While Halloween candy is a huge part of traditional trick-or-treating excitement, some students may have allergies or dietary sensitivities that might leave them out of the celebrations.

Don’t let that stop you!

We’ve compiled the best spooky activities and alternative goodies to candy to have your kids howling with excitement!

The most exciting Halloween activities

All of these spooky Halloween games and activities can be done in the classroom while social distancing or even at a virtual Halloween party!

Halloween themed bingo

The best part of this fun Halloween game is that all you need is a printer and some pencils to play!

What you’ll need:

1. Download The Incremental Mama’s PDF of free Halloween-themed bingo sheets with unique calling cards!
2. Pens or pencils for students to mark their sheet
   1. If you don’t want students to write on the printed sheets, you can use store-bought pumpkin seeds as markers instead!

How to play:

1. Give every player a card (if you are virtual, you can mail them a card or have them print it out at home).
2. Have each player grab a handful of pumpkin seeds, or have them bring out a pen or pencil.
3. Everyone can put a marker on the FREE space!
4. Put all the calling cards into a bowl or bag.
5. Randomly select a card to announce to your class. If a player has the same image on their bingo sheet, they can mark it off with their markers.
6. Repeat this until someone calls, “Trick or treat!”
7. Give the winner a prize and play again!

Great pumpkin math investigation

This is a great way to combine teaching and celebrating Halloween with kids!

What you’ll need:

1. Enough small pumpkins for each small group in your class and an extra for yourself
   1. OR if it’s too messy to carve pumpkins to scoop out the seeds, you can replace each pumpkin with a brown bag full of store-bought seeds).
2. Next, print out these free activity sheets!

How to play:

1. First, do a demonstration of the activity. Get your own pumpkin or brown bag. Have them guess and record the number of pumpkin seeds.
2. Take out the pumpkin seeds on a plate, and have your kids estimate the number of seeds on their plates.
3. Then, count the number of seeds using the different grouping mats.
   1. Model how you can use the number mats and add leftovers.
4. Record the total number of seeds on the provided chart. Have a discussion by comparing the estimations and the total amount of counted seeds.
   1. Ex. 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 +10 + 10 + 7 = 127 OR 100 + 20 + 7 = 127
5. Now, it’s time for your students to do the same thing in small groups! Give around 4-5 kids a pumpkin or bag and have them repeat everything you did.

Geometric bats:

Have your students learn about rectangles, squares, and triangles while crafting bats!

What you’ll need:

1. Black and orange construction paper
2. Scissors
3. Glue
4. Googly eyes
5. The Geometric Bat for Younger Kids downloadable template.
6. The template is free to download but you’ll need to make an account on Teachers Pay Teachers first.

How to construct the bat:

1. Use the template shapes to cut out the pieces from black construction paper.
2. Follow the design on the download to glue the pieces onto the orange piece of construction paper.
3. Glue on googly eyes.
4. Hang your bats around the class.
5. Let the discussion questions be the beginning of a great conversation about sizes, angles, and decomposition of shapes!

Decorate these bats around the classroom to add to the Halloween flare or have your students take them home to tape to their front doors.

Halloween themed movies for all ages

When finding something for your class to watch, it might be hard to find a movie that won’t scare the easily-spooked kids too badly yet will also grab the attention of the ones who like scary things.

We’ve got just the list of family-friendly movies to make sure your Halloween parties go smoothly without any crying or bored kids!

Spookley the Square Pumpkin (2004) – Rated G

This fun animated movie is about Spookley, a square pumpkin who gets teased and bullied for his shape. This is the perfect movie for young children and teaches them how to deal with bullying and how to accept and love themselves.Spookley: The Square Pumpkin is free with a Netflix subscription.

The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) – Rated PG

When Jack Skellington from Halloween Town accidentally stumbles into Christmas Town, he begins to fall in love with Christmas. So much so that he kidnaps Santa Claus!The Nightmare Before Christmas can be rented on Amazon Prime for $3.99.

Coraline (2009) – Rated PG

Bring the haunted house to your classroom with this spooky stop-motion movie! After moving to a new home, Coraline discovers a portal to a parallel world of her current life. But she soon discovers that the mother of this world has a dark and terrible secret.

Coraline is one of the scarier movies on our list so if your students are younger or easily scared, we suggest skipping this one.

Amazon Prime is currently having a sale so you can rent Coraline for just $2.99 today!

Corpse Bride (2005) – Rated PG

A nervous man named Victor accidentally finds himself married to a corpse-woman named Emily after practicing his wedding vows in a forest. It’s up to his living fiancee to face Emily and get Victor back.

You can rent Corpse Bride on Amazon Prime for $3.99.

5 great alternatives to candy that your students will love

Luckily, Amazon has a vast selection of treats that aren’t candy that you can pass out in class.

The great part about having these candy alternatives is that you can take whatever you have leftover at the end of the day and hand it out to trick or treaters at night.

1) Spooky stickers

What kid doesn’t love stickers? Amazon has a great selection of different stickers that you can pass around for some more Halloween fun.

Our favorite spooky sticker set has over 1000 stickers and is less than $15 if you have Amazon Prime.

2) Halloween erasers

Erasers are always in demand for students and can make for a good bingo reward. Our favorite Amazon pack comes with 60 erasers, including cute black cats, shouting ghosts, and great pumpkins, all for $22.

3) Glow in the dark temporary tattoos

Choosing and putting on temporary tattoos is a guaranteed way to excite any kid, even the ones who are disappointed for not getting candy! We promise that these non-toxic glow-in-the-dark tattoos will be a huge hit for all your students.

You can find a stack of 20 temporary tattoo sheets with 200 assorted styles for less than $8. What a spooky steal!

Sticking on these fun tattoo stickers is easy:

1. Cut out the design you want.
2. Remove the clear film.
3. Stick it on any clean and smooth surface on the body.
4. Wet the tattoo sticker with water and wait for 10-20 seconds before slowly peeling off the sticker.
5. Tip: don’t touch the design as it dries! This will help it last longer.

Did you know that these temporary tattoos can last up to 5 days? These fun designs will make your kids popular with all their friends and can spice up their trick or treating costumes!

4) Glow sticks

This pack of 100 vibrant glowing sticks is the perfect Halloween party accessory and is only $13. Students can wear them around their necks or their wrists and the glow lasts for up to 12 hours, long enough for them to go out trick or treating at night!

5) Halloween themed masks

Masks are still a common sight but we know just the way to turn these masks into the perfect fashion statement with Halloween-themed protective masks! Run and get a 50 pack of these disposable, holiday-themed face masks for only $18.

You don’t need candy to have a spook-tacular Halloween!

There are a number of great ways educators can bring Halloween to the classroom without candy and trick or treating! Whether it is playing Halloween bingo in costumes or laughing over glowing tattoos as they watch a movie, we know your students will have a lot of fun!

Educate your class about important terms, definitions, the Pride Movement, and LGBTQ+ stories!

Teach the history of Pride Month

Learning more about how Pride Month started is a good way to start celebrating LGBTQ+ communities.

Pride Month is commemorated each year in June to honor the 1969 Stonewall uprising in New York City.

Supporters of the Stonewall Inn, a gay club in Greenwich Village, had staged a resistance against a police raid that was targeting LGBTQ+ Americans.

Protestors demanded that safe havens be established where LGBTQ+ people can be safely open about their sexual orientation without fear of arrest.

The Stonewall Riots paved the way for the modern fight to outlaw discriminatory laws against the LGBTQ+ community.

While the fight continues, Pride Month also includes celebratory parades, parties, workshops, concerts, and more.
You can structure a lesson on the Stonewall Uprisings just like you do with any important event or see how this high school lesson plan is built.

Highlight LGBTQ+ history

Many people questioned and broke the societal expectations of gender and sexuality yet are often hidden from traditionally taught history.

Utilize The Hidden Voices LGBTQ+ Project to teach students about individuals who influenced the social, political, artistic, and economic landscape in significant ways. It also includes an overview of U.S. LGBTQ+ history, sample focus questions, and comprehensive profiles of historical figures.

Unheard Voices is another amazing resource to use in middle school or high school. It’s an oral history and curriculum project that explores broad themes including silence vs. invisibility, and inclusion vs. exclusion.

Teach about all of the pride flags

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The rainbow flag that you might be familiar with first started with Harvey Milk.

Milk was the first openly gay person to hold a high public office in a major American city, in this case, San Francisco. His campaigning emphasized hope for young gay people, so he asked the artist Gilbert Baker to design a unifying symbol.

That symbol turned out to be the rainbow flag, which first debuted at the San Francisco Pride Parade in 1978.
In addition to the rainbow flag, there are flags for a wide range of sexual orientations and gender identities just like how different states have their own state flag.

Know the difference between sex, gender, and sexuality

Gender, sex, and sexuality are not interchangeable terms, so it’s important to know what each mean.

Gender: Refers to socially constructed characteristics of females and males, such as roles, behaviors, and norms.

Sex: “Refers to a person’s anatomy, physical attributes such as external sex organs, sex chromosomes and internal reproductive structures” (Learning For Justice).

Sexuality/ Sexual Orientation: “Our physical, emotional and/or romantic attractions to others” (Learning For Justice).

Gender Identity: “A person’s gender-related identity, whether or not that gender-related identity, appearance or behavior is different from that traditionally associated with the person’s physiology or assigned sex at birth. Everyone has a gender identity. Gender Identity is a person’s inner sense of being a man or a woman, some combination of both, or neither” (PBS Learning Media).

Learning For Justice has K-12 lesson plans to help teachers navigate the complex topics of gender and sexual identity with their class. The lessons cover topics such as privilege tied to certain identities and figuring out how to express your own identity.

To break away from girl/boy labels, use this lesson toolkit to host a gender-neutral day and have students question gendered spaces present throughout their time in school.

Be aware of pride definitions

LGBTQ+ is a common abbreviation for lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer or questioning. The term is often used to encompass all of the communities in LGBTTQQIAAP:

• Lesbian
• Gay
• Bisexual
• Transgender
• Transsexual
• Queer
• Questioning
• Intersex
• Asexual/ Ace
• Ally
• Pansexual

LGBTQ+ is often used because it’s user friendly.

For common terminology used to address sexual identity, gender expression, and gender identity, check out this list.

You can also view this Toolkit for Educators for more terms and resources to help educators promote understanding, awareness, and self-esteem in the classroom.

There are a LOT of terms and terms that are always evolving. Don’t stress about memorizing the entire list.

The most important thing is to be respectful of everyone’s identities and use the terms that people prefer.

Share the stories of LGBTQ+ people

A critical way to highlight underrepresented communities is to showcase individual voices. Celebrate Pride Month by sharing LGBTQ+ stories with your students.

We Are The Youth is an ongoing photojournalism project that shares the stories of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer youth in the United States.

I’m From Driftwood aims to help LGBTQ+ people learn more about their community through the power of sharing stories.

You can also include LGBTQ+ inclusive books into your curriculum. Getting Smart created a list of great books from preschool to high school.

We hope you utilize these suggestions and resources to celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride with your students.

Helping students gain a better understanding of different communities builds empathy and allows LGBTQ+ students to feel safer and more affirmed in your classroom.

Start learning about Juneteenth and its cultural significance so you can celebrate it in your classroom this year!

What is Juneteenth?

Juneteenth, which is short for June Nineteenth, marks the day that U.S. federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas. They went to ensure that all enslaved African Americans were freed. Juneteenth is also the oldest celebration of the legal end of slavery in the United States.

Other names for Juneteenth are:

• Juneteenth Independence Day
• Freedom Day
• Emancipation Day
• Jubilee Day
• Cel-liberation Day
• Second Independence Day

The Emancipation Proclamation

On September 22, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. This proclamation was to be enacted on January 1, 1863. It said that all enslaved people that seceded from the U.S. during the American Civil War were to be freed.

This meant that slaves in border states and states under Northern control were not to be freed.

While this proclamation paved the way for permanent abolition of slavery, it was not the sole reason slaves were freed.

Two and a half years later in 1865, the Union soldiers would have to take control of Galveston, Texas. This action would help free all remaining enslaved people.

How did Juneteenth start?

A year after 1865, newly freed Black people organized an annual celebration of “Jubilee Day” on June 19th in the state of Texas. These community oriented local celebrations included music, prayers, barbecues, traditional dress and other celebratory acts.

As Black people migrated out of Texas to other states, they carried the Juneteenth tradition with them. Soon African American communities and other communities throughout the U.S. were celebrating Juneteenth!

Fun fact: Texas was the first state to declare Juneteenth a holiday!

The Civil Rights movement

During the era of World War 2, Juneteenth celebrations largely declined as much of the public’s attention was on wartime efforts.

This changed during the Civil Rights movement, which spanned between the 1950s and 1960s. After Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination in 1968, his friend Ralph Abernathy led the Poor People’s March that summer.

This march ended in a giant Juneteenth celebration, which helped spread Juneteenth around the country.

How is Juneteenth honored today?

“Juneteenth, today, celebrates African-American freedom and achievement while encouraging continuous self-development and respect for all cultures.”

Juneteenth.com

Many hold family gatherings, some make a pilgrimage to Galveston, and some cities hold larger events like parades. Other typical activities include rodeos, fishing, barbecuing, and baseball.

For non-Black individuals, you can celebrate by supporting Black communities whether through buying food from Black-owned restaurants or donating to community organizations.

You can also educate yourself about Black history and social justice through books, shows, podcasts, and more.

Is Juneteenth a federal holiday?

Yes, it is!

There have been multiple attempts in the past to recognize Juneteenth as a national day of observance, also known as a federal holiday. Finally, on January 13, 2022, the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act was signed into law. Juneteenth is now an official holiday!

With this, the United States now has 12 permanent federal holidays.

Here at Scoot, we get the day off to celebrate Juneteenth and reflect on our nation’s history.

How can I celebrate Juneteenth in the classroom?

Black history is deeply engrained with American history and should be taught year-round. But Juneteenth is a great opportunity to emphasize this important historical event. This is an important time for teaching tolerance and acceptance that all students need to learn.

Here are some great, free resources to share with your students as you begin celebrating Juneteenth!

Videos to watch

• What is Juneteenth? – This Juneteenth Cartoon that goes over fun facts about this holiday including why it’s celebrated around the US.
• Juneteenth – All About the Holidays – PBS Learning Media created this short video to introduce kids to Juneteenth.
• Celebrating Juneteenth – Founding director of the National Museum of African American History & Culture, Smithsonian leads a tour through a Juneteenth exhibition.

Teaching resources to use

• Teaching Juneteenth – This blog of Juneteenth lessons provides frameworks to help educators both recognize challenges of fighting injustice and celebrate culture, activism, and humanity.
• Teaching Culture as Resistance – This grades 6-8 lesson plan addresses important questions surrounding what identity is and how society shapes it.
• Juneteenth – These grades 3-5 lesson plans cover how to describe different identities and respectfully learn about other peoples’ experiences.

The importance of teaching Juneteenth

It’s important to give your students the space to explore Juneteenth and the dark history of the United States. We need to learn from past mistakes and atrocities to ensure it never happens again.

While you don’t have to give the gruesome details of the horrors of slavery, you should tell your students that Juneteenth is not just an annual holiday. It’s also a day that many people have given their lives to see celebrated.

It’s also great to know that you can help your Black and African American students feel that they and their history is respected!

1) Handprint hat

(via craftymorning)

Make sure your students stand out in the playground!

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2) Pine cone turkey

(via firefliesandmudpies)

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3) Turkey hand

(via happiest mommy on the block)

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Great way to express their artistic abilities.

4) Door decoration

(via thingstoshareandremember)

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5) Turkey mason jar

(via goodhousekeeping)

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Not only fun for kids to create but also a great addition to home decorations!

6) Pilgrim hat

(via fiskars)

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7) Colorful feathers

(via crafty morning)

8) Tissue paper turkey

(via crafty morning)

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9) Gobble globe

(via Ilovetocreate)

A combination of everything, hand cutout, glitter, glue and a great addition to classroom decorations!

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10) Paper pilgrims

(via goodhousekeeping)

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Bonus fun activity:

Learn how to say “thank you” in different languages. It can be fun for your students to  test their foreign language skills. (This website will help you learn to say “thank you” in over 400 languages!)

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