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Halloween Lessons, Activities & Resources, Grades 6-8

Lessons, Activities & Resources Help Your Class Explore Halloween History, Have Fun with Pumpkins, and More

By Phil Nast, retired middle school teacher and freelance writer

Found In: Language Arts & Literature, Social Studies, Grades 6-8

Article Sections

Lesson Plans

What Do Halloween Costumes Say?
Students in grades K-12 look critically at the Halloween costumes marketed to them. In schools where Halloween is observed, the activity can be used to develop guidelines for acceptable holiday garb.

Thrills! Chills! Using Scary Stories to Motivate Students to Read
Students in grades 6-8 examine story elements (e.g., character, setting, plot) through teacher read-alouds and independent reading. Reader-response journals and graphic organizers prepare students for the culminating activity – the creation of their own scary stories.

Halloween Carnival (Special Event)
Students in grades 6-12 participate in physical fitness activities to promote the acquisition of physical education skills.

Lesson Plan Collections

New York Times Learning Network
Lesson plans, student crossword puzzles, related Times Resources and other links.

Background Resources

Halloween History

The Origin & History of Halloween
What we know (and don't really know) about the origin and history of Halloween.

All Hallows' Eve
All Hallows' Eve falls on 31 October each year, and is the day before All Hallows Day, also known as All Saints' Day.

Samhain

Samhain | Absolute Astronomy
Samhain is a Gaelic harvest festival held on October 31–November 1.

Samhain | BBC, Religions
This festival, coming between autumn and winter, marks the Day of the Dead.

Safety

Halloween Poisonings
A debunking of the widespread belief that there are documented cases of Halloween poisonings.

Activities

Jack-O-Lanterns

Arts & Crafts

Music

Creative Writing

Audio/Video

Audios

The War of the Worlds - Mercury Theatre Original Radio Broadcast
Orson Welles’s Halloween broadcast of October 30, 1938.

Videos

Halloween | History.com
28 brief videos, 1 photo gallery and 2 interactives
Check out the pumpkin carving patterns.

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