The Halloween season is almost here, and if you are looking for a few free printable lesson plans to share with your middle school classroom then you are in the right place! Fall is my favorite season and I have created several thematic resources you can utilize for reading and language arts instruction. This post features my free Halloween printables, but you can also check out my list catalog of October ELA favorites here.
The first, Pumpkin Harvesting, is an informational close reading text with word work and reader response questions. I utilize close reading passages with students that are struggling with comprehension. These worksheets are great for those who are having challenges going back into a reading selection to cite evidence to determine correct responses. While we work on these skills throughout the year, I am always in need of high-interest passages that I can use for whole class, small group, or independent practice.
This Pumpkin Harvesting Close Reading FREEBIE will help your students:
- better understand/reinforce CLOSE READING strategies
- identify how to harvest pumpkins
- determine the meaning of unknown words using context clues
- cite evidence from the one-page text to support responses.
Click the image to grab free printable #1:
One activity my family enjoys each year is our trip to the local fall festival, which is called the Harvest Moon Festival. The festival is held at one of our favorite family parks and it has fun for everyone. We paint pumpkins and trick-or-treat bags, watch puppet shows, make S’mores, and eat way too much Kettle corn!
Rather than just wonder about why it is called the Harvest Moon Festival, I decided to do a little research about it this year. As a reading teacher, I chose to turn the fun of this festival and my research into a reader’s theater FREEBIE. I wanted to share a little bit about its meaning as well as create a resource that an upper elementary or middle school teacher can utilize as a Daily 5 resource.
I love utilizing reader’s theater scripts in my classroom to excite my students about different topics. They are also the perfect tool to enhance fluency and comprehension. My students LOVE to take on the roles of the different characters, and the practice they get at reading aloud is an important of our language arts goals.
This 9-page resource allows for students to engage in a high-interest passage while they: read to someone, listen to reading, focus on word work, and read to self. The worksheets at the end give teachers the opportunity to check for reading comprehension and journal writing abilities.
This Harvest Moon FREEBIE includes:
- clear directions for seamless implementation
- aligned to common core standards
- 2-page, 6-character script so multiple groups can perform
- context clue word work
- reader response questions
- post-reading journal prompt to enhance student writing
Click the image to grab free printable #2
Finally, I have a free fable-based close reading passage that aligns well with the Halloween season. While the tale itself is not based around trick or treat, it does include a lesson on how costumes can conceal one’s true motive.
This October close reading passage includes:
- The Hen and the Wolf: Fable (780L)
- Reading comprehension questions and journal prompt
- Answer Key
- Estimated Lexile Measure: 690-1300L
Click the image to grab free printable #3
Use these tools in collaboration with one another to enhance student work with fictional and informational text.
For more ELA October ideas, check out this post and these Halloween classroom ideas for middle grades.
