Everyone loves to gather around and hear a classic ghost story at Halloween. Telling a ghost story can be a great way to liven up Halloween parties for kids; it gets them settled down instead of running all over the place.
One way to add to the fun is to say you're telling a true ghost story, either from long ago or from the recent past. If you've got good storytelling skills, a "real" ghost story about the place where you're all gathered can be very effective. Kids also love to hear the classics; as long as you know the basic plot, you can embellish with your own scary details.
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
This classic ghost story by Washington Irving is set in the odd little town of Sleepy Hollow. It is rumored that Sleepy Hollow is haunted; the town's people always claim to see strange things in the woods. The most popular story around town is about the enchanted valley and the Headless Horseman that rides through it.
Local schoolteacher Ichabod Crane makes the mistake of falling in love with Katrina Van Tassel. Van Tassel is interested in Ichabod, but she has also caught the attention of the local bully, Brom Bones. Brom is not happy that a weakling like Ichabod is moving in on his woman, so Brom begins to play jokes on Ichabod. The pranks are mostly harmless, but they do try to make Ichabod look foolish to Katrina.
Ichabod accepts an invitation to a party at the Van Tassel's and spends the evening in the company of the lovely Katrina while Brom seethes in the corner. Ichabod leaves the party late. On the ride home, he begins to get spooked. He must pass by the spot where the Headless Horseman has been spotted.
As he passes the spot, a ghostly horse and rider appear and pursue him. They race through the night; the horseman gets very close to Ichabod and throws-his head at him! Ichabod falls off his horse. The next morning nothing is found but a riderless horse and a smashed pumpkin. Ichabod is never seen again. Was it Brom Bones who chased Ichabod, or was he taken by the spirit of the Headless Horseman?
Arabella
A young girl named Lucy receives a beautiful doll named Arabella from a far-off relative. Lucy does not like the doll because it gives her the creeps. Even though Lucy knows it is just a doll, she begins to suspect the doll wishes her harm. She hides the doll away in a cupboard. Every night she hears a voice and footsteps. It is the doll. Each night it is slowly creeping up a step, getting closer and closer to her room. Lucy is terrified! Finally, one morning her parents find poor Lucy dead at the bottom of the steps, the doll smiling by her side.
The Golden Hand
In the Golden Hand a young man covets his neighbor's golden hand. He woos the fair maiden until she marries him. After she marries him, he finds a way to secretly poison her daily cup of tea. The poor woman dies shortly thereafter and is buried, minus her golden hand.
The young man goes to bed the night of the funeral, with his murdered wife's golden hand under his pillow. In the middle of the night, ghostly noises and strange lights awake him. A voice calls out, "Where is my golden hand?" "Give me my golden hand!" The golden hand under his pillow twitches to life, as the spectre of his dead wife swoops down on him.
The next morning, when the housemaid enters the bedroom with her master's morning cup of tea, she finds him lying dead on the floor, with the golden hand clutched around his throat.
You can find more classic scary stories at your local library or by looking online. Remember that you don't need to follow the story to the letter. Memorize the basic plot, or write it down, and add your own haunted details to make it come alive.
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