Halloween Pumpkin Theme Unit Lesson Plans

After reading the story Goofy Glenda and Willie the Wacky Wizard emergent reader printable books as a shared reading experience found in the Halloween theme unit, the children can complete the craft below depicting the main characters within these stories. The letters Gg, and Ww are the focus letter of these emergent readers.

Materials for the Craft

black and white construction paper

witch and wizard face, hands (in the members' area or theme unit).

pencil crayons or felts

Sample Page from the Emergent Reader

The story line reads as follow:

Goofy Glenda stirs her brew. Out pops a ghost. Goofy Glenda stirs her brew. Out pops a gremlin. Goofy Glenda stirs her brew. Out pops ghoul. Goofy Glenda stirs her brew. Out pops a gorilla. Goofy Glenda flies away and leaves her new friends there to play.

Instructions for the Craft

1. Children can trace or the teacher can have a large triangle on black or blue construction paper.

2. Children cut out the triangle.

3. Color the head and hands. Add them to the triangular body (face, triangle and hands in the members' area or theme unit).

4. Add arms using two strips of construction paper. Cut and glue on the hands.

The story line for the emergent reader Willie the Wacky Wizard is as follows:

Wiilie the wacky wizard waves his wand. A funny Aa word appears. Willie the wacky wizard waves his wand. A funny Dd word appears. Willie the wacky wizard waves his wand. A funny Gg word appears. Willie the wacky wizard waves his wand. A funny Cc word appears. Willie is a funny alphabet wizard.

Interactive Component

The children are to cut and paste the pictures that match the letter sounds to the print.

Haunted House Craft and Writing Project

The teacher prints what the child has dictated or the children print on the template provided ( page 7 in the Halloween theme unit). This can be transferred into a craft activity as shown in the photograph.

Materials for the Craft

1. Haunted house outline (p.7 in the Halloween theme unit).

2. Halloween cut-outs.

Instructions for the Craft

1. Children print on the lines what they see in the haunted house. Example; bat and ghost.

2. Children paint (watercolor) the haunted house (p.7 in the theme unit) or this can be traced on black construction paper.

3. Cut out the haunted house and glue it onto blue construction paper.

3. Children can draw, paint or cut what they see in the haunted house and add it to the scene. (p. 9 in the Halloween theme unit).

Pumpkins Mini-Theme

Kindergarten and Preschool Activities

The book "The Pumpkin Circle: The Story of a Garden" by George Levenson or "Pumpkin, Pumpkin" by Jeanne Titherington are two good books to use for introducing this theme.

Day 1

One of the literature selections outlined above would be used to introduce this theme and the life cycle of a pumpkin.

Follow-up Craft and Language Activity

The children would color, add the pumpkin seeds, soil (colored) and sun as displayed in the photograph. This activity is meant to reinforce what they learned from the book being read to them. The text reads:

I start as a seed.

I need soil.

I need sun.

I need water.

I become a Jack-o'-lantern.

Language Lesson

Introduce the literacy centers. This will vary according to previous instructions and the age of the children

Literacy Centers

Matching Upper and Lower Case Letters

Matching upper-case and lower-case letters.

Matching the Same Letters (for younger children) - Visual Discrimination

Younger children can match the same letters.

Placing the Letters in the Correct Order
The children can place the alphabet pumpkin cards in the correct order.

Math Lesson

Show three pumpkins (small, medium and large). Have the children order them in terms of size and weight. Estimate how many seeds are in the small pumpkin. Clean out the small pumpkin and together count the seeds.Review numbers 1 and 2. Older children will be reviewing how to print the numbers.

Math Centers

Counting Pumpkins Booklet - Printing Numbers

Older children would be practicing printing the numbers 1 and 2 on the dotted lines and coloring the correct amount in the book "Counting Pumpkins" (a page is displayed above). Younger students would be coloring the correct amount using a model to assist them. The booklet is found in the theme unit or member's area.

One-One Number Correspondence

The children will be placing the correct amount of pumpkin seeds on the pumpkin number templates.

Ordering Numbers

The pumpkin number cards can be placed in the correct order from the smallest to the great or vice versa.

Dot to Dot Number Pumpkin

In the link below you will find a dot to dot number pumpkin outline

Dot to Dot Pumpkin

Science Center

Place the seeds, pumpkin and pulp from the small pumpkin on newspaper. Place magnifying glasses at the center. The children can touch, smell and closely look at the parts of a pumpkin.

Day 2

The book "Pumpkin Faces" by Judith Moffat is a a funny book to read to the children. They will be amused by all the different pumpkin faces. The emergent readers "Colorful Funny Pumpkins" or "Carving Pumpkins" below would be a great follow-up activity after reading the book.

Follow-Up - Shared Reading

Two Readers

The pictures from the reader "Colorful Funny Pumpkins" or "Carving Pumpkins" would be transferred to a predictable chart and used as a shared reading experience to model the reading process. The reader was designed to review or introduce colors and color words. The text for "Colorful Funny Pumpkins" reads:

A funny red pumpkin.

A funny green pumpkin.

A funny yellow pumpkin.

A funny blue pumpkin.

A funny brown pumpkin.

A funny orange pumpkin.

A funny white pumpkin.

A funny black pumpkin.

All kinds of funny colorful pumpkins.

Draw a funny pumpkin.

Literacy Centers

1. The children would be coloring their emergent reader "Colorful Funny Pumpkins" according to the color words found on each page.

2. Playing color games found in the "Apples and Colors" theme units.

3. Continue similar activities as introduced in Day 1 Plans.

Follow-up Craft Activity

Pumpkin Shape Craft

Children can make a shape pumpkin using the shapes circle, rectangle and triangle as shown in the photo to the left. The children can trace on construction paper, paint or color the shapes and cut them out. Pinking shears could be used to form the jagged edges on the rectangle mouth.t

Math Lesson

1. Have children estimate how many seeds are in the medium-sized pumpkin. Count the seeds.

2. Review numbers 3 and 4. Older children will practice how to print the numbers.

Math Centers

1. The children will be completing the next pages (focus on numbers 3 and 4) in the "Counting Pumpkins" booklet. Older students will be printing the numbers on the dotted lines and coloring the correct amount of pumpkins. Younger students would be only coloring the correct amount using a model for assistance.

2. Continue with Day 1 Center Suggestions

Day 3

Read the "Pumpkin People" by Sandra and Ron Lightburn to the children.

Language Lesson

Continue to model the reading process by reading the predictable chart.

Math and Math Centers

Continue reviewing numbers and practicing these in the Math Centers.

Pumpkin Man Craft

Color or paint, cut and assemble the pumpkin man templates similar as to what is displayed in the photograph.

Adding Music to the Pumpkin Man Craft

The children close their eyes while a child hides the pumpkin man. Sing the song to the tune of Have you Seen the Muffin Man?

Have you seen the pumpkin man, the pumpkin man, the pumpkin man? Have you seen the pumpkin man? Where can he be?

Children open their eyes and guess where it was hidden. The song can also be sung as the search is taking place.

Day 4

Read Pumpkin Day, Pumpkin Night by Anne Rockwell

Language and Math

Continue previous days activities.

Follow-up Craft - Crayon Resist Night Scene

The children can color the Jack-o'-lantern and moon with wax crayons. Black paint would be thinned out with water. The children would paint over top of the scene to make it appear as a night scene. Stars could be added. A discussion would take place on how wax is water repellent.

Day 5

Read "How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin" by Margaret McNamara.

Follow-up Discussion

Together count the large pumpkin seeds. Have a discussion on which pumpkin had the most seeds. The book above does a great job of explaining that the biggest pumpkin does not necessarily have the most seeds. You can't always tell how many seeds a pumpkin has until you open it but there are clues. If a pumpkin is a darker orange and has more lines on the outside, it will likely have more seeds. For each line outside, there is a row of seeds. The longer a pumpkin grows, the more lines it has and becomes darker. The older the pumpkin, the more seeds it will have.

Five Little Pumpkins Craft

After reading Five Little Pumpkins poem as a shared reading experience, the craft above could be done to illustrate the story.

Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate.

The first one said, 'My it's getting late.'

The second one said, 'There are witches in the air.'

The third one said, 'But we don't care.'

The fourth one said, 'We'll run and run and run.'

The fifth one said, 'It's just Halloween fun.'

'Whooo,' went the wind,

Out went the light.

And the five little pumpkins rolled out of sight!

Instructions for the Craft

1. Children can paint the fence like above. Wait for it to dry.

2. Color or paint the pumpkins. Cut these out and the witch and add them to the scene.

Five Pumpkins and Witch

All Templates are Found in the Theme Unit or Member's Area

Information on How to Gain Access to This Theme Plus

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