Halloween is a week away, and we made something for it: 10 free Halloween worksheets for kids, ready to print as one PDF. Each sheet trains one skill that reading, spelling, writing, and/or calculating are built on, from looking closely and remembering to listening, counting, and telling b from d. The figures are friendly, not scary, so even the youngest can join in.
In short
- 10 free Halloween worksheets plus an answer key, 11 pages in one PDF, US Letter.
- Every sheet trains one area of the AFS-Method: seeing, remembering, sequence, space, hearing, quantities, letters, and words.
- About ten minutes per sheet. One sheet a day fits nicely into the week before Halloween.
- No sign-up, no email, free for home and classroom use.
- Want to play too? Our free Halloween memory game runs in any browser.
What is in the free Halloween worksheet pack?
The pack has ten worksheets and one page with answers for parents and teachers. Each worksheet names the skill it trains in the purple header, so you can pick the sheets your child needs most. Click a picture to see the sheet in full size.
Seeing: visual differentiation. Circle the one picture that looks exactly like the sample. The others are flipped, turned, or have a different color.
Seeing and attention. Two Halloween scenes that look the same, but six details changed.
Visual memory. Look at five pictures for 30 seconds, fold the page, then find them again in a grid of twelve.
Visual sequencing. Continue six picture patterns, from easy (pumpkin, bat, pumpkin) to tricky.
Spatial orientation. Above, below, left, right: answer six questions about the Halloween shelf.
Numbers and quantities. Count candy, pumpkins, bats, candy corn, and spiders, then compare: how many more?
Symptom training: letters. Color the b pumpkins orange and the d pumpkins green. p and q stay white.
Reading and spelling. Ten Halloween words, only across and down, with a picture next to every word.
Hearing: auditory differentiation. Say the word, clap the syllables, color one circle per clap, and write the first letter.
Attention and fine motor skills. A maze for a slow, careful pencil line.
How do you use Halloween worksheets with a child who has dyslexia?
Short and daily works better than long and rare. Ten minutes is enough. Pick a calm time, the same time every day, and stop while it is still fun. Praise the effort, not only the result: a child who tries the maze slowly and carefully has done exactly what the sheet asks.
A simple plan for the week before Halloween:
- Start with the sheets for seeing and attention (1, 2, 3, 4, and 10). They warm up the eyes and the focus.
- Then add space, hearing, and numbers (5, 9, and 6). Read the questions aloud if reading is still hard.
- Save the letter and word sheets for last (7 and 8). By then the child has practiced looking closely, and b and d are easier to tell apart.
- Use the answer key together. Errors are information, not failure: they show you which skill needs a little more practice.
If your child struggles with the same kind of sheet again and again, write it down. That pattern is useful for a closer look with a Certified Dyslexia Trainer.
Why do the worksheets train seeing, hearing, and space before letters?
The worksheets follow the AFS-Method, developed by dyslexia researcher Dr. Astrid Kopp-Duller. The method trains three areas together: attention, the sensory perceptions, and the symptoms in reading, spelling, writing, and/or calculating. A child who mixes up b and d often does not need to write b and d fifty more times. The child first needs to see the small difference, remember it, and know where left and right are. That is why most of the Halloween sheets train perception, and only two work with letters and words.
The sensory perceptions behind reading and math are visual differentiation, visual memory, visual sequencing, spatial orientation, auditory differentiation, and the sense of quantity. Each of them has its own sheet in this pack, so one Halloween week covers the whole set.
Is there a Halloween game, too?
Yes. Our free memory game Pairthrum has a Halloween card set with nine funny spooky figures. It runs in any browser, with no ads and no sign-up, and you can choose 6, 8, 12, or 18 cards. Memory games train visual memory, the same skill as worksheet 3.
For more free practice after Halloween, see our free dyslexia resources for parents and teachers, the 1,500 free worksheets, and the 31-day plan for Dyslexia Awareness Month. More games for every sense are free at easy-training-program.com, a new picture puzzle waits every day at spot-differences.com, and more word searches are at findthewordsabc.com.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. All 10 worksheets and the answer key are free to download, print, and copy for home and classroom use. There is no sign-up and no email address needed. The American Dyslexia Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charity and keeps its materials free for families and teachers.
Most sheets work for children from about 5 to 9 years. Younger children can do the picture sheets (find the twin, spot the differences, memory, patterns, maze) with a grown-up reading the instructions. The letter and word sheets fit children who are learning to read and write.
About ten minutes. Short daily practice works better than one long session. Stop while the child still enjoys it, and praise the effort, not only the result.
They can be part of the practice. The sheets train attention and the sensory perceptions that reading, spelling, writing, and/or calculating are built on, in the order of the AFS-Method. They do not replace an assessment or regular training with a Certified Dyslexia Trainer.
About the American Dyslexia Association
The American Dyslexia Association (ADA) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charity based in Osprey, Florida. It supports children, families, educators, and adults affected by dyslexia and dyscalculia with free information, worksheets, games, and the AFS-Method. More at american-dyslexia-association.org.
Sources
- Kopp-Duller, A.: Dyslexia – Training Using the AFS-Method, 3rd revised edition, 2021.
- AFS-Method: overview of attention, function, and symptom training. https://www.afs-method.com/
- Pairthrum memory game, Halloween card set. https://appsthrum.com/pairthrum/
