Fall is my favorite time of the year in my classroom! And of course October is the month when your classroom gets a little spookier, and your students are more excited than ever! But, despite the fun that October brings, we all still have those students who finish their work early and need something fun and challenging to do. I’ve found that Halloween-themed puzzles and brain teasers are the perfect way to keep those early finishers engaged. Here are five of my favorite puzzles and brain teaser ideas the Halloween season! They’re perfect for 3rd-5th graders!

1. Halloween Sudoku

Sudoku puzzles are fantastic for helping students develop their logic and problem-solving skills. You can even make your own puzzles with a fun Halloween twist! To do this, replace the numbers with spooky symbols like pumpkins, ghosts, bats, and witches. Students will still need to follow the same Sudoku rules — each symbol can only appear once in each row, column, and section. Making themed Sudoku puzzles will keep early finishers engaged while adding a festive flair to your math block. If you need a blank Halloween sudoku puzzle template, I’ve got you covered. You can grab one HERE!

2. Halloween Word Search Puzzles

Word searches are always a simple yet effective way to reinforce spelling and vocabulary in a fun, engaging manner. Try using Halloween-themed word searches with your early finishers. Puzzles with spooky words like “ghost,” “witch,” “pumpkin,” and “bat” are always a fun seasonal hit in my classroom. I also like to highlight words from the puzzles that we read as a class in Halloween picture books or from lessons we’ve recently covered in class. Word searches also work well as a relaxing activity while still reinforcing word recognition and spelling skills. You might also consider asking your students to come up with sentences using the words they find in the puzzles! This is a simple way to incorporate writing into this fun early finisher task! I’ve included a FREE HAUNTED HOUSE WORD SEARCH FOR YOU! Make sure to grab it before you go!

3. Halloween Logic Square Puzzles

Logic Square Puzzles are a fun, math-based brain teaser where students figure out the value of Halloween symbols. In a 3×3 or 4×4 grid, each row and column adds up to the indicated sum, and students need to work out the value of each spooky symbol (like pumpkins, ghosts, or bats). I love giving my students logic squares because they help build problem-solving and math skills while keeping things fun and engaging. The Halloween symbols add a seasonal twist that makes this early finisher activity especially exciting for students!

4. A-Z Halloween Challenge

This fun and simple brain teaser is great for encouraging creativity. Challenge students to come up with one Halloween-related word for every letter of the alphabet! Some of the letters really make students stretch their brains to be able to complete the list. One way to extend this is to have students incorporate the words they cam up with into their Halloween writing! I shared a collection of FREE HALLOWEEN WRITING PROMPTS that you might consider using! You can find them HERE! When I don’t use this challenge for my early finishers, I also love to make it a class competition to see who can finish the fastest. Another idea is to turn it into a class-wide challenge where everyone contributes to the list.

5. Spooky Math Mazes

Halloween math mazes are a great way to make math practice feel more like a game than a task. I especially love mazes where students have to solve problems as they progress through the maze! Plus, it doesn’t seem to matter how old the kids are . . . all kids LOVE mazes!

I really believe that Halloween puzzles and brain teasers are the perfect way to keep early finishers busy while reinforcing critical thinking, problem-solving, and vocabulary skills. The activities I have mentioned are just a few of the fun activities that my students have loved. Best of all, these activities are low-prep and easy to incorporate into your daily routines.

Save These Spooky Early Finisher Ideas for Later

If you’d like to spooky fun for your classroom? Check out my Halloween Packet of Fun or October Early Finishers Pack. Each of these are filled with puzzles, activities, and challenges that will keep your students entertained and learning all October long! Also, be sure to click on the image below to save this post to a Pinterest board you love. This will make it easy to find when the time is right! Wishing you and your students a wonderful October!