Why Don’t You…? October Half Term and Halloween

The trees are putting on their finery and an autumn walk through fiery forests kicking up leaves, collecting conkers and blowing dragon breath is a perfect way to spend time over half term. It’s time to carve pumpkins, bake biscuits and build fires. Of course there are lots of organised events too and here is a round up of the ones which have caught our eye!

Go Foraging for Free Food

It is a time of lavish pickings for the wild harvester! Hunting for mushrooms, blackberries, sloes, elderberries and sweet chestnuts should be a major feature of autumn childhood days. If you’re not a happy forager and not sure what you’re looking for lots of places do organised forays and many welcome accompanied children. Wilderness Wood have two family fungi foray days, the National Trust have foray events at many of their properties as do the Wildlife Trust.

Scare Yourselves Silly for Halloween!

English Heritage have several spooky experiences on offer. How about a family Halloween sleepover at Portland Castle in Dorset (suitable for families 8+), Dracula at Night at Whitby Abbey (suitable for families 8+) or a Halloween Family Fun Trail at Kenilworth Castle and Elizabethan Garden (suitable for all)?

Sussex Wildlife Trust is offering The Adventures of Stickman and The Gruffalo’s Child as well as torchlit Halloween Horrors trails through the wood – all suitable for young families. Checkout the Wildlife Trust  for your area to see what they have on offer.

Visit a Museum

Most museums are beginning to cotton on to the need to encourage families in and nurture children’s interest, thanks in large part to the marvellous Kids In Museums.

The London Transport Museum, for example, have a week of family fun planned from 29th October until 2nd November 2012. Children can join in make and take arts and crafts workshops and story telling sessions inspired by the new temporary exhibition Ahead of the Games. A must for all of us who got caught up in the magic of the Olympic and Paralympic Games over the summer; families will meet Bellboy Bob and his friends (characters from the posters which were all over the London Transport network) and can leave behind their own memories of travelling during the Games for future generations to find out what it was like during 2012.

Of course, there are also lots of lovely transport exhibits to look at and explore while you are there!

Check out your local museum and museums in towns and cities nearby to see what they have on offer this half term!