Halloween is the best “in-school” holiday – even for older students! As a middle school teacher, I can tell you that Halloween classroom activities are an easy win for student engagement. I try to make the most of the season by incorporating as many Halloween themes as possible into our reading and writing lessons during October.
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A couple of years ago, I did a pumpkin activity during our Wonder novel study. I carved one at home for fun, but for class, you can avoid the mess by printing a pumpkin picture or grabbing mini-pumpkins and having students decorate them with Sharpies.
If you are looking for some new ideas to try in your classroom, I’ve got you covered! See below for a handful of reading resources and Halloween activities I have used with my middle school students over the years.
Read Aloud Idea:
My favorite book for October is The Best Halloween Ever. It is a realistic fiction novel about a group of students who attend Woodrow Wilson School. Because of some bad choices by the Herdman kids, the mayor cancels Halloween festivities for the whole town. The school decides to hold an alternative event, which leads to more potential mischief. Your students will love reading about how the plot unfolds 😉
I love this book so much that I created a novel unit for my students. Depending on your students’ reading levels, it is a good fit for 4th–6th graders. The book is just over 100 pages with 13 chapters, so it is well formatted for reading aloud over several days. Click the image below if you are interested in the lesson plans for your classroom.
Outdoor Recess Idea:
For outdoor fun, take the class outside for an awesome game of “PumKickball!” Clever, huh?! I found these adorable kickballs at Five Below. I didn’t see any on Amazon at the time of posting this, but they do have orange playground balls you can have the kids decorate with Sharpies.
My students always love a friendly class competition while burning off some excess energy. Play at recess, take students out for your classroom party, or use the game as an incentive for awesome work ethic or behavior during this last week of the month. Energy burning is the gift that keeps on giving, especially during this sugar-filled time of year, as you know!
Classroom Party Game Idea:
Looking for an engaging classroom game for your Halloween party? Some of you have read my post about the Saran Wrap Ball game, and it is a slam dunk for any holiday party. All you need is a couple of bags of candy and a roll of plastic wrap to get started!
Halloween Reading Activity:
As an ELA teacher, I love to use reader’s theater scripts during holiday periods. I created this Halloween Reader’s Theater and Reading Literature Toolkit from a collection of stories that were brewing in my head. Your students will love reading about how the students at Parkersburg Elementary convinced the principal to reconsider canceling the Halloween celebrations by proposing new, thoughtful traditions. You can check out this reading literature resource by clicking on the image below.
Fall Close Reading Passages
Short on time? Grab my Pumpkin Harvesting Informational Text FREEBIE! This close reading selection includes context-clue word work and reader-response questions that your students will love to work on independently, in small groups, for homework, or in a literacy center.
I look forward to seeing your Halloween classroom ideas on social media! If you are interested, I also have a full posting of my October ELA favorites here if you need more ideas. In the meantime, Happy Fall, Happy October, and most importantly, Happy Halloween!
