Halloween History Warm-Up

Name: _____________________________

Instructions: Draw or write about one thing you love to do on Halloween!

Teacher Script: Halloween History

Warm-Up (5 minutes)

Teacher: "Good morning, everyone! Let's get ready for an exciting lesson today. To start, you each have a paper called Halloween History Warm-Up. On it, I want you to draw or write about one thing you love to do on Halloween. Think about all the fun things you do during this spooky season! You have about 5 minutes for this."

(Circulate and observe students working. After 4 minutes, give a 1-minute warning.)

Teacher: "Alright, pencils down in 10, 9, 8... Now, who would like to share what they love about Halloween?" (Call on 2-3 students.) "Those are wonderful things! It sounds like Halloween is a really special holiday for many of you."

Introduction: The Mystery of Halloween! (3 minutes)

Teacher: (Display Halloween History Slides - Slide 1: The Mystery of Halloween!) "Today, we're going to become history detectives! We're going to uncover the mystery behind our favorite spooky holiday, Halloween! Have you ever wondered why we do the things we do on Halloween? Like, why do we dress up in costumes? Or why do we go trick-or-treating?"

(Display Halloween History Slides - Slide 2: What is Halloween?) "What are some things you do on Halloween? Shout them out!" (Listen for responses like costumes, candy, pumpkins, haunted houses.) "Great ideas! We all know Halloween is a time for fun, but where do you think these traditions really come from? Today, we'll find out!"

Exploring Halloween's Roots (10 minutes)

Teacher: (Display Halloween History Slides - Slide 3: A Long, Long Time Ago...) "Our story starts a very, very long time ago, with a special festival called Samhain. Can everyone say 'Samhain'?" (Guide students to pronounce 'Sow-in'.) "Excellent! The people who celebrated Samhain believed that at the end of summer, the line between our world and the spirit world became blurry. They thought that spirits, both good and bad, might visit their towns. To celebrate and protect themselves, they would light big bonfires and, guess what else? They wore spooky costumes!"

(Display Halloween History Slides - Slide 4: Why Costumes?) "Why do you think they wore costumes? Any ideas?" (Allow a few responses.) "That's right! Some people believed that if they dressed up like spirits, the real spirits wouldn't bother them. Others thought it would scare the bad spirits away! So, the next time you put on a superhero costume or a witch's hat, remember it's a very old tradition to keep those spooky vibes in check!"

(Display Halloween History Slides - Slide 5: The First "Treats"!) "Now, let's talk about candy! Who loves candy?" (Expect enthusiastic responses.) "Well, trick-or-treating has a history too! Long, long ago, people would leave food and treats outside their doors for the visiting spirits. They hoped this would keep the spirits happy.

Later, poor people and children would dress up in costumes and go door-to-door, asking for food. If they got a treat, great! If not, they might play a harmless 'trick' on the homeowner, like singing a song or telling a riddle. Does that sound a little like trick-or-treating today? How is it similar? How is it different?" (Facilitate a short discussion.)

(Display Halloween History Slides - Slide 6: Glowing Pumpkins: Jack-o[U+00027]–Lanterns!) "Our last mystery to solve is the glowing pumpkins! We call them jack-o'-lanterns. Did you know they weren't always pumpkins? The first jack-o'-lanterns were carved from turnips or potatoes! People would carve scary faces into them and place them outside their homes to, you guessed it, scare away evil spirits.

Eventually, when people came to America, they found big, round, orange pumpkins, which were much easier to carve! And that's how pumpkins became the stars of our jack-o'-lanterns!"

Activity: My Favorite Halloween Tradition (10 minutes)

Teacher: (Display Halloween History Slides - Slide 7: Halloween Today!) "Wow, we've learned so much! So, our fun Halloween traditions like costumes, trick-or-treating, and carving jack-o'-lanterns all come from very old ideas and ways of celebrating. Isn't that cool?

(Display Halloween History Slides - Slide 8: Time for an Activity!) "Now, it's your turn to create! I'm going to give you an Halloween History Activity sheet. I want you to choose ONE of the Halloween traditions we talked about today – costumes, trick-or-treating, or jack-o'-lanterns – and draw a picture of it. You can draw its origin (like someone wearing an old costume or carving a turnip) or how you celebrate it now! Be creative and colorful!"

(Distribute the activity sheets and art supplies. Circulate, provide assistance, and encourage students.)

Teacher: "As you're finishing up, if you'd like, you can share your drawing with a partner next to you, or we can have a few volunteers share with the whole class."

Cool-Down: One New Thing! (2 minutes)

Teacher: "Alright, everyone, bring your attention back up here. We're almost done with our Halloween history adventure! For our cool-down, I want each of you to think of one new thing you learned about Halloween today. Just one thing! Hold it in your head.

Now, on a count of three, I want you to whisper that one new thing to yourselves. One, two, three!"

(Collect the Halloween History Activity and Halloween History Warm-Up sheets.)

Teacher: "Fantastic job today, history detectives! You all did wonderfully discovering the secrets of Halloween!"

Halloween History Activity: My Favorite Tradition

Name: _____________________________

Instructions: Choose one Halloween tradition we learned about today (costumes, trick-or-treating, or jack-o[U+00027]–lanterns).

Draw a picture showing its history OR how you celebrate it today!

My Favorite Halloween Tradition is: _____________________________

Halloween History Cool Down

Name: _____________________________

Instructions: Write or draw one new thing you learned about the history of Halloween today.