
http://musicwithsara.bandcamp.com/

Lyrics:

Los monstruos todos salen en Halloween
Halloween Halloween
Los monstros todos salen en Halloween
¡uuuuuuuuuuuuu!

Un murciélago
¡Bam! Vampiro
una araña
una bruja
un monstruo feo
un fantasma
salen …. en Halloween

The monsters all come out on Halloween
Halloween Halloween
The monsters all come out on Halloween
ooohhhh

A creepy bat
Bam! Vampire
scary spider
A flying witch
A big big monster
A spooky ghost
They all come out
on Halloween

Los monstruos todos salen en Halloween
Halloween Halloween
Los monstruos todos salen en Halloween
¡uuuuuuuuuuuuu!

Un murciélago
¡Bam! Vampiro
una araña
una bruja
un monstruo feo
un fantasma
salen …. en Halloween

Los monstruos todos salen en Halloween
Halloween Halloween
Los monstruos todos salen en Halloween
¡uuuuuuuuuuuuu!

Are you looking for a simple but fun class treat or party craft for kids? Here are three easy pumpkin (calabaza) crafts to get you into the Harvest or Halloween mood!

Is it a calabaza or a zapallo?  In Mexico, we say calabaza but when I first arrived to Ecuador and visited the mercado the lady looked at me like I was crazy when I asked for a calabaza. So like a little toddler I described to her in the best way that I could what a calabaza was.  She said “ahhh, zapallo.”  By the time I left the market I was thoroughly confused on what to call my favorite Fall food.  Some claimed it was zapallo, others said it was calabaza.

So on to the calabaza crafts!

Recycled Lid Pumpkins

You will need:

• Lid from a canned good (be careful handling edges) or for a safer alternative a bottle cap
• magnets
• paint
• googly eyes
• green pipe cleaner

Pumpkin Drinks

• Orange drink
• Permanent markers
• green tissue paper

Mandarin Pumpkins

• mandarin or orange
• permanent marker

Get crazy creative and draw or stencil your favorite, spooky calabaza faces!

Do you have a favorite Halloween craft with pumpkins? Feel free to share the link below!

Nothing like Halloween to bring out the spooky, silly and funny bone in kids and adults alike. This catchy and easy-to-learn bilingual song, “Los Monstruos,” by our amiga Sara, is sure to get your kids cantando and even howling en español and, in the process, learn the names of their favorite Halloween creatures in English and Spanish!

You can click on the above link to purchase the digital track for only $1 and play it to your heart’s content. So perfect for classrooms, Halloween parties and good ole kitchen dancing..or is it just us that do that?!