For a Halloween alternative to carving a face into your pumpkin, have your kids, as long as they are old enough, or you, punch holes into it, spelling out a spooky message!

Some shorter Halloween words that you could use are: boo, spooky, bat, cat, ghost, scary, etc.

What you need:

- pumpkins, enough for the word you are spelling, and any punctuation
- apple corers
- possibly a rubber mallet, if the pumpkin is thick
- washable marker
- some form of illumination

For this easy and fun family activity from Better Homes and Gardens, all you need to do is hollow out the pumpkins, draw the letters on with washable marker, and then use an apple corer to punch out holes along the guidelines of the letter.

Tip: For thick pumpkins, you will need to use a rubber mallet to help break through the thicker walls.

This simple family activity will look as if it took hours, impressing your neighbours and trick-or-treaters!