Hallowe'en Fun

Normally I'm not a huge fan of Hallowe'en but today was a pretty fun day. I dressed up as a chef, which you think would be a pretty obvious costume, but some students had trouble identifying me. My Grade 5 homeroom class had been asking if we were going to be having a party and I decided to give them the responsibility of planning it. I was blown away by the number of students who asked if they could bring electronics (Nintendo DS, Ipods etc.) to the party. I said "No. They aren't allowed at school" and then of course I had to educate them on the purpose of having a party - to be social! The 7/8s were having a dance and I had to take away two DSs and explain that the purpose of a dance was to be social and dance. I just couldn't believe it.

Before I let my Grade 5s party it up, I gave them an extra music lesson. I found a "Five Little Pumpkins" Smartboard activity from Ashley Queen's Elementary Music Resources store. I thought it would be a fun opportunity to introduce my students to Boomwhackers since I'd only used them with the Intermediates this year. The kids had a blast ("Can we perform this for the school?") and we ended up spending more than a period working on it. Thank you to Ashley Queen for creating and sharing such a great lesson. 

                                           
Here's another great Halloween activity you can do (and it includes a freebie!)