Even though Halloween is going to look a little different this year (check out my post Pandemic Friendly Halloween Ideas), you better believe we’re still celebrating- the costumes are on their way, the candy is purchased and we’re ready to go! What better way to kick off the festivities than with some fun filled Halloween themed learning! Don’t forget to hop on your broom and fly on over to my toddler post BOO! for even more spooktacular ideas, like glow bowling and cotton ball ghosts!
–Literacy:
-Halloween ABC’s: We actually made this list last year, so I pulled it out of the closet and added it to our daily calendar time (for more calendar ideas, check out my blog post Preschool Calendar Time). Each day, we read the list while pointing to each letter/word.
-ABC witches brew: I threw our magnet alphabet letters into our play cauldron along with some fishing lure worms, frogs and lizards and a few play eyeballs and spiders, then had my little scoop the letters out and match them on a laminated alphabet page! You can use a gallon Ziplock baggie too if you don’t have a laminator!
-“The Little Old Lady Who Wasn’t Afraid of Anything” object retelling: We read the story “The Little Old Lady Who Wasn’t Afraid of Anything” then had fun retelling the story together using cut outs of each part of the scarecrow and a Barbie for the old lady!
-V is for vampire, Z is for zombie: I made two handwriting practice pages by making V’s and Z’s with dots, then had my little trace the letters in pencil. If you want to make this reusable, just tuck the pages in a page protector and have your little write with a dry erase marker!
-Booklist:
–Math:
-Ghost number match: I made ten ghosts out of cardstock and traced them on black construction paper with a white colored pencil. I added numbers to each ghost so my little could match the cardstock ghosts to the ghosts on the page. We reviewed the number names together as we went (and also pretended he was a ghostbuster who had to catch and match each ghost to save the city! LoL). I got this idea from Toddler Approved.
-Candy graphing: I threw some candy in my little’s treat bag, then had him sort it into the categories: chocolate, fruity candy, and lollipops. Then he counted each group and found the matching number on the side of the graph. I drew a bar up to the number and he colored it in. When the graph was finished, I asked him questions like “Which candy did you get the most of (and least of)? How do you know?”
-Candy corn word problems: I got this candy corn word problem sheet for free on Teachers Pay Teachers, then had my little use candy corns to solve the problems as I read them. Word problems are such a huge part of math nowadays, it’s important to start them early!
-Candy corn roll and uncover: I drew a large candy corn on a sheet of paper then wrote the numbers 1-50 inside it. Then I covered the numbers with candy corn, and had my little roll a 10 sided dice, identify the number and then count and uncover the digits for that many corns. Then we’d count how many we’d uncovered so far as I pointed to each corresponding digit until all 50 were uncovered. (for example: if he’d already uncovered 6, and he rolled a 4, he would take 4 candy corns off the next 4 numbers, then we’d count all the numbers that had been uncovered so far…1-10). I got the idea from Teachers Pay Teachers, but just made my own worksheet! If you follow the link, you can get a whole set of candy corn math activities for just $1!
–Science:
-Dissolving candy corns: We reviewed what makes something a liquid, then I had my little choose 3 liquids to dissolve candy corn in. Before we started I had him predict which one would work the best and why. Then we poured 1/4 cup of each liquid into some small tupperware cups, plunked in a candy corn and made observations as they dissolved! I got this idea from Teachers Pay Teachers.
-Ghost eggs: Mix equal parts vinegar and tonic water in a large cup or jar (we did a cup of each, but it really depends on the size of your glass). Plunk in a few eggs and let them sit for a few days. Have your little make observations about what’s happening to the eggs as you wait. Then take them out, go into a dark room and shine a black light flashlight on them…they SHOULD glow! (Ours glowed PINK!) I got this spooktacular idea from Growing a Jeweled Rose.
-5 senses touch cups: I filled 5 solo cups with squishy, gooey things like playdough, cooked spaghetti, jello, a fruit cup and candy corn. Then we reviewed what the 5 senses are, and I had my little just use his sense of touch by reaching into each cup, feeling the item and then trying to guess what it was! I got this idea from The Homeschool Resource Room!
-Fizzy cauldrons: I think every preschooler loves some fizzy science, so I poured some baking soda in a few mini cauldrons we had, gave my littles spoons and pipettes as well as Halloween colored vinegar and let them play and mix and explore!
–Art:
-Skeleton craft: Throw some glue on a piece of black paper so that it’s in the shape of a skeleton. If you want to throw in some science, you can use the scientific names for the bones…or just make it fun! Have your little stick q-tips on the glue to build their skeleton. Then use a cut out picture of their face for the head! I got this idea from Mrs. Plemon’s Kindergarten!
-Ghost paint blowing: Place a blob or two of white paint on a sheet of black construction paper. Have your little use a straw to blow on the paint and spread it out until they’ve made a ghost shape. When the paint is dry, add a spooky face! I got this idea from Crafty Morning!
–Supply/shopping list:
- “The Little Old Lady Who Wasn’t Afraid of Anything” book
- Halloween candy (various types)
- candy corn
- baking soda
- vinegar
- large cauldron
- mini cauldron
- fishing lure worms, frogs and lizards
- toy eyeballs
- plastic spiders
- ABC magnets
- egg
- jar
- tonic water
- black light flashlight
- Jello
- grapes/blueberries/cold fruit
- cooked spaghetti
- playdough
- 5 bowls or cups you can’t see through
- Q-tips
- a straw
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