Make an adorable pumpkin paper bag craft inspired by Spookley! Free template included — perfect as a kids’ fall craft or Halloween treat bag.
If your little ones are obsessed with Spookley the Square Pumpkin, this paper bag pumpkin craft is the perfect way to bring the story to life! It’s a fun fall activity for preschool, kindergarten, elementary school, homeschool, or the classroom — and it doubles as an adorable treat bag for Halloween night. Before you pull out the supplies, snuggle up and read the story together, then let the crafting begin. Afterward, pop in the movie and make it a full Spookley day!
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Kids will love decorating their very own pumpkin and giving it a personality all its own. They can draw their own face, pick their favorite colors, and arrange the pieces however they like — so every pumpkin turns out a little different, just like Spookly! And if you want yours to look extra square like the star of the story, you can trim the top of the paper bag to give it that fun, blocky shape.
We made this one together on a fall afternoon, and my kids had so much fun making their own square pumpkin character.
Why You’ll Love This Pumpkin Paper Bag Craft with Template
- Inspired by the beloved book Spookley the Square Pumpkin, making it a perfect companion craft for story time!
- Kids can draw their own face or use the free printable template — either way, every pumpkin turns out one-of-a-kind!
- It doubles as a cute treat bag, so it’s just as fun to fill up as it is to make!
- Simple enough for preschool and kindergarten, but fun for elementary and homeschool kids too!
Learning Benefits
- Fine motor skills — cutting, gluing, and assembling small paper pieces strengthens hand muscles and builds dexterity little ones need for writing
- Creativity and self-expression — choosing colors, drawing their own pumpkin face, and arranging the pieces their own way encourages kids to make something uniquely theirs
- Following multi-step directions — working through each step in order helps build focus, sequencing skills, and the confidence that comes from finishing a project
- Color and shape recognition — identifying and working with shapes like squares and rectangles
- Storytelling and imaginative play — once finished, the pumpkin bag doubles as a treat bag or puppet, sparking pretend play and connection to a beloved book like Spookly the Square Pumpkin
Extend the Learning: Fall Pumpkins
This pumpkin craft pairs beautifully with a whole fall learning unit! If your kids are excited about pumpkins, keep the fun going with Pumpkin Patch Counting: Free Printable Math Activity, which turns their love of pumpkins into hands-on number practice, or dive even deeper with Learning about What’s Inside a Pumpkin Paper Plate Kids Craft for a sweet science exploration. You can also round out the season with Fall Science Experiments for Kids to add some wow-worthy discovery to your fall days. Together, these activities make pumpkin season feel like one big, joyful learning adventure!
Pumpkin Paper Bag Craft
At a Glance
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Best for ages: Ages 4-8
- Difficulty: Easy
- Skills practiced: cutting, gluing, fine motor, creativity
Supplies
- Brown paper bag (lunch size)
- Orange, black, brown, green paper
- Glue or gluestick
- Scissors
- Black, white, orange, green marker
- Free printable template (available at the end of this post)
- Optional:
- Googly eyes
- Green ribbon (for curly tendrils)
How to Make a Pumpkin Paper Bag Craft
Printable directions are available at the end of this post.
Gather Your Supplies — Before you get started, pull together everything you’ll need: a brown paper bag, orange construction paper, black and brown construction paper or cardboard scraps for the face pieces and stem, green paper for the leaf, green curly ribbon for the tendrils, googly eyes, markers (including black, white, and orange), scissors, and an Elmer’s glue stick. If you’d like, you can grab the free printable template at the bottom of this post to help cut out the stem, leaf, and face shapes!
Prep the Bag — If your paper bag looks more like a rectangle than a square, you can trim the top edge down to make it squarer — this gives it that fun Spookly-inspired look! Then cut a piece of orange construction paper the same size as the front of the bag and glue it right onto the front of the bag.
Decorate the Orange Pumpkin— Now for the fun part — give your pumpkin some texture! Use black and white markers to draw lines and details across the orange paper to make it look like a real pumpkin. We added curved lines going down like the ribs on a pumpkin, but kids can make their marks however they like.
Cut Out the Face Pieces — Using the free printable template (or freehanding it — both work great!), cut out the eyebrow strips, a big smiling mouth shape, and a small lip piece from your construction paper or cardboard scraps. We used tan for the eyebrows, dark gray for the mouth, and red for the lip, but kids can pick whatever colors they love.
Make the Green Top — Cut out a leaf shape from green paper using the template, then cut several pieces of green curly ribbon for the tendrils. To curl the ribbon, just run it along the edge of your scissors. Cut a stem shape from brown paper or cardboard as well. These three pieces will make up the top of your pumpkin!
Put It All Together — Now it’s time to bring your pumpkin to life! Glue the face pieces — eyebrows, mouth, and lip — onto the orange panel on the front of the bag. Add the googly eyes, then glue the stem, leaf, and curly ribbon tendrils to the top of the bag. We arranged our leaf to one side and let the tendrils curl out around it, but there’s no wrong way to put it together. Move things around until it looks just right to you — every pumpkin turns out a little different, and that’s what makes each one so special. Have fun!
Try These Fun Variations
- Use a white paper bag instead of brown, and have kids paint it orange before adding the face pieces — it makes a great rainy-day activity and turns the craft into a two-day project little ones will be excited to come back to!
- Instead of drawing on the pumpkin lines, let kids use a black crayon or marker to add their own texture details — wavy lines, zigzags, or dots all look adorable and make each pumpkin feel totally one of a kind.
- Turn it into a Halloween treat bag by leaving the top of the bag open and skipping the stem and leaf — just fold the top edge down a couple of times to make a neat cuff, and kids can fill it with candy or small goodies to share at a classroom party.
- Let older kids in elementary school design their own pumpkin face from scratch instead of using the template — they can cut their own shapes for eyes, a nose, and mouth, and create a funny, spooky, or silly expression that’s all their own!
More Fall and Halloween Crafts for Kids
Keep the seasonal fun going with these pumpkin, Halloween, and autumn activities your kids will love!
- Lil’ Pumpkin Handprint Craft
- Pumpkin Patch Counting: Free Printable Math Activity
- Owl Paper Bag Craft
- Hocus Pocus Craft Idea: Sanderson Sisters With FREE Template
- Pumpkin Patch Dramatic Play: FREE Printable FUN For Fall Or Halloween
- 25+ The BEST Pumpkin Crafts for Kids for Fall and Halloween
- Fall Fun Playdough Mat Set: Printable Kids Activity
This craft is great for kids ages 4 and up! Younger kids will need a little help with the cutting and gluing, while older kids can tackle most of it on their own. It’s a wonderful activity for preschool, kindergarten, and elementary school — and it’s a favorite for homeschool days too.
It’s pretty low-mess, which is one of the things we love about it! The glue stick keeps things tidy, and there’s no paint involved. Just have a flat surface ready and you’re good to go.
The free printable template is there to make things easy — it includes the leaf, stem, and face pieces so you don’t have to draw them from scratch. That said, kids are absolutely welcome to draw their own pumpkin face if they’d like to put their own spin on it. There’s no wrong way to make it!
Yes! That’s one of the best parts about using a paper bag as the base. Leave the bag open at the top and it doubles as an adorable Halloween treat bag. It’s perfect for a class party or trick-or-treating around the neighborhood.
You can open the paper bag and stand it up on a shelf, mantel, or a classroom windowsill for a fun fall decoration. If you used it as a treat bag, it looks super cute sitting out filled with a little candy or small toys. Either way, it makes a sweet keepsake to take home!
Print the Directions
How to make a Pumpkin Paper Bag Craft with Free Template (Inspired by Spookley!)
Materials
- Brown paper bag (lunch size)
- Orange, black, brown, green paper
- Glue or gluestick
- Scissors
- Black, white, orange, green marker
- Free printable template
- Optional: Googly eyes, Green ribbon
Instructions
- Gather Your Supplies — Before you get started, pull together everything you'll need: a brown paper bag, orange construction paper, black and brown construction paper or cardboard scraps for the face pieces and stem, green paper for the leaf, green curly ribbon for the tendrils, googly eyes, markers (including black, white, and orange), scissors, and a glue stick. If you'd like, you can grab the free printable template at the bottom of this post to help cut out the stem, leaf, and face shapes!Prep the Bag — If your paper bag looks more like a rectangle than a square, you can trim the top edge down to make it squarer — this gives it that fun Spookely-inspired look! Then cut a piece of orange construction paper the same size as the front of the bag and glue it right onto the front of the bag.Decorate the Orange Pumpkin— Now for the fun part — give your pumpkin some texture! Use black and white markers to draw lines and details across the orange paper to make it look like a real pumpkin. We added curved lines going down like the ribs on a pumpkin, but kids can make their marks however they like.Cut Out the Face Pieces — Using the free printable template (or free handing it — both work great!), cut out the eyebrow strips, a big smiling mouth shape, and a small lip piece from your construction paper or cardboard scraps. We used tan for the eyebrows, dark gray for the mouth, and red for the lip, but kids can pick whatever colors they love.Make the Green Top — Cut out a leaf shape from green paper using the template, then cut several pieces of green curly ribbon for the tendrils. To curl the ribbon, just run it along the edge of your scissors. Cut a stem shape from brown paper or cardboard as well. These three pieces will make up the top of your pumpkin!Put It All Together — Now it's time to bring your pumpkin to life! Glue the face pieces — eyebrows, mouth, and lip — onto the orange panel on the front of the bag. Add the googly eyes, then glue the stem, leaf, and curly ribbon tendrils to the top of the bag. We arranged our leaf to one side and let the tendrils curl out around it, but there's no wrong way to put it together. Move things around until it looks just right to you — every pumpkin turns out a little different, and that's what makes each one so special. Have fun!
Download the Template