Littlest Witch sends “best witches for learning and fun in school at Halloween time.”
Hi and welcome back to Attentionology for K – 5 Teachers!
Play bewitching Halloween-time teaching tricks with your class to help students master basic skills.
Bigger Witch has a crooked witch hat. What’s missing here? Littlest Witch’s funny black cat!
Which Witch is Which? – Children in the early grades love games that compare and match images.
Build visual acuity by posting three witches next to each other on a board.
Ask the class to compare the witches by pointing on your command to the littlest witch, the bigger witch, and the biggest witch of all.
Which Witch has a Cat? – Lead kids in another activity that compares the witches’ images.
Read a short rhyme aloud about the difference between the littlest witch and the bigger one…
Bigger Witch has a crooked tipped hat.
What’s missing next to her?
It’s Littlest Witch’s funny black cat!
Biggest Witch has a face of green. She loves being biggest on the Halloween scene!
Poem for the Halloween Scene – Reinforce the comparison about sizes of the witches by reciting a couplet poem about the biggest witch of all…
Biggest Witch has a face of green,
She loves being biggest on the Halloween scene!
Which Witches Match? – Challenge young children to match the two witches who are wearing the same costume.
Ask the class to point to the witch who is wearing a different costume than the other two.
Invite a volunteer to touch the two witches that match.
Ask what else is the same and/or different about the three witches.
Which Witch is Laughing? – Dramatic voices quickly catch kids’ attention.
Add attention-getting fun to this bewitching Halloween-time teaching trick by “bringing the witches to life” with different voices.
When your student volunteer touches the two witches that match, make each one “laugh aloud” for more spooky fun.
Invite another student to “make Littlest Witch talk,” if time permits.
Scare up more bewitching Halloween-time teaching tricks…
Students get to spell which word the witch wants for sentences you read aloud.
Brew Homonym Stew – Which witch wants words spelled that sound the same?
Brewing up homonym stew helps students master an important language skill.
This trick generally suits students in grades 2 – 4.
Engage your class in a game that invites them to spell which word the witch wants in the context of sentences you read aloud.
Create a poster like the one here that has blank boxes in which you write homonyms. Make copies to use with and/or distribute to the class.
The example here presents the words their/there…same sound; two spellings; two different meanings.
Hold the poster in front of the class or enlarge it on a screen and say a sentence aloud using one of the homonyms…
Julia and Jordan were excited about putting together their Halloween costumes.
Instruct students to say aloud the correct spelling of their for that sentence. Write the correct answer in one box.
Repeat the process with a different sentence for the word there.
Which Witch is Hosting an Indoor Halloween-Time Scavenger Hunt? – The answer is you…if you choose to dress up as a witch for this teaching trick. NOTE: This activity needs some advance preparation.
Tickets Please – Set up computer time in your classroom for printing tickets to the Scavenger Hunt along with lists of items to scavenge inside your classroom.
Set bewitching decor in your computer center for an Indoor Halloween-time Scavenger Hunt.
Choose a Halloween design for your tickets and scavenger list.
Set out some Halloween decor in your computer center to focus students’ attention on the theme.
Bring the Outdoors In – Tell the class that you need their help finding objects outside to bring inside for the Halloween-time Scavenger Hunt.
Schedule time outdoors and challenge students to find Halloween-related treasures nearby, such as:
- spider webs
- ghoulish rocks
- sticks that look like a witch’s broom
After school on the day before the Scavenger Hunt, hide the Halloween-related finds around the classroom.
Plan your Indoor Scavenger Hunt to also include small inexpensive Halloween-time treasures, such as small plastic spider rings, that you place on shelves, floor corners, etc for children to find.
Bewitching Halloween-time teaching tricks are full of memorable fun and learning.
Remember, you don’t need to be a magician to work magic in any instructional setting!
Do you share Halloween-time fun with your class? Please send comments.
Talk with you again soon,
Barbara ♥ The Lovable Poet
