Happy October, teachers! The leaves are falling, the excitement for Halloween is building, and there’s a crispness in the air that just makes kids (and teachers!) feel alive. It’s the perfect month to incorporate fun, engaging, and educational activities with an autumn twist. Whether you’re looking to sprinkle in some Halloween fun or just embrace the season, here are some easy-to-implement ideas that will keep your students learning while having a blast.
1. Pumpkin Math 🎃 + ➗ = 🍂
Nothing says fall quite like pumpkins, and they’re a great tool to incorporate math lessons into your October activities. You can use small pumpkins for each student (or group) and have them:
- Estimate and Measure: How many seeds do they think are inside? What’s the circumference of the pumpkin? Kids can make estimates, then check their predictions by counting the seeds or using measuring tapes.
- Weight Comparisons: Weigh a variety of pumpkins and compare their weights. Create graphs of the class’s findings.
- Seed Counting & Multiplication: Once the seeds are scooped out, use them for math! Have students group seeds by tens, fives, or ones to practice place value, or create multiplication problems based on the number of seeds they’ve found.
This activity combines tactile learning, estimation, and math concepts in a memorable, engaging way!
2. Spooky Story Writing 🕸️✍️📚
October is the perfect time to spark your students’ creativity with spooky (but not too scary) story writing. Here’s how to get started:
- Story Starters: Provide prompts like, “One stormy night, I heard a strange noise coming from the attic…” or “The old, creaky house at the end of the street had been abandoned for years until…”.
- Character Creation: Have students design their own “spooky” characters, such as friendly ghosts or magical creatures, and build their stories around these creations.
- Spooky Soundtrack: Play some eerie background music (think gentle wind and creaky doors) to get your students in the mood. Encourage them to focus on descriptive language to set the scene and create suspense.
This activity is a wonderful way to encourage creative writing and expand vocabulary while celebrating the spooky fun of October.
3. Candy Corn STEM Challenges 🍬🧠🔬
Who says candy can’t be educational? Candy corn can be used in various fun STEM challenges that encourage problem-solving and teamwork:
- Tower Building: Give students a pile of candy corn and some toothpicks. The challenge? Build the tallest candy corn tower they can! It’s a simple engineering task that helps develop fine motor skills and critical thinking.
- Candy Corn Catapults: Provide popsicle sticks, rubber bands, and a spoon. Have students create their own candy corn catapults, then measure how far they can launch their candy.
- Candy Corn Graphing: Use candy corn to create math graphs. Have students sort and graph by color or size, then analyze the data.
These hands-on challenges incorporate STEM principles while tapping into kids’ love for sweets!
4. Leafy Literacy Centers 🍁🔠
As the leaves fall outside, why not bring them into your literacy centers? Here’s how to make literacy seasonal and fun:
- Word Building with Leaves: Collect leaves and write letters on them. Students can use the lettered leaves to build spelling words, sight words, or even practice their phonics skills.
- Fall-Themed Reading Comprehension: Incorporate autumn-themed stories or passages into your guided reading groups. Follow up with comprehension questions that help kids dig deeper into the text.
- Writing Prompts with Nature: Take your class on a mini nature walk to observe the changing season. Once back inside, have students write about their walk, focusing on sensory details like what they saw, heard, and felt.
This is an easy way to take something seasonal and connect it to your literacy curriculum.
5. Classroom Decorating Contest 🏆🎃🕸️
A little classroom spirit never hurts, and a decorating contest can help build community while getting your students excited about October! Here’s how you can turn this fun event into a learning opportunity:
- Teamwork and Collaboration: Assign students to small groups, giving each a section of the classroom to decorate. They’ll need to plan, collaborate, and execute their ideas together.
- Creative Problem Solving: Set limits—like only using construction paper, scissors, and glue—and see what students come up with. They’ll have to think outside the box to make their vision a reality.
- Voting and Graphing: Once the room is decorated, have a class vote on the best sections. Create a graph or chart to tally the votes and analyze the results.
Decorating with a learning twist keeps things festive while reinforcing social and math skills!
6. Halloween Read Alouds 📚👻
Nothing beats a good read-aloud to get students in the Halloween spirit. Some of my favorites for October include:
- Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson – A fun, rhyming tale that students love!
- The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything by Linda Williams – Great for building suspense and helping students make predictions.
- Creepy Carrots by Aaron Reynolds – A hilarious story with just the right amount of spooky fun.
Pair these read-alouds with comprehension activities, discussion prompts, or even a quick craft to tie it all together.
October is a month full of opportunities to bring seasonal excitement into your classroom. Whether it’s through math, literacy, STEM, or creative activities, adding a little autumn flair makes learning even more engaging for your students. Try out some of these ideas, and watch your classroom come alive with October magic!
Keep it fun, keep it spooky, and keep the learning going strong! 👻🎃 -Adam
adampetersoneducation.com 