Read about ten activities to use in your classroom for Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas for your upper elementary students. From STEM challenges to printables these activities cover curriculum and bring engagement to your students.
Sweet milk chocolate, sandwiched between spiced brown sugar cookies, and finished with a light dusting of cinnamon sugar. Perfect for both a spooky Halloween night or an elegant Thanksgiving dinner...or just when you need a deliciously sweet chocolate filled cookie!
So, did you survive Halloween? I personally really enjoyed the fact that it was on a Friday this year. 🙂 Now that Halloween is over, I’ve started thinking ahead to Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the holidays in general. It’s always such an exciting time of year for the kiddos! Unfortunately, I think it’s all too easy for kids to become too focused on the “gifts” part of the holidays. The media and advertising play a big role in this. BUT I do think we, as teachers and parents, can definitely do something about it! I think it’s important to teach kids about all the ways that people can give to one another. Giving doesn’t have to involve gifts – giving can include helping people in intangible ways, using kind words with others, etc. I recently finished a mini-unit that focuses on just that – teaching kids the many ways that people can give to each other. Read on for some ideas and books about teaching kids how to give, and for more details on the unit! The unit starts by having kids discuss their prior knowledge about giving (which likely includes giving gifts). You’ll make a class chart and/or give students a drawing/writing task to see what students believe about what it means to give (at the end of the unit you’ll give the same assignment to see how the kids have grown!). Then, you’ll use readalouds and writing activities to open kids’ eyes to all of the ways that people give to each other. You definitely won’t need all of these books for the unit, but here are some of the options that you can choose from: Books About Giving Tangible Items: The Mitten Tree (Candace Christiansen) My Most Favorite Thing (Nicola Moon) The Elves and the Shoemaker (Jim Lamarche) Books About Giving Help: Frog and Toad All Year – “The Surprise” (Arnold Lobel) The Berenstain Bears Lend a Helping Hand (Stan Berenstain) My Friend is Sad (An Elephant and Piggie Book) (Mo Willems) When You Are Happy (Eileen Spinelli) The Lion & the Mouse (Jerry Pinkney) A Sick Day for Amos McGee (Philip C. Stead) Books About Giving Kind Words: One (Kathryn Otoshi) Chrysanthemum (Kevin Henkes) Ish (Creatrilogy) (Peter Reynolds) Books About Helping the Community: Boxes for Katje (Candace Fleming) Uncle Willie and the Soup Kitchen (DyAnne Disalvo-Ryan) City Green (DyAnne Disalvo-Ryan) A Castle on Viola Street (DyAnne Disalvo-Ryan) In addition to the reading and writing activities, the kids will practice giving to their friends and families through a few different activities. They’ll make a “helping chain” with ideas about how they can help others: They’ll also make a coupon book for their families (with ways that they can help out around the house): After these and a few other activities, they will (with your guidance!) plan and implement a very simple community service project. By the end of the unit, the kids should have a more complex and complete understanding of what it means to give to others. The lessons are great for teaching around Thanksgiving, Christmas, winter holidays, Valentine’s Day – or any time at all! The unit also includes supplementary literacy materials like a poem, student reader, and reading passage. Click on the image below to find out more: Happy teaching!
Creative ideas in jewelry making, soft soldering, crafts and upcycled, innovative, repurposed art and home décor, and the upcycled garden.
This Halloween Roll-A-Story is an old favorite, where students roll dice to determine their story’s character, setting, and conflict. Print it out and give it to your student for a fun, Halloween-themed activity!
These black Poison candy apples are the ultimate wickedly sinister Halloween treat and will make an excellent centerpiece.
We'll showcase some of the best Delightfully Creepy Upcycled Doll Projects! Be prepared to tread along the terminator line that divides art & freak show!
From witch fingers to jello worms.
Looking for a great snack for your Halloween party? Then grab a brain mold and try your hand at making some tasty cream cheese brain dip, or a black bean graveyard dip. Jo and Sue have the recipes for both, and they look totally terrific and tasty.Link...
If you're looking for Samhain rituals and traditions to do in 2024, then read on: we're sharing everything we know about Samhain as practicing pagans. If you're fan of Halloween, then you probably know that
IDeas for the classroom and home for the kids to do and ways to learn on (or around) halloween
If you’re new around here, you might be surprised to know I love Halloween. It’s nostalgic, fun, and a good excuse to play a part and decorate a room. Every year I try to do something a bit different (from curiosities, to bones, to creepy chic). In the past it’s mainly been about channeling a look, but this year I had something specific in mind: Miss Havisham from Charles Dickens Great Expectations. It was actually one of you who gave me the idea on Instagram one day, and I forgot how much I enjoyed that story. A few years ago there was a BBC adaptation on PBS, and Miss Havisham and her home were beautifully sad. As a jilted bride she decides to freeze time, keeping her home and herself looking exactly as they did the day she was left at the alter. The problem is the years have not been kind […]
Edible Cinnamon Embers: We've bid farewell to Halloween and now we're heading towards Christmas at high speed. If you're already making your list of gifts to give and have a few friends on it who qualify as 'naughty,' these coal black coated candy sweet-treats are a great…
It’s getting closer, friends. Halloween, I mean. Are you ready? Have you amped up the scare-factor of your décor this year? If not, I’d recommend it. At
I love a good scare, don't you? I also love how people find such joy in decorating their homes for holidays... In this case, Halloween! Whether you like to decorate your home indoors or outdoors,
The following homemade costumes require nothing more than a fertile imagination, some deft DIY skills, and a little elbow grease. And an obscene overabundance of free time.
If you are looking for a Halloween science activity that the kids will be screaming with excitement about, make some flying teabag ghosts!
Do you want to Upstate your Scary Halloween Decorations game this time? Don’t worry; we have the perfect picks for you!
36 Elaborate Halloween Costumes to Make Everyone Jealous
Layers of dark chocolate mousse, chocolate pecan cookie dirt and chocolate whipped cream are topped with realistic raspberry gummy worms to make a frightfully delicious Halloween dessert.
Get lots of laughs from your friends and save money with these unique, DIY weather-inspired costume ideas. Dress up as a hurricane, rain cloud, sun, ice, snow, and more!
Some random things you just don't see everyday.
These Halloween toilet paper roll crafts are easy, spooky and oh-so-cute. They're the perfect way to get toddlers and preschoolers in on the festivities.
Halloween Brimstone Bread: I love making brimstone bread. Between the dark crunchy topping and the soft inner core, it’s perfect for everything from sandwiches, to burgers, to just slathering with butter and eating warm from the oven. Rumor has it, when demons in Hell make t…
Happy Friday the 13th! Be careful my pretties because you never know who might be watching you! Because on Friday the 13th or Halloween, even pies have eyes! A vanilla scented rhubarb tart is given a creepy twist with the easiest Halloween friendly decoration!
a chic and refined Halloween decoration of a mirror, a skull and skeleton hands can be DIYed for your space
These smashed purple potatoes make the perfect side dish for your Christmas table. Simple and easy recipe.
When their faces are obscured, these children transform into frightening little creatures
If you're looking for Samhain rituals and traditions to do in 2024, then read on: we're sharing everything we know about Samhain as practicing pagans. If you're fan of Halloween, then you probably know that
Wait until you see this woodland Halloween wedding. It's Halloween, but natural, floral, and organic. The bride was a faerie and the groom a tree king.
8 Totally Gross Halloween Food Ideas for parties, snacks, buffets, desserts, kids, adults or anyone else that likes to partake in disgusting Halloween food.
Cockroach Donuts (Boston Cream): Give your guests the creeps with these donuts disguised as cockroaches! But they won't be creeped out for long once guests dig their teeth into the mouthwatering chocolate glaze, soft and chewy caramel shell, and into the deliciously oozing vanilla…
Halloween math activities and reading comprehension can be so much fun with Halloween Project Based Learning! What upper elementary student doesn't love haunted houses and everything spooky? Turn that excitement into learning with a creative, engaging, hands-on Design a Haunted House Project! This project is not only perfect for classrooms already familiar with project based learning (PBL), but it's also ideal for teachers who are looking for ways to really engage students with a high-interest activity. Kick off your Halloween Project Based Learning Unit by showing several different videos or ads which highlight haunted attractions and persuade people to visit
A fun and easy sweet or savory Halloween recipe (because you purchase the pastry sheet pre-made) that will enliven your Halloween Potluck or Dinner!
This velvety purple soup is ultimate comfort food… that also happens to come with some writings to nourish the soul as well.
Layers of dark chocolate mousse, chocolate pecan cookie dirt and chocolate whipped cream are topped with realistic raspberry gummy worms to make a frightfully delicious Halloween dessert.
Children will use their creative writing skills to continue the story in this fiction writing exercise.
How will you be celebrating with your students this year? In my experience, students are usually twitching with excitement for Halloween festivities and it's hard to reign them in or get them to focus on learning. Each year, I try to come up with literacy activities that are fun, effective, and don't feel like 'work;' however, often that means getting creative... and maybe even a little bit silly! Are you looking for a fun, ready-to-use writing activity to help with your overly excited students? This writing activity is FREE for my email subscribers. If you’d like to download this resource, click
Super leckerer Apfelkuchen, der vielleicht nicht ganz so aussieht, wie man es gewohnt ist... für die ein oder andere Schrecksekunde kann man damit sicher sorgen ;)
Mmm…brains. Halloween is quickly approaching, and that can mean only one thing: the zombies are coming. Heck, even the CDC wrote an article about how to prepare…
Halloween is my favorite holiday. Hands down. So recently, when Karen, Todd and I were styling a fall inspired cheese platter, we jokingly threw around the idea of making a candy version. I instantly volunteered myself to go to the local candy store to pick out my favorite nostalgic sweets (Sugar Daddys, waxed lips, Bottle […]
Easy Halloween Bathroom decorations that'll scare the SHIT out of your guests...LITERALLY! The Ultimate Guide for your party.
