Kelsey Zehr1st Grade LessonsOctober 28, 2009

Education 357

Monday: Guiding Questions:

o What exactly is Halloween?o Where did it come from?o Where did the name “Halloween” come from?

Objectives:o Students will be able to retell the history of the holiday of Halloween.o Students will be able to explain where the name Halloween came from.o Students will be able to reflect on the story of Halloween.o Students will use their writing skills and imaginations to rewrite the

history of Halloween in their own words. Lesson:

o Begin by reading the book The Story of Halloween by Carole Green. o Discuss with the children what they heard about Halloween in the book.o Ask intriguing questions that were answered in the book, such as “Where

did Halloween originate?” and “How was Halloween started?”o Next, ask the class where they think the word Halloween came from.o Explain to them that the name Halloween came about because by the

800s, Christianity had spread into Celtic lands and Pope Boniface IV named November 1 "All Saints' Day." It was a day to honor those who died for their beliefs. The celebration was also called "All-hallows" or "All-hallowmas" (from an old English word "Alholowmesse," meaning All Saints' Day). People began to call the night before it "All-hallows Eve." This name eventually became Halloween (www.timeforkids.com).

Activity:o Students will receive a Halloween themed writing prompt. o They will then be asked to rewrite the story of Halloween however they

would like to tell it. They can simply retell it in their own words, put their own spin on

it, make up their own way the name Halloween came about, etc. Assessment:

o Students will be verbally assessed in an informal manner: Can someone tell me how Halloween originated? Why is it called “Halloween?”

o Students’ writing and grammar skills will be assessed through reading their responses to the writing prompt.

o Students’ creativity and imagination will be assessed through their reading responses.

Standards:o Language Arts: Writing: Processes and Feature: Standard 1.4.2 – Use

various organizational strategies to plan writing. o Language Arts: Writing: Applications: Standard 1.5.1 – Write brief

narratives describing an experience.o Language Arts: Writing: Applications: Standard 1.5.2 – o Language Arts: Writing: Applications: Standard 1.5.4 – Use descriptive

words when writing.o Language Arts: Listening and Speaking: Skill, Strategies and Applications:

Standard 1.7.1 – Comprehension: Listen Attentively. o Social Studies: History: Standard 1.1.5 – Identify people and events

observed in national celebrations and holidays.o Social Studies: History: Standard 1.1.10 - Chronological Thinking,

Historical Analysis and Interpretation, Research: Distinguish between historical fact and fiction in American folktales and legends that are a part of American culture.

Tuesday: Guiding Questions:

o How is Halloween celebrated around the world?o What Halloween traditions do they have that we don’t and vice versa?o How does your family celebrate Halloween or the fall season?o What unique traditions does your family have?

Objectives:o Students will be able to answer questions about how other countries

celebrate Halloween.o Students will be able to name and discuss Halloween traditions practiced

in the United States.o Students will be able to name and discuss Halloween traditions practiced

in other countries.o Students will be able to compare and contrast the Halloween traditions

of the United States with the Halloween traditions of other countries.o Students will create a picture to illustrate a Halloween tradition in the

United States or in their specific family.o Students will create a picture to illustrate a Halloween tradition in

another country. Lesson:

o The lesson will begin by reading the book Celebrate Halloween with Pumpkins, Costumes, and Candy.

o The teacher will discuss the content of the book with the students and reflect on the information covered in the book.

Activity:o Students will be counted off into pairs and assigned a country to

research.o Research materials and information will be provided for each group.o Each group is to find out how their assigned country celebrates the

holiday of Halloween, or the holiday that is similar to Halloween. o Each group should locate their assigned country on a map.o After researching their country, each group will draw a picture

representing a tradition in that specific country, as well as a picture illustrating a Halloween tradition native to the United States or to their specific family.

o Each group will share the information they found with the class as well as their pictures.

Assessment:o Students’ listening skills will be assessed by how well they follow the

directions.o Students’ research skills will be assessed by whether or not they can find

the information needed to complete the assignment.o Students will be verbally assessed by answering informal questions asked

by the teacher: What are some Halloween traditions we practice here in the

United States? What are some traditions your family has for Halloween or for

fall? What did you learn about how other countries celebrate

Halloween?o Students will be assessed by showing their teacher and classmates where

their assigned country is located on a map. Standards:

o Social Studies: History: Standard 1.1.5 – Identify people and events observed in national celebrations and holidays.

o Social Studies: Geography: Standard 1.3.8 - Compare cultural similarities and differences, such as family traditions and customs, and the traditional clothing and food of various ethnic and cultural groups found in Indiana.

o Social Studies: Geography: The World in Spatial Terms: Standard 1.3.2 -Identify and describe continents, oceans, countries, cities and roads on maps and globes.

o Visual Arts: Creating Art: Standard 1.6.2 – Create artwork about self, family, and personal experiences.

o Visual Arts: Creating Art: Standard 1.6.4 – Demonstrate thoughtfulness and care in creating artwork.

o Visual Arts: Creating Art: Standard 1.6.6 – Reflect on and share work with others.

Wednesday: Guiding Questions:

o Why do we dress up in costumes for Halloween?o Why do we go trick-or-treating for Halloween?

Objectives:o Students will learn the history of trick-or-treating.o Students will learn the history of dressing up in costumes for Halloween.o Students will discuss their favorite Halloween traditions.o Students will learn the importance of safe trick-or-treating.o Students will learn a song that places emphasis on safe trick-or-treating.o Students will be able to sing a Halloween song on their own.

Lesson:o Begin the lesson by reading Clifford’s Halloween aloud to the students.o Ask students why they think we dress up for Halloween.o Also, ask students why they think we carve pumpkins and go trick-or-

treating for Halloween.o Next, discuss with the students what they enjoy most of these three

Halloween traditions.o Tell students the story about how trick-or-treating came about.

“Trick-or-treating most likely dates back to early All Souls' Day parades in England. During the festivities, poor people would beg for food. Families would then give them pastries called "soul cakes" in return for their promise to pray for the family's dead relatives. Children eventually took on this tradition, known as "going a-souling," and they would visit houses in their neighborhood for drinks, food and money.” (www.timeforkids.com)

o Tell students the story about why we dress up in costumes. “Dressing up in Halloween costumes also has European origins.

Hundreds of years ago, people believed that ghosts roamed the streets on Halloween night, so they wore masks when they left home to fool ghosts into thinking they were other spirits.” (www.timeforkids.com)

“On Halloween, people would also place bowls of food outside their homes to please the ghosts and discourage them from entering their houses. Over the course of several centuries, people gradually began to eat these goodies themselves (and leave nothing for the ghosts!).” (www.timeforkids.com)

o Students will create a timeline of the Halloween costumes that they have worn for the past five years.

o Students will share their timeline with the class and describe their favorite costume and why.

Activity:o Teach students about safe trick-or-treating by teaching them a song using

an echo activity: When I'm Trick-or-Treating

(sung to: Sing a Song of Sixpence)When I'm trick-or-treating I know what to do,I walk on the sidewalk and bring my flashlight too!I don't eat my candy until I'm home at last...I check it with an adult there and then I eat it fast!

Assessment:o Students will be assessed on their listening skills by reciting the lyrics of

the song taught in class.o Students will be assessed informally by verbal questioning from the

teacher: Why do we dress up for Halloween? Why do we go trick-or-treating for Halloween? Why is it important to take precautions while trick-or-treating? What kinds of precautions need to be taken while trick-or-

treating? Standards:

o Social Studies: History: Standard 1.1.5 – Identify people and events observed in national celebrations and holidays.

o Social Studies: History: Standard 1.1.8 Chronological Thinking, Historical Analysis and Interpretation, Research: Develop a simple timeline of important events in the student's life.

o Music: Performing Music: Sing short memorized songs from various cultures.

o Music: Performing Music: Echo short melodic and rhythmic patterns.

Thursday: Guiding Questions:

o Why are pumpkins such a big part of fall?o How do they grow?

Lesson:

o Begin the lesson by reading Pumpkin Jack, a story about a Jack-o-Lantern who is thrown out in the backyard and eventually decomposes and grows new pumpkins from his seeds.

o Ask students how they think the pumpkins grew in the back yard in the book.

o Have students discuss why they think pumpkins are associated with Fall.o Ask students if they have ever seen a pumpkin patch.o Ask students if they have ever seen the inside of a pumpkin.

Activity:o Students will be divided up into pairs.o First, each group will be given a Ziploc bag full of different colored

pumpkin seeds and a premade chart.o Students will estimate how many seeds are in the Ziploc bag and record it

on the chart. o After the estimations have been recorded, students should take the

seeds out of the bag and count them.o Have students answer these questions:

Was your prediction the same as the outcome? If not, was your guess greater or less than the result? Who was the closest?

o Next, students will sort the seeds according to color.o Have students answer the following questions:

Which color has the largest amount of seeds? Which color has the least amount of seeds?

o Have children graph the results on a bar graph. Assessment:

o The teacher will examine the students’ activities as they are completed.o Students will be assessed on effort.o Students will be assessed by form of nonverbal questioning.o The teacher will assess students’ estimation and sorting skills by

observing them during the activity and observing their finished products. Standards:

o Social Studies: Economics: Standard 1.4.1 – Identify goods that people use. (Pumpkins)

o Social Studies: Economics: Standard 1.4.6 – Explain that people exchange goods and services to get what they want. (Farming – sell pumpkins and other crops for money)

o Science: The Living Environment: Standard 1.4.4 – Explain that most living things need water, food and air.

o Science: The Living Environment: Standard 1.4.1 – Identify when stories give actions to plants and animals, such as the ability to speak, that they do not have.

o Science: The Nature of Science and Technology: Standard 1.1.1 – Observe, describe, draw and sort objects carefully to learn about them.

o Science: The Mathematical World: Standard 1.5.2 – Make and use simple picture graphs to tell about observations.

o Math: Number Sense: Standard 1.1.1 – Count, read and write whole numbers up to 100.

o Math: Number Sense: Standard 1.2.1 – Show the meaning of addition using objects.

o Math: Problem Solving: Standard 1.6.2 – Use tools such as objects or drawings to model problems.

Friday: Guiding Questions:

o How has Halloween changed over time?o What traditions do we have now that were not in place in previous times

and vice versa?o What was Halloween like back in history?

Lesson:o Teach children about how Halloween used to be, using information from

the article Those Were the Days: How Halloween Used to be Celebrated Like in Good Old Days.

o After reading the article and teaching the students of the differences, make a chart together.

o Compare and contrast the differences between Halloween in the past and Halloween now.

Activity:o Students will receive a Halloween decorated piece of writing paper.o Students will write how they would like to celebrate Halloween if they

could do it their own way.o Some things to consider:

Would there still be trick-or-treating? Would it be mandatory to dress up? Where would you go trick-or-treating? Would you carve pumpkins? Would you start your own Halloween tradition?

o Encourage students to be creative. Assessment:

o Students will be assessed based on effort for their writing creativity.o Students will be assessed on their participation by observation of the

teacher during the activity.o As a class, students will be assessed verbally by way of questions:

What are some traditions that used to be linked to Halloween that we no longer practice today?

What traditions do we commonly associate with Halloween these days?

What would your perfect Halloween be like (writing response)? Standards:

o Social Studies: History: Standard 1.1.1 - Compare the way individuals in the community lived in the past with the way they live in the present.

o Social Studies: History: Standard 1.1.5 - Identify people and events observed in national celebrations and holidays.

o Social Studies: Geography: Standard 1.3.4 Identify and describe physical features and human features of the local community including home, school and neighborhood.

o Language Arts: Writing: Standard 1.4.2 – Use various organizational strategies to plan writing.

o Language Arts: Writing: Standard 1.6.2 – Write in complete sentences. Language Arts: Writing: Standard 1.7.8 - Relate an important life event or personal experience in a simple sequence.

Resources: http://www.history.com/content/halloween http://www.apples4theteacher.com/holidays/halloween/about.html http://www.apples4theteacher.com/holidays/halloween/ http://www.timeforkids.com/TFK/specials/story/0,6079,58038,00.html#history http://www.novareinna.com/festive/world.html Hubbell, Will. Pumpkin Jack. Albert Whitman & Company, 2003. Heligman, Deborah. Celebrating Halloween with Pumpkins, Costumes and Candy.

National Geographic Children’s Books, 2007. Green, Carole. The Story of Halloween. Illustrated by Linda Bronson.

HarperCollins, 2005. Bridwell, Norman. Clifford’s Halloween. Scholastic, Inc., 1986. http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Those-Were-The-Days--How-Halloween-

Used-To-Be-Celebrated-Like-In-Good-Old-Days/784268