20+ ideas for using leftover candy for learning

Halloween is just a few days away, which means many homes will soon be inundated with way more candy than any child should actually consume. 🙂

If you are looking for ways to use leftover candy for learning instead of eating, I’ve compiled a list of more than 20 fun and educational ideas below.

I’m talking about using candy to teach colors, build sculptures, learn letters, teach math facts, engage the senses, and much more.

Don’t be surprised if your children find these ideas so enticing they willingly give up a good part of their candy stash to enjoy!

Note: For more kid-friendly Halloween activities, see my Halloween activities for Kids page.

Candy provides opportunities to learn about colors

Use colored candy wrappers to learn about color mixing (from Kids Craft Room)

Play with dissolving colors (from 123 Homeschool 4 Me)

Learn colors by sorting colored candy (from Teach Me Mommy)

Use leftover candy to create sensory rich play opportunities

Make gummy bear slime (from 123 Homeschool 4 Me)

Put together a candy sensory bin (from The Chaos and the Clutter)

Make edible taffy slime (from Schooling a Monkey)

Leftover candy can be used for all sorts of creative play

Set up a candy exploration station (from Gift of Curiosity)

Incorporate candy into your train play (from Play Trains!)

Build a structure using candy and toothpicks (from Lemon Lime Adventures)

Delight the senses with a candy taste test (from Little Bins for Little Hands)

Teach science concepts with candy

Make a colorful rainbow in a jar using lollypops (from STEAM Powered Family)

Make the M of an M&M candy float (from Little Bins for Little Hands)

Harness the power of dissolving science to make an M&M rainbow (from Gift of Curiosity)

Learn about water displacement (from 123 Homeschool 4 Me)

Put together a candy science kit (from Left Brain Craft Brain)

Learn about the science of dissolving (from Lemon Lime Adventures)

Learn about density by making marshmallows sink (from Lemon Lime Adventures)

Use candy to teach math skills

Practice number recognition with candy corn (from Totschooling)

Practice patterns with candy (from Simple Fun for Kids)

Learn letters and numbers while developing fine motor skills (from This Reading Mama)

Use candy to practice addition facts (from I Heart Crafty Things)

Practice graphing skills (from Real Life at Home)

Looking for more Halloween projects that incorporate Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math (STEAM)? Then you’ll love STEAM Kids Halloween. This e-book includes 50+ pages of spooky fun STEAM activities that will wow the boredom right out of kids!

More Halloween resources

More Halloween posts from Gift of Curiosity:

• Grow a candy jack-o-lantern
• Flying teabag ghosts
• Mason jar jack-o-lantern
• Candy experiments
• Halloween Montessori activities
• Toilet paper mummies
• Pumpkin decomposition experiment
• Describe a pumpkin using all five senses
• Jack-o-lantern Printables Pack

You can find more Halloween activities and printables on my Halloween Activities for Kids page and Halloween Activities for Kids Pinterest board.