Ms. Rachel is a popular Halloween costume — and the YouTube star is thrilled to hear it.
“It’s absolutely precious! I think it is the sweetest thing! I love seeing tiny teachers!” Ms. Rachel, whose real name is Rachel Griffin Accurso, tells TODAY.com. “I hope I run into a ‘Ms. Rachel’ trick-or-treater on Halloween. I would love to meet them and sing a song together.”
The former preschool teacher runs the “Songs for Littles” YouTube account with more than 6.5 million subscribers. Through catchy songs and her gentle demeanor, Ms. Rachel teaches the basics of speech, ABCs, colors and numbers, working with husband Aron Accurso, a Broadway composer nicknamed “Mr. Aron."
Ms. Rachel is tickled to see families trick-or-treating in her signature pair of overalls, a pink T-shirt and a matching headband, but it's a humbling thrill.
"I don’t think I really comprehend it," she says.
This year, Virginia mom Claire Ashley is dressing as Ms. Rachel on Halloween to entertain her 2-year-old son, who is a fan.
“We love Ms. Rachel because she makes learning so comfortable and fun,” Ashley, who asked that TODAY.com not publish her last name to protect her family's privacy, tells TODAY.com. “My son has become more expressive since watching her show, picking up new words and talking with curiosity and excitement.
"I can tell that Ms. Rachel pours her heart into her videos and my son mirrors that passion and excitement," she says.
Last year, South Carolina mom Hilary Rose Bodiford's entire family channeled Ms. Rachel with a group costume: While she played the YouTube star, her husband portrayed Ms. Rachel's spouse Aron, wearing his trademark jeans, blue shirt and hooded sweatshirt.
The couple's son Bear, then 11 months old, was an elephant, a nod to Aron's song, "If You Should See an Elephant."
"We watch Ms. Rachel because she's interactive, intentional and engaging," Bodiford tells TODAY.com. "As a parent, you don't want your child to have mindless screen time but you also need breaks. Ms. Rachel is the kind of person you want your kid to absorb."
Another family depicted their "real-life heroes" Ms. Rachel and her co-star Jules Hoffman on Halloween in 2022.
Little kids even wear Ms. Rachel Halloween costumes.
One mom went above and beyond, not only dressing her daughter in Ms. Rachel classic uniform, but encasing her in a makeshift television that played “Songs for Littles."
These mommy-and-me Ms. Rachel costumes also stood out one Halloween.
As the text on her video says, "Ms. Rachel is life."