The Dancing Ghost {Halloween STEAM activity for kids}

This dancing ghost Halloween STEAM activity is so simple but very effective.

I used this activity for a homeschool Halloween STEAM class I taught last year. I mean, who doesn’t like the challenge of making a ghost dance using nothing but a bit of static electricity?!? All you need are a few simple materials.

And while it may look like magic, it’s really just science. (But shh. . . don’t tell the kids!)

(STEAM, for the uninitiated, stands for science, technology, engineering, art, and math. And now you know!)

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

To make a dancing ghost, you will need the following supplies:

• Tissue paper
• Scissors
• Latex balloon
• Optional: Black marker

Start by cutting your tissue paper into the shape of a ghost. Our ghost was about 6″ (15 cm) tall, but feel free to experiment with larger and smaller sizes to see how they work.

If you like, you can use a marker to add a face to your ghost.

Next, blow up a balloon and rub it on the nearest head of hair or rug you can find in order to give it a static charge.

Then hold the balloon over your ghost to make it dance! Check out this video to see how it works!

Super cool, am I right?!?

What’s the science behind the dancing ghost?

When a latex balloon is rubbed against human hair or even a carpet, electrons are transferred from the hair or carpet to the latex balloon. This results in the balloon having a net negative charge.

When the balloon is then brought close to the tissue paper, which has a net neutral charge, the negatively charged balloon pulls the positively charged protons in the paper toward it. This creates an attractive force, allowing you to lift the ghost with a touch of the balloon and make it dance.

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.