Not a room – a tomb! Not the moon – a goon! This parody of Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown will have your child shivering, laughing, and all the things in between. Take a peek inside one of the most fun spooky stories for toddlers, Goodnight Goon by Michael Rex. Your child will have a blast saying “goodnight” to the goon and everything else in the tomb. A little bit of spooky, a little bit of chaos, and a little bit of fun makes the best combination for your new favorite book and the foundation of My Book Bud.
In this post, you’ll find four literacy activities related to one of the best spooky stories for toddlers, Goodnight Goon by Michael Rex. These activities were specifically designed to be age appropriate and spark conversations that go beyond just the words on the pages of the book. You and your child will infer, form opinions, make observations, and say “goodnight.” So, go on, there are spooks and goofs waiting for you in that book!
Table of Contents
Goodnight Goon
Author and Illustrator: Michael Rex
Published by G. P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, 2008
Summary: Creak… drip… squeak… something spooky is stirring before bedtime! In this cheeky parody, you’ll tiptoe through a haunted house filled with mischievous monsters, glowing pumpkins, and things that go bump in the night. Just spooky enough to make kids giggle (not shiver!), this silly bedtime romp turns nighttime frights into delightful fun.
Skills to Tackle with Spooky Stories for Toddlers: Goodnight Goon
Inference: Best for ages 4-7
An inference is made when a reader combines their own background knowledge with evidence from the text to uncover something that is not directly stated by the author. The author doesn’t have to come out and directly tell you the information, you make an inference based on the information in front of you and what you already know. We do this all of the time in our everyday lives, making it a very valuable skill to practice while reading.
For Example:
- Your dog might be standing by his dog bowl and whining. You can make the inference that he is hungry and wants to eat. Nobody had to tell you this, you just combined the evidence of your dog sitting near his bowl and crying with your previous knowledge of his normal dinner time to make the inference.
You and your child can do the same with one of the best spooky stories for toddlers, Goodnight Goon, by making inferences about the goon and his thoughts and feelings about living in the eerie tomb.
Example Conversation:
- Parent: That is one cheeky goon! How do you think he feels about living in that spooky tomb?
- Child: I think he likes it!
- Parent: Me too, but how can you tell?
- This question is really important because it will help support the inference that the goon likes the tomb.
- Child: Well, he was smiling for most of the book! And there were even sometimes where he was sticking his tongue out.
- Parent: Oh, interesting! And when people smile and stick their tongues out, what do you think that means?
- A question like this is great because it helps to activate their background knowledge.
- Child: When people smile it usually means they are happy. And when people stick their tongues out like the goon, it usually means they are having fun. He looks like he is being a little naughty when he is sticking his tongue out which is a little silly.
- Parent: What do you think his favorite part of the tomb was?
- Child: I think he liked riding on the ghost best because he looks so excited with his tongue out and is waving a hat in the air like “giddy up, ghost!”
- Parent: Was there ever a time the goon didn’t seem so happy in his tomb?
- Child: Yeah, when the little boy was telling him he had to go to bed.
- Parent: How could you tell he was unhappy?
- Child: Well, he was frowning and hunched over. When I hunch over and frown, it might be because I feel like I’m getting in trouble.
When making inferences about how a character feels, your child should use the illustrations and their own background knowledge. The illustrations along with the text will provide them with some context as to how the character is feeling. Combine that with what they already know about emotions and they will be able to make a well thought out inference. If this is challenging for your child, make the inference for them and work backwards.
That can look something like this:
- Parent: Wow, that goon sure looks happy to live in that tomb! How can you tell?
Extend the conversation by asking your child how they feel about living in their own home? This is a great opportunity to have an open and honest conversation with your child about how they’re feeling. Let them know that they are in a safe space and you can talk through anything they tell you.
Example Conversation:
- Parent: The goon loved his tomb which is kind of like his home. How do you feel about your home?
- Child: I feel safe at home!
- Parent: Me too! What is something that makes you feel safe about being at home?
- Child: I love it when we all sit down to eat dinner together and talk about our days.
- Parent: Are there ever any times when you don’t feel happy in your home?
- This is a very sensitive topic to broach with kids, but you want them to be honest here, so be open to hearing some things that might be hurtful to you. It will help them talk out their feelings in a safe space with you.
- Child: I don’t like saying goodnight. I sometimes feel scared and alone.
It might break your heart to hear this, but what a wonderful way to open a conversation with your child about ways to make them feel less scared at night. Spooky stories for toddlers like this one have so much to offer! Don’t be afraid to dive into it and get talking!
Opinion: Best for ages 3-7
If your kids are anything like mine, they have very strong opinions on…well, everything! Opinions are your own personal thoughts and feelings on a specific topic. Everyone can have a different opinion on something, which makes having them so wonderful.
Opinions should always be respected and never shamed or put down because they are different from yours or someone else’s. Being able to have an opinion and explain why you feel that way is an unbelievable skill to have and one you should certainly encourage your child to work on. Make sure they understand and respect others opinions around them as well.
Opinions in Goodnight Goon:
This book is intended to have “spooky” elements in it: a goon, a cold gray tomb, bats, a dracula, a werewolf, etc. But, it also had some silly elements to it as well. You and your child can talk about which parts they think are “spooky” vs. silly. To really round out the activity, you should give your opinion as well. Your child will get to see that different people have different opinions and both are ok! Your child will start to understand that one opinion isn’t better than the other and that having different viewpoints on things is great because you can explain to someone else why you think the way you do without putting someone else down.
It always cracks me up at how different my kids are, even at such a young age. My middle child loves spooky stuff and is constantly talking about ghosts, spiders, and “spooky houses.” Goodnight Goon was her favorite book for the longest time! My oldest will have nothing to do with it. She will read “spooky” books with us, but that is as far as it goes with her. I’m more like my oldest. I want to like spooky stuff, but I am a scaredy cat! Using spooky stories for toddlers to form opinions is such a great way to start a conversation about a tough topic in a fun way.
I bet you and your child will have different opinions on if Goodnight Goon is spooky or not. Some of it is definitely intended to be spooky and some is intended to be silly. You and your child can each make a list (one for them and one for you) and then you can compare which spooky and silly things you agreed on and which you disagreed on.
Example List:
| Spooky | Silly |
| *Black lagoon *A set of jaws *Skull | *Mummies rubbing their tummies *Screechy bat (smiling) *Smiling goon – biting the martian picture |
If your child is too young to write, you can write their list for them, or try printing out or drawing some of the items from the book to cut and paste into the list. Your child might surprise you with their answers and you’ll have the best time learning a little bit more about what they think is scary and what they think is silly.
To level the activity up, have them pick one or two things on each side of their list and explain to you why they think it is spooky or silly. This will help deepen their understanding of what it means to have an opinion by providing meaningful context.
You can apply an activity like this to anything. It’s a great thing to do at dinner. You can go around the table and each give an opinion on the dinner itself, something that happened about your day, or something you read or watched together! It is a great way to bond as a family. Spooky stories for toddlers can really help open the door to conversation with your kiddos!
Observation: Best for ages 2-6
Do you remember Where’s Waldo from when you were younger?? I used to love “search and find” books where you had a very specific thing or person you needed to find. It felt like a little mission. I would spend hours staring at books like that until I found the right items.
Although Goodnight Goon isn’t a traditional “search and find book,” there are so many things, both spooky and not spooky, to discover in this book. You and your child can treat this book as if it were a “search and find.” The illustrations are so wonderful and full of life in this book. There are so many things to discover that are not directly tied to the text itself, so your child can use their observation skills to search through the pages to find an item you’ve described.
Observation skills are the ability to carefully notice what is happening around you using your senses. In one of the silliest spooky stories for toddlers, Goodnight Goon, your child will be using the sense of sight to look through all of the items in the book to discover what they are looking for. Observation skills will help your child develop their attention and focus, language development, and early critical thinking skills.
Example Conversation:
- Parent: There is so much going on in the cold gray tomb! Let’s look at the first page together. What is something that stands out to you on this page?
- First give your child the opportunity to just look and notice. This is a great first step into being observant.
- Child: Eek! I see a big red spider in the corner.
- Parent: Oh, yeah! Me too! I also noticed something that has black wings and is hanging upside down? Can you find it?
- Give your child a clue. Describe something that you see and notice on the page that might not stand out immediately.
- Child: Oh! I see a bat hanging on the window!
- Parent: I noticed something silver and sharp in this picture. Can you find it?
- Child: I see an axe leaning against the fireplace!
- Parent: I see a long, gray, slithering creature. Can you find it?
- Child: Yes! I see a snake under the table.
This is a fun little game to play with your child to get them to interact with the text in a different way. You are going beyond just the words on the page here, and asking them to look at things just a bit differently. This activity will help them to notice something maybe they didn’t notice the first few times you read it.
This activity can be adapted in several different ways. Simply look through the pages and ask them to point out what they notice.
Give them a specific item to look for and find:
- A bat
- An axe
- A snake
Provide them with descriptive clues and see if they can identify the item based on your description. Provide them with more clues if they can’t find the item. You can do this with one page or make it more challenging and tell them to look through the whole book to identify the option.
Have them provide the clues for you. This option is so wonderful because it will push them to use rich describing words to help you identify the item. Even if you know it, you could ask them some leading questions that will help them describe the item in even more detail:
- What color is it?
- Is it a specific shape?
- What is around it?
- Is it big or little?
- Is it spooky or silly?
Try applying this activity with other books! You’ll never get bored as it will change every time. Being observant will ultimately help your child in so many different areas. You’ll watch their confidence soar right before your eyes! Using spooky stories for toddlers like Goodnight Goon that have so much rich detail, is a great way for your child to put on their “observer” glasses and get noticing!
Free Printable!
Use your observation skills to spot the difference between these two photos! *Hint there are 10 differences…circle the differences in the first photo when you find them!
Expansion Activity: Best for ages 2-5
Goodnight tomb! The little monster in this book is saying goodnight to all of the things in the cold gray tomb. You and your child can practice saying goodnight to some of the items in their own room. Doing this makes their room feel comfortable, safe, and full of love. Some spooky stories for toddlers like this one can have fun ideas to use in real life like this activity that helps make saying goodnight a little easier and more fun.
Example Conversation:
- Parent: That little monster must really love all of the things in his room. He said goodnight to so many things before he went to sleep. How about we pick five things to say goodnight to tonight?
- Putting a limit on how many things your child can say goodnight to is a good idea, otherwise you will be in there all night saying goodnight. If I don’t set a limit like this with my own kiddos, they take full advantage!
- Child: Ok! The first thing I want to say goodnight to is my stuffy. Goodnight stuffy.
Other Potential Items:
- Nightlight
- Blanket/pillows
- Clock
- Sound machine
- Poster/wall decal
Extend the conversation by getting your child to describe the item in detail. For example, my girls both have a stuffed rabbit named Fluffy, yes, they are both named Fluffy, and they refuse to sleep without it. So instead of saying, “Goodnight Fluffy,” they could say, “Goodnight little brown bunny with the long floppy ears and cute pink nose.”
You could even make a little game out of it. Each of you could say goodnight to something in the room by describing it in detail and the other person has to guess what it is you’re saying goodnight to. The next night, pick five more items to say goodnight to in the room.
Bedtime is already a tricky time of day in my house. My two oldest kids share a room and neither of them like saying goodbye at the end of the night. Doing an activity like this helps to remind them that they are in a safe space even when I am not there with them. When we do an activity like this, I always find space to be silly.
I have found that laughing right before bedtime actually helps to calm their nervous system down. I know it sounds counterintuitive and that laughing would make them more hyper, but for my own kids, it actually helps to calm them down. So I might say something like, “Goodnight stinky socks in the laundry!” This is a sure fire way to get them giggling, feeling connected to me right before bed, and a bit calmer before we have to say goodbye.
This small little activity may add a few extra minutes onto your nighttime routine with your kids, but I can guarantee, it will help make things go a bit smoother. Try taking some of the stress out of bedtime and simply say goodnight to your room! Goofy spooky stories for toddlers such as Goodnight Goon, can give you some great ideas to connect with your kiddos.
To Wrap Things Up:
You made it through the tomb unscathed! Well done! I know you and your child will love getting in the spooky season spirit with one of the most beloved spooky stories for toddlers, Goodnight Goon. But, keep your wits about! You never know what might be lurking behind the next corner!
Join and connect! Learn how to “water” your growing book bud with connection. For tips and ideas sent straight to your inbox, just add your email below.