Halloween Left Right Game Printable: Free Pass-the-Prize Story
Halloween Left Right Game Printable: A Free Pass-the-Prize Story
If you’ve never played a left right game, you’re missing out on the easiest crowd-pleaser in party history. One reader, one story, and a prize that travels around the room every time someone hears the words LEFT or RIGHT. Whoever’s holding it when the story ends wins it. That’s the whole game — and this page is your free printable. Print it, grab a prize, and you’re ready.
The story below is written out in full with all the LEFT and RIGHT cues baked in. I’ve run this exact format at family parties and classroom celebrations, and it lands every time because nobody can tune out — one missed cue and the prize ends up somewhere unexpected.
How to Play the Halloween Left Right Game
You need a group of any size, one prize (a candy bucket, a small gift, a pumpkin stuffed with treats — anything works), and one person with a loud reading voice. Everyone sits in a circle. Hand the prize to any player to start.
- Read the story aloud at a normal pace. Don’t rush — the suspense builds when people can actually follow the plot.
- Every time you hear the word LEFT in capitals, the prize moves one person to the left.
- Every time you hear the word RIGHT in capitals, the prize moves one person to the right.
- When the story ends, whoever is holding the prize keeps it.
Lowercase “left” and “right” inside regular sentences don’t count — only the ones shouted in capitals. I’ll say it once before you start reading so nobody argues mid-game.
The Free Printable Story: “The Night the Ghosts Moved In”
Print this section and hand it to your reader. Everything else on this page is tips — this is the game itself.
On Halloween night, young Maya LEFT her cozy house and turned RIGHT toward the old mansion at the end of the street. She had LEFT her flashlight behind, which wasn’t the smartest move, but she RIGHT away told herself there was nothing to be scared of.
She stepped LEFT around a crooked fence and RIGHT through the rusty gate. A cold wind blew from the LEFT, and a black cat crossed to the RIGHT. Then, just as she reached the porch, a voice from the LEFT whispered, “Who’s there?”
Maya jumped LEFT, dropped her candy bag to the RIGHT, and spun LEFT to face… nobody. But wait — there on the porch rail, RIGHT where she’d LEFT it, sat her candy bag. That was strange. She’d clearly dropped it to the RIGHT.
A little ghost popped up from behind the LEFT railing. “You LEFT your bag,” he giggled, “and I moved it RIGHT here.” He pointed to the RIGHT with one hand and waved LEFT with the other. “I’m Boo! I LEFT my haunted cave because I wanted RIGHT-now friends.”
“RIGHT-now friends?” Maya laughed. “That’s not how it works!”
“Then let’s LEFT this porch and go RIGHT inside,” said Boo. “The party’s already started, and you’re the guest of honor. Well — mostly. I LEFT your seat RIGHT between the vampire and the witch.”
Inside, the music thumped. A skeleton danced LEFT, then RIGHT, then LEFT again. The witch passed out candy to her LEFT and her RIGHT. The vampire offered Maya a juice box — grape, naturally — and she reached LEFT to take it, then thought better and grabbed a cookie with her RIGHT hand instead.
“Let’s play,” cried Boo. “Everyone stand in a circle! When I say LEFT, pass the treat bag to your LEFT. When I say RIGHT, pass it to your RIGHT!”
The bag zipped LEFT, LEFT, LEFT — then RIGHT, then RIGHT again. It flew LEFT across the room and bounced RIGHT into Maya’s lap. She LEFT a trail of giggles everywhere she went. By the time the clock struck midnight, the treats had traveled LEFT and RIGHT so many times that nobody knew whose turn it was.
Boo floated RIGHT up to Maya and whispered, “The person LEFT holding the bag at the very end keeps every last treat inside it.”
So the ghost counted down — “Three… two… one…” — and the bag stopped RIGHT where it was. Maya looked LEFT, then RIGHT. The treat bag sat RIGHT in front of the luckiest guest of the night — the one holding it LEFT at the very end.
And they all agreed: it was the best Halloween party anyone had ever been to. The end.
Reading tip: pause for one beat on each LEFT and RIGHT so the passing stays orderly. If the group is big, assign the prize-passing to the players, not the reader — otherwise the reader ends up wrestling the bag instead of reading.
Prize Ideas for Every Budget
- The candy bucket: fill a mini pumpkin pail with wrapped candy. The classic. Costs almost nothing, thrills everyone.
- The mystery prize: wrap something in layers of newspaper. It passes better when it’s light and lumpy.
- The gift card trick: for adult parties, pass an envelope with a coffee-shop gift card inside. Suddenly everyone listens very carefully.
- The gag prize: a plastic spider, a whoopee cushion, a fake severed hand. The worse the prize, the bigger the laughs.
- The classroom move: the prize is a “homework pass” or “line leader for a day” coupon. Zero cost, maximum motivation.
Three Ways to Play It
1. Kids’ party (ages 5–10)
Keep the circle small (8–12 players), use a light prize, and let the reader go slow. Kids this age will argue about whether something “counted” — settle it fast and keep reading. My rule: the reader’s call is final, no appeals.
2. Adult party
Use two prizes going in opposite directions for double chaos. Add a “trick round”: the reader throws in a LEFT when nobody expects it. Adults get surprisingly competitive about a five-dollar candle.
3. Office party
Play it during the potluck, not after — people are relaxed and nobody’s left out. The prize can be an extra-long lunch pass or first pick of the leftover desserts. Keep the story as written; it works for grown-ups too.
Printing This Page
This whole page prints cleanly from your browser (Ctrl+P or Cmd+P). If you only want the story, print pages covering the story section and skip the tips. Cardstock makes it sturdier if your reader likes dramatic gestures — and trust me, readers get dramatic.
Want the Designed Left Right Game Pack?
Everything above is free to print straight from this page — the full story, the rules, the variations. If you’d rather have the polished version, our Halloween Left Right Game Pack on Etsy includes the story in a professionally designed printable layout with matching instruction cards, multiple story options, and a decorated “reader script” page — all ready to print and party with zero prep. Happy haunting!
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