Free Halloween Lessons and Activities for the Classroom

Are you on the hunt for some fun (and free) Halloween activities? If so, then you're in the right place! 

I'm sharing 3 of my favorite Halloween-themed lessons that will have students writing, reading, and analyzing poetry! That's right! Who says that a holiday-themed lesson can't be rigorous AND engaging? Not me! I love lessons that pack an academic punch and these freebies do just that!

Capitalize on students' natural love for Halloween with this fun creative writing activity! The writing activity begins when students roll story element dice (setting, character, obstacle, and a story starter) to create a random set of story components. Once students have their story elements, they'll plan and write a spooky story by combining all of the spooky parts that they rolled.

Of course, this lesson taps into students' natural love of scary stories while helping them develop critical writing skills. You'll find a detailed planning page in the resource to help students outline their stories before they write their own. The cubes and guide not only make the activity more fun, they also set students up for success! You can find this lesson here...and I'll provide all the links at the bottom of the post.

Speaking of celebrating special days, if you're in the mood for even more ideas, be sure to check out this mega-freebie filled with 40 pages of ideas for celebrating special days in the classroom.

I'm always trying to give students opportunities to read and analyze poems. So, it's no wonder that I put together this FREE poem analysis lesson!

In this FREE Halloween lesson students will analyze the Halloween-themed poem “Mr. Macklin’s Jack O’Lantern” by David McCord. Then, they’ll record their understanding and analysis of the poem in an interactive flip book. 

The lesson encourages multiple readings of the poem which leads to a deeper understanding and comprehension of the text. While analyzing the poem, students will identify the sequence of events, its mood, and elements of figurative language. Students will support their analysis with evidence from the poem. 

McCord’s poem is a perfect celebration of Halloween and the flip books make analyzing poetry fun!

I may have saved the best idea for last! This lesson is such a fun and educational way to celebrate Halloween. That's because this lesson gives students a trick AND treat!

In this resource you’ll find a “Halloween Fun” activity. This one is the ‘TRICK’. In this activity students need to read the instructions very carefully. However, most students do not read the entire set of directions before beginning (that’s the trick). That means that students will follow the directions to create a Halloween drawing and complete a figurative language activity before they realize that they only needed to do the first 2 steps of the 16 step activity.

Wondering where the ‘TREAT’ comes in? Well, this resource is also filled with a nonfiction passage and questions about the history of Halloween. When all the questions are answered students will reveal a “No Homework” message. Of course, this is their treat.

FYI: Since, the Halloween Fun activity requires students to write figurative language, you may want to teach this Figurative Language 5-Day Unit FIRST. 

This free resource is a super fun way to get into the spirit of Halloween! Plus, students will practice figurative language and reading comprehension skills!

If you're looking for even more teaching ideas for October, here's another FREEBIE for you...

And of course, if you love free lesson plans and ideas for the classroom, be sure to sign up for this 40-page Seasonal Sampler!

Here's a quick round-up of the links:

--- Spooky Story Writing Lesson

--- Halloween Poem Analysis

--- Trick and Treat Reading Passage

--- Figurative Language Unit

--- October Plan Book

--- Veterans Day Lesson

Wishing you a very happy Halloween,

Mary Beth

P.S. Veterans Day is right around the corner. Here's an engaging and meaningful lesson. First, students collect facts about Veterans Day for their Doodle Infographic. Then, they write a solider poem. LEARN MORE HERE.

Easy Ways to Get Students Doodling (and learning) in the Classroom!

I’m a huge fan of using doodling to help students learn…and today I’m going to share why doodling is important plus easy ways to help students get their "doodle on" in the classroom. Oh, and I’ve put together a sampler with free doodle resources that you’re going to love! It's a FREE PDF filled with tips, links and EXCLUSIVE DOODLE FREEBIES. I've provided the link at the end of the post!

Here's the thing, when I was a kid, doodling on our papers was not allowed…and now I spend my days coming up with ways to encourage students TO doodle on their papers! That’s because doodling has been shown to help with memory, stress relief and improved focus. 

Doodling is NOT about being an artist, it’s about helping our brains process information. Therefore, doodling can be a powerful instructional tool...and here are just a few ways to use doodles to engage, inspire, motivate, and educate students...

DOODLE TO ENGAGE - One way to easily incorporate doodling into the classroom is with a doodle anticipatory set (don’t worry, I’ve provided it for you in the free PDF). I call it Doodle Time. 

As you know, anticipatory sets are brief activities at the start of a lesson that instantly engage students. They can be used to activate students’ prior knowledge, provide continuity from the previous lesson, or expose students to the lesson’s objectives. For this doodle activity, you’ll provide 5 topics either from a previous lesson or as a preview to today’s lesson and then students will create doodles in the doodle frames for each topic. It’s easy, creative, and a perfect way to start a lesson!

DOODLE TO LEARN - Check this out, a study found that doodling can improve people’s ability to remember information by nearly 30%! Yikes! If that’s the case, then it only makes sense to get students doodling WHILE they’re learning. I love to do this with Doodle and Do resources – I’ve created tons of Doodle and Do resources about everything from figurative language to nonfiction text structures. 

Each unit includes super fun sets of doodle notes and then targeted activities for students to show their learning. I hear from teachers around the world every day about how the Doodle and Do resources changed their classroom. So, let that be reminder that doodling while taking notes is a good thing! (Check them all out HERE!)

DOODLE TO CELEBRATE - Another way to incorporate doodling into the classroom is to use doodles to celebrate special and important days.

You can have students doodle to celebrate the first day of school. Just hand out blank index cards and kids can create doodle postcards about their summer or check out this doodle-style syllabus. It’s perfect for any class…and I’ve provided it FREE for you. 

And…speaking of the first day of school, here’s a sneak peek of a doodle infographic filled with school stats that I just created! Kids collect facts on a fact hunt and fill in their doodle infographic before creating an infographic of their own. 

Oh, and speaking of infographics – I love to combine them with doodles and fact hunts in resources like these for Veterans Day, St. Patrick’s Day and Valentine’s Day.

When you want students to reflect on their learning, why not try a little doodling? Have students doodle a comic of their learning at the end of any unit. Or, encourage students to create a set of doodle notes for the next year of students. You can even have students reflect on any unit of study with a Doodle Unit Review. Or, they can reflect on any book with this Doodle Book Review. 

Doodling is not only engaging, it’s also a creative way for students to express and reflect on their learning.

Also, doodles can be great springboards for conversation…have students discuss what they have sketched after you’ve given them a doodle task. Or have them make it part of a literature discussion with task cards like the “Draw” tasks in this end of the book activity for Wonder, Tuck Everlasting, Freak the Mighty or Walk Two Moons.

  

Since doodling requires handwriting along with connecting images with concepts – helping students’ motor systems connect with the regions of the brain that deal with memory, it only makes sense to give students a chance to doodle every day. It’s easy to do with this set of Daily Vocabulary tasks. I’ve provided a set for you in the doodle sampler. (FYI - I've created a set of 160 words for grades 3-5 and grades 6-8.)

They’re great for warm-ups especially since they trigger creativity the moment that students enter your classroom.

OK, I know, I’m nuts about doodling, but there’s just something magical about how it takes the most mundane task (like learning how to write with textual evidence) and makes it SO much fun! I promise, the second that you bring doodles into your classroom, engagement will follow!

Give doodles a try with the ideas and resources in this FREE DOODLE SAMPLER! 

Enjoy!

Mary Beth

Doodle notes is a trademarked term used with permission. Please visit doodlenotes.org for more information.

Picture Books for Teaching Theme, Figurative Language, Kindness, Creativity, and Writing!

Ready for one of my favorite ways to teach students about writing, reading, creativity, and even kindness? It’s something that elementary teachers have known all along…it’s the picture book!

The picture book is a powerful instructional tool that can work in any classroom…and I thought I’d share some examples of my favorites with you today.

I’ve put the collection of books in a simple (and free) PDF with links that you can download by clicking this LINK. I’ve also paired each book with a ready-made unit that you can easily teach in your classroom too. Feel free to download the PDF at any time.

In the meantime, let’s take a look at some of my favorite picture books for any classroom.

First, I’m sharing a book that is great for the beginning of the year as you’re building a positive classroom community.

Those Shoes by Maribeth Boelts taps into a child’s innate need to have what everyone else has. In this case, the main character longs for the “cool” shoes even though they are too expensive for his grandmother to purchase. After finding a pair that is much too small, the main character makes the ultimate sacrifice for a classmate. It’s a touching story that celebrates kindness and classmates…perfect for any time of year. (Click HERE to check out the book.)

Picture books are also wonderful examples of creativity. Since learning to be creative has shown to be one of the most powerful skills for helping students thrive in life, it’s important to celebrate creativity in the classroom.

These two books do just that…

Not a Box by Antoinette Portis is fairly simple at first glance. A box shape is turned into everything expect a box – a robot, a hot air balloon, even a rocket ship. It’s a fun example of “thinking outside of the box,” just imagine all the creative lessons you could do as an extension to this story. (Click HERE to check out the book.)

The Three Pigs by David Wiesner is another example of creativity. This time students see how a traditional story can be flipped on its head and come to life with a little imagination. This book is the perfect springboard for lessons about thinking in new and creative ways. (Click HERE to check out the book.)

Picture books are wonderful for adding a little humor and whimsy into the classroom. You can keep these two books on your shelf for a rainy day and pull them out when students can use a laugh. And…as a major bonus, humor produces psychological and physiological benefits that help students learn.

One of my favorite funny books is The Book With No Pictures by B.J. Novak. While there are no pictures in the book, there are plenty of silly words and crazy sentences that you, the reader, must read out loud. Students love how “powerless” you become against the words Novak makes you say. You’ll all be laughing together with this book! (Click HERE to check out the book.)

Another funny book filled with voice (and a sweet message) is Unicorn Thinks He’s Pretty Great by Bob Shea. Not only is the book funny as the goat laments about the new Unicorn in town, it’s also cleverly written. There’s a lesson in this book along with a few laughs. (Click HERE to check out the book.)

What about using picture books to teach critical ELA skills? That’s a genius idea.

For instance, if you’d like to teach theme, try The EmptyPot by Demi. It’s one of my favorite stories because the reader learns its themes of honesty and integrity along with the main character that shows up to a gardening challenge with an empty pot. Not only is it a great way to teach theme, it’s a lovely way to showcase important character traits too. (Click HERE to check out the book.)

The next time you’re putting together a writing unit, have students begin by reading mentor texts in the form of pictures books. It’s a super engaging and quick way for students to learn about the critical elements of the genre. I always started my memoir writing unit with a review of several picture books like The Baby Sister by Tomie dePaola. (Click HERE to check out the book.)

Want to each about figurative language? It’s easy with picture books. Send students on a figurative language hunt in a book like WhiteSnow Bright Snow by Alvin Tresselt. The story has a poetic quality as it tells about the first snowfall of the year. (Click HERE to check out the book.)

Alright, I could go on for days…but I better stop right here. I just love how picture books are a powerful way to help students learn about critical ELA topics and build character. Remember, you can check out a list of all my favorites in this FREE download.

Thanks so much for stopping by! I hope some picture books make an appearance in your classroom! 

See you soon!

Mary Beth 

*This post contains affiliate links.

Favorite Back to School Activities

Ready to "cook up" a great first day of school? It's easy with this recipe for a successful start to the school year!

PREP:

➤ Think about how you will set the tone for your classroom on the first day of school.

➤ Plan to keep students engaged and active.

➤ Prepare to build a positive rapport with students from the first instant that they become a part of the classroom community.

INGREDIENTS:

➤ Warm-Up Activity

➤ Get-to-Know-You Activity

➤ Game that gets students out of their seats

➤ Get-to-Know-the-Teacher Activity

➤ Writing Prompt

➤ Extension Activity

Once you've gathered your ingredients, you can get "cooking!" 

(CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FREE RECIPE!)

PROCEDURE:

STEP 1: Begin with a warm-up activity. Place an activity on students' desks that they can complete independently. 

You might try a simple survey or poster. An All About Me poster is a quick way to learn about students. You can even gather them together for an awesome classroom display. 

Or, a survey is a wonderful way to collect information about students. You might include questions about where students like to sit, their favorite way to learn, and activities that they enjoy so that you can start connecting with students.

Another awesome warm-up activity is an "All About You" name tag. Students answer questions about themselves while coloring in a name tag based on their responses. Then, students can place the name tag on their desks to help you learn your students' names. This activity is particularly awesome if you have multiple sets of students. You can collect the name tags and re-distribute them each day during each class while you learn names. 

Oh, and as a bonus, you can gather them together and leave them with substitute teachers throughout the year!

If you'd like to check out ready-made Back to School Warm-Ups, just click here for the poster, here for the survey, and here for the name tags.

STEP 2: Mix in a get-to-know-you activity. Give students a chance to share about themselves and learn about their classmates with an engaging get-to-know-you activity. 

One of my favorites is a doodle-inspired mini-book. Students transform a single sheet of paper into a doodley mini-book all about themselves. After students make the mini-book it's fun to hang them on a clothesline. Then, as students finish their work during the first days of school, you can encourage fast-finishers to grab a classmate's mini-book and learn about him or her.  

Check out the doodle mini-book HERE.

Or, you could have students create this 3-D About Me Activity. Students create an infographic-style book about themselves.

After answering some simple questions, they do a little cutting and gluing to create a 3-D "About Me" display. These are especially fun because students can set them on their desks and then everyone can tour around the classroom and learn about their peers. (These are awesome for Open House too!) Learn more HERE.


STEP 3: Scatter in an activity that gets students moving. Since students crave opportunities to get up and out of their seats, plan to get your class moving on the first day of school. You might have students complete a scavenger hunt or even play a learning game that requires students to move around.

I'm a huge fan of this simple get-to-know-you activity that gets students moving (and you can download it for FREE here.) 

First, students make paper airplanes. They write their name and 3 interview questions on the wings. Then, students line up shoulder-to-shoulder and launch the planes. Next, they pick up a classmate's plane, find him or her, and ask the interview questions. You can repeat the airplane launch as often as you'd like! 

Find everything you need to do this activity in this FREEBIE. 

If you'd like to combine movement and learning on the first day of school, then you and your students will love this Back to School Doodle Infographic. 

First students fill in the infographic with facts about school. There are 21 facts and you can hide them around the room to get students moving. Then, they put together the infographic to make a fun and doodle-y poster! Check it out HERE.


 STEP 4: Sprinkle in a chance for students to get-to-know-you (their teacher). On the first day of school, students are very curious about you. They want to learn about you, so you'll want to be sure to share about yourself. You can give a simple biography of yourself, or you might try these easy and engaging activities:

Create a teacher interview question along with 4 or 5 prize cards for each student in your class. Then, tape the questions and the prize cards under students' seats before class begins. During class, explain to students that they all have something under their chairs. It might be a question and it might be a prize. If they get a prize card, have students keep it quiet. Then, call on students. They can either read a question for you to answer or reveal that they won a prize. If they won, you might give them a pencil, piece of candy, or a homework pass. You can find all my favorite questions HERE.

Or, you might have students complete a "Teacher Guess" about you. First, they predict the answers to questions about you. Then, as you reveal the answers, they earn points for every correct prediction. It's a fun activity that students truly enjoy! You can check it out HERE.

 STEP 5: Add a fun writing prompt to your back to school activities. A writing prompt is a great way to gather a baseline for students' writing on the first day of school. You might give students a simple prompt about their summer or goals for the new school year. However, I love to add a fun creative writing prompt into the mix. 

For example, with this writing prompt students select a setting, character, problem, and 3 random objects. Then, they need to work them all into a story. It's fun, engaging, and a great way to see where your students are starting the school year. 

Find this writing prompt HERE or check out this collection 

of 10 creative writing activities.

STEP 6: Top it off with a review of tomorrow's warm-up. Set students up for success during your next day of school by quickly reviewing what they will need to do when they arrive to class. If you're planning to have students work through warm-ups like these This or That ELA warm-ups where students choose to do the "this" or the "that" activity, then you might quickly review what will be waiting on their desks when they arrive. 

Taking the time to preview tomorrow's warm-up is a great way to set expectations for students! If you're looking for some daily warm-ups, you might want to check out these This or That ELA warm-ups or these This or That Writing warm-ups!

STEP 7: Don't forget to have an extension activity just in case your lesson ends early. I love playing games like "Move If You..." which you can find for FREE HERE. While you may never get to the extension activity, it's a lifesaver if you need it!

TIPS:

When you're following this recipe for a great first day of school, you might want to:

➤ Greet students at the door and answer these questions for students right away:

       ➨ Where do I sit?

       ➨ Am I in the right classroom?

       ➨ What should I be doing right now?

➤ Also, be prepared to manage students' behavior on the first day of school. Ensure that you have a positive classroom management system in place and ready to use if you need it!

Well, there you have it, my recipe for a great first day of school. Be sure to download all the ideas with links AND the FREE airplane activity HERE!

CHECK THIS OUT!  I've put together a 100+ page guide for back to school for teachers. It includes tips, tools, and printables for classroom décor, classroom organization, lesson planning, community building, and planning the first day of school.  It's absolutely FREE!  

Just click here to sign up. When you sign up, you'll get access to 6 mini-courses that cover everything Back to School including classroom design, organization, curriculum planning, and ways to build a positive classroom community.  There's also a TON of exclusive freebies, bonuses, and videos!  If you'd like to learn more and sign up, just click HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by,

Mary Beth

P.S. If you'd like MORE free resources for your classroom, be sure to join the Brain Waves Instruction club!