Grocery Bag Ghosts:
Ask each child to bring in a white plastic grocery bag. (Bring in a few of your own for those who forget.)
Have them cut a large square or rectangle out of the side that has no writing on.
This is a bit tough with safety scissors, but it doesn't matter if the edges are jagged because that effect makes the "ghost" look cool.
It cuts easier if you tell your students to use the tips of the scissors and "snip" small sections.
When they have made their rectangle/square, have them crumple up the printed side (great fine motor skill) hiding as much of the printing as they can.
Have them crumple it into a ball. This will be the "Head" of the ghost.
Place the "ball-head" in the middle of the plain white plastic piece. (You may want to add a piece of scotch tape to keep their ball together. If an adult is helping the tape is not necessary Make your sample ahead of time so you have one to show the children, as well as a sample in front of them, so you can show them how it is done.)
Gather the plain plastic around the ball head. They can fasten it with a rubber band if they are handy enough.
I come around and tie an orange ribbon bow around the neck.
You can add wiggle eyes with glue dots or you can give them a black permanent marker and have them make two dots for eyes. Warn them not to make them too big and that they should be the same size. Some little ones get carried away with the markers and make huge eyes and then add noses and mouths and don't follow directions. They look better with just eyes. I have also run off my students' school photo and cut them into ovals and had them put their face on the other side of the ghost. You could hang them on a b. board flying around tombstones with the caption: ___________'s boo-tiful students flying through October lessons!
Glue Ghosts
The other ghost activity is also a quick and easy project. Write every child's name on a sheet of wax paper. Give them a blob of tacky glue (Elmer's works too, but is not quite as thick) and have them swirl it into a ghost. ( I use Q-tips) Let dry 24 hours and gently peel off the paper. You can poke a hole in the top and string a lacing sting through it to make a ghost necklace. I've also painted macaroni white and had them string their "bone"-beads to this. Students can add two eyes with a marker. You could also make a pin.
Keepsake Cuties
My favorite ghost is one where I trace their foot with their shoe on. I call them "Spooky Soles" They glue it behind a gray tombstone that they cut out. I run off stickers that say RIP (Really Important Person) and they put that on their tombstone and write their name above it. I give them two glue dots and two big wiggle eyes and they have an adorable keepsake. I punch a hole in the top and hang them from the ceiling. The poem I wrote says: Here's a little ghost he says boo! He's extra special because he's traced from my shoe! I type that up in a little square. They cut it out and glue it on their ghost.
Sweet Smelling Ghosts: Make a ghost from a dryer sheet. Give each of your students a dryer sheet. These can be used or new. Using a pencil, have them draw a ghostly shape on the sheet and then cut it out. Sometimes this is a bit difficult with a safety scissors so have them make short cuts and snip around their shape. They can add wiggle eyes with glue dots, or carefully use a black marker to make the eyes. Because a dryer sheet is absorbent remind them not to rest the marker on the sheet. Write their name on the bottom with an ink pen. Using a needle and thread, tie a long loop to their ghost’s head, and let them fly it around the room. After they are done playing, hang them from the ceiling or in the window.
Lunch Bag Loonies: I love that lunch bags come in colors. White is perfect to make a ghost. Have your students shove a white plastic grocery bag in the top of the bag. Twist the bag so you make a "head" . Tie it with a piece of orange ribbon and wahla instant ghost! Now have your children cut 2 inch strips all the way up the bag to the neck of the ghost. Add 2 black eyes with a marker and a nice smile and you're done. You can add a loop of yarn to the back of the ribbon if you want your loonie lunch bag ghosts flying down the hallway suspended from the ceiling. Too cute!
Coat hanger Creations: You can make lots of things out of a wire coat hanger. Have each of your students bring one in. Or if your husband is like mine, you'll have a class set--no problem.. Demonstrate how to pull it lengthways, then sideways, then criss-cross to get the "permanent" kinks out. Show your students how to shape their coat hanger into a circle. Then have them decide if they want to make a spider, pumpkin, cat, skull or moon. Lets say they want to make a harvest moon. Using a Q-tip have them dab tacky glue on top of the circle. Lay a sheet of yellow tissue paper on top of the wire. If you want the tissue to look darker and be a bit more tear resistant, you can add another sheet to the top. Simply put another layer of glue around the circle on top of the first tissue.
I suggest letting it dry if you're working with little ones. If you're working with older students they can trim the tissue around their coat hanger leaving a half inch "hem". Some glue will have dropped over the edge which will be perfect because you are going to have them fold the "hem" over. That's it. Remind students to be very careful not to rip and tear their tissue paper. Cut out an orange construction paper pumpkin. Add a green construction paper stem and draw on a Jack-O-Lantern face with a black crayon or marker. Glue the pumpkin to the bottom middle of the tissue paper moon. Put the glue on the back of the pumpkin and gently press it to the coat hanger. If you want to make the coat hanger into a pumpkin, glue orange tissue paper on the coat hanger following the directions above, then glue black construction paper geometric shapes on it to make a face. If you want to make a spider or cat head, glue black tissue paper on the coat hanger and add 4 construction paper strips of black paper to each side of the hanger to make a spider and some eyes. Add two black rectangles to the top of the coat hanger for a cat's ears + facial features. For a skull, cover with white tissue paper and add facial features with a black marker. Hang your creation in the window. Happy Halloween.
If you'd like to make a ghost pencil for your little "punkins" to write with all day, simply plop a small Styrofoam ball on the eraser end, add a Kleenex and two squares of tulle. Tie with a piece of yarn and you've got a "spook-tacular" writing utensil they're sure to go bats over!
Click on the link if you'd like to see the Blog Pictures up close in a PDF. Halloween Project Pictures.
Baby Food Jar Luminaries: After you have reviewed with your students the things they learned during Fire Safety Week and made them promise once again to NEVER EVER play with fire, candles, lighters or matches, you can have them paint a baby food jar luminary. Write their name on the bottom of the jar with a permanent marker. They can paint their jar white and make a ghost, orange and make a pumpkin, black and make a cat, green or purple and make an alien or monster. The paint goes on the OUTSIDE. The tea light is dropped on the inside. After their base coat is painted, make sure they have no glass showing, cover with varnish to make it shiny, unless you have already purchased a gloss paint. Let dry. Draw examples of faces on the board and have students paint a face on their luminary. Have students make little cards that say: "You light up my life with love. Happy Halloween to you!" and tuck them in their candle cup. What a nice surprise for their family.
Have the children bring in an empty cereal box. Cut out big sheets of grey construction paper in the shape of a tombstone and have them glue it to both sides of the box. Children write their name on the box with a black marker and put all their goodies from the day in it. Makes for a nice and easy take home tote!
Now that you're done with crafts it's time to get the wiggles out! What could be better than some Halloween Movements? Can you flap like a bat, roll like a pumpkin into the night or walk like a mummy? Click on the link to view/print a copy of this cute list that will have your students shaking their bones 'til they finally "turn around. Sit down. Hands in lap, that's that!" Halloween Movements
If you'd like to sing 10 Little Ghosts to the tune of 10 Little Indians why not paint each of your student's index fingernails with White Out. Add 2 black dots for eyes with a Sharpie and they have a spooky pointer for the day's activities. White Out does not easily wash off so they'll have their ghostly pal for most of the day.
I have lots of other super fun ideas for your Halloween Party including 24 games and decorating tips in my Halloween Mini Unit. Click on the link to check it out. It's only $1.59 for 81 pages of spook-tacular fun! Halloween Book
If you're looking for some great interactive read alouds to tickle your students' funny bones then you'll want to read them Halloween Stew, Halloween ABC's and ABC Haunted House. They all come with student editions that are perfect for reinforcing the alphabet and concepts of print. I've also designed some "Easy Readers" with kindergarten sight words where the children read, trace, and write the sentence. In some cases they even unjumble the letters, cut them out and glue them to the appropriate pages. Children really enjoy putting these little booklets together. They pack in a lot of different skills and standards in a fun way. Halloween Triangles, Let's Go Trick Or Treating, and My Trick Or Treat Booklet Click on the links to check them out.
Halloween Game Time: Even when I'm playing games at my Halloween Party I want to nail my report card standards, so I made up Numb Skulls. You can use this as a simple skill sheet (I never call them worksheets, who wants to do work! I refer to my table top lessons as skill sheets or fun sheets!) or have them play a game and shake a Halloween Bottle. During the month of October I buy the mini water bottles so I can make a class set of Halloween game bottles for my students. I save them and refill them with tap water and a teaspoon of vegetable oil. I put 3 drops of food coloring into the bottle. You can get Fall Colors starting in September. They have 4 bottles to a set: Forest green, orange, burgundy and black. I also use the regular food coloring so I have lime green, yellow and purple. Put in a teaspoon of vegetable oil and some Halloween confetti. Party stores have a huge selection and the Dollar Store sometimes sells Halloween confetti 4 packs stapled to a card. The vegetable oil makes the confetti float. I also sprinkle in some orange glitter and drop in one dice. Whenever my students played dice games they were always making lots of noise and losing the dice under the tables and on the floor. By putting them inside a bottle I solved both problems. Plus it's lots more fun for them to shake. I seal the bottles shut with Aileen's tacky glue and for added protection put a piece of orange masking tape around the caps as well. Children then shake up their Halloween bottle, check the number of the dice on the bottom and put that on their Numb Skull. If they are doing subtraction, they use the larger number first. They solve their equation and X out that many teeth on their skeleton's head! Lots of fun! When they are done with the game they get to take their Numb Skulls and Halloween bottles home. I keep an extra neutral set of bottles in my classroom for everyday use.
I also have them play Halloween Match. It's like the old card game "Snap". With this set of cards you could also play Memory Match or make an ABC Booklet. Click on the link to view/print off the games + directions for both the Numb Skull and Halloween ABC Match Games.
Whatever you do, I'm wishing you and your little "punkins" a howling good time! Happy Happy Halloween! I hope it's simply delightful!
If you'd like to tuck a Happy Halloween certificate into your students' backpacks, or give to your own children, click on the link. Halloween Certificates. I've made 4 different styles. There's 2 on a page for easy copying + a page of "slap" bracelets. 11 on a page. Run them off, cut them out and tape this Happy Halloween message to their wrist! Enjoy. and have a....
