Spooky, Not Scary: Halloween Picks for Kids on Kanopy
Halloween is just over a month away, and families will be looking for seasonal things to watch together. Kanopy Kids has a set of Halloween titles that lean more silly than scary, which makes them a good fit for younger viewers. Here are seven to share with your patrons, that we think they’ll love. Plus marketing resources to help you promote them!
Masha’s Spooky Stories
Watch Masha’s Spooky Stories on Kanopy
Available in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand
Tremble! Masha decided to try a new genre – spooky stories! She reveals the main secret to the audience in her unique childish way: all horrors live only in our imagination. Masha teaches kids to get rid of any fears by playing and telling her stories.
Spooky Season
Available in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand
These harvest time stories will have you dreaming of pumpkins, hay rides, apple cider and trick-or-treating! The read-a-long books in this collection are: Ghost Afraid of the Dark by Sara Conway & Alex Willmore (Illustrator) / Happy Howl-oween by Janet Lawler, Renee Jablow & Kathryn Selbert (Illustrator) / If You’re Scary and You Know It! by by Carole Gerber & Noel Ill (Illustrator) / Monster Train by Susanna Covelli
The Night Before Halloween
Watch The Night Before Halloween on Kanopy
Available in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand
It’s time for Halloween! Celebrate the holiday with this family fun read-aloud. Little monsters and goofy goblins take center stage in this silly, spooky spin on Clement C. Moore’s beloved poem. But what will happen on Halloween when the monsters come face to face with human trick-or-treaters? Written by Natasha Wing, illustrated by Cynthia Fisher.
On Top of Linguine: An Eye-Popping Parody
Watch On Top of Linguine: An Eye-Popping Parody on Kanopy
Available in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand
A fun and silly story that puts a delightfully monstrous spin on the classic song “On Top of Old Smokey.” Written and illustrated by Brian Briggs.
Mary McScary
Available in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand
From R.L. Stine, author of Goosebumps, and illustrated by Marc Brown, creator of Arthur. Meet Mary McScary. Mary likes to be scary. She scares her mom, her dad, her pets, and even a balloon! But there’s just one person Mary can’t scare — her cousin, Harry McScary. He’s not afraid of the usual things, like spiders, snakes, and other creepy crawlies. But Mary doesn’t give up that easily, and one way or another she’ll find a way to give Harry the scare of his life. . . Beware of Mary McScary!
Blippi’s Spooky Spells Halloween
Watch Blippi’s Spooky Spells Halloween on Kanopy
Available in the US
A book of Spooky Spells helps Blippi celebrate Halloween, as he discovers all the fun of dressing up, eating treats, and carving pumpkins. Blippi visits a seamstress to try on costumes, a bakery to learn about making Halloween treats and he discovers his artistic, festive talent of carving pumpkins.
Promote These Titles
Use the Kanopy Kids marketing toolkit and the Masha and the Bear marketing toolkts on the US Resource Center page, Canadian Resource Center page or the Australian/New Zealand Resource Center page for ready-made social posts, newsletter copy, and graphics that point families to Kanopy Kids. A few ideas to get you started: feature these titles in your October newsletter, add a QR code flyer to your Halloween picture book display, or screen a read-along during a costume storytime.