Here are five Halloween-themed writing prompts that you could use with your students:
1. Write a 10 line Halloween poem using the following words: black cat, pumpkin, dark, graveyard, death, witch, gloomy, haunted, clown, and spooky.
2. Of all of the costumes you have ever worn on Halloween, what costumes are among your favorite? What makes these costumes so memorable? Describe what the costumes looked like.
3. Write a 50-100 word story using the first line, "It was all fun and games until we saw something move in the Haunted house."
4. Write a recipe for a magic potion using five items you see around the classroom. In addition to the ingredients list, provide cooking directions and explain the purpose of the magic potion.
5. Imagine you are hosting a Halloween party. Identify three people (dead or alive) that you would invite to your party (aside from your friends and family). What makes these guests so special? Why do you think they would make a great guest at your Halloween party?
Another way to bring the Halloween spirit into your middle and high school English classes could be through the use of spooky short stories and books during the month of October. I typically complete my short story unit around this time of the year anyway, so it works for me to incorporate these 'spooky' stories into my unit.
Here are a few spooky short stories you could use during the month of October:
• The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (Washington Irvine)
• The Tell-Tale Heart (Edgar Allan Poe)
• The Fall of the House of Usher (Edgar Allan Poe)
• The Monkey's Paw (W. W. Jacobs)
• The Landlady (Roald Dahl)
• If Cornered, Scream (Patricia J. Thurmon)
Here are a few spooky books you could use during the month of October:
• World War Z (Max Brook)
• Patient Zero (Jonathan Maberry)
• The Reapers Are the Angels (Alden Bell)
• The Walking Dead series (Robert Kirkman)
• Feed (Mira Grant)
• Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Ransom Riggs)
Click HERE for some FREE Halloween-themed bookmarks!
Begin your lesson with the short story elements handout included. The handout reviews 15 items necessary to any short story including the explanations and definitions for effective leads, dialogue, direct speech, protagonist, antagonist, mood, tone, literary devices, plot structure (diagram), exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and conclusion. An answer key has been provided!
Add creativity to the short stories by having students randomly select characters and setting prompts (12 provided for each category). Simply, cut out the character and setting prompts, place face down on a table, and have students randomly select some Halloween-themed ideas to incorporate into their own stories.
Finally, to ensure your students' tales are full of the details that are required in a short story, an additional full-page short story writing organizer has been included, as well as a character building handout, which will review and expand the elements plot and character again, but in more detail.
Visuals are another way that Halloween can be incorporated into your daily writing routine. This type of writing gives students the opportunity to focus on the five senses, incorporating the Halloween theme into their writing using a picture prompt. Try this Descriptive Halloween Photo Activity for FREE!
Use these fun Halloween-themed topics to practice public speaking and debate-style skills in your classroom! Get your students moving by hanging up four signs that indicate the following: strongly agree, agree, strongly disagree, disagree.
Present the following topics and let the discussion begin! Students should be prepared to share their reasons for their opinion selection, so they should choose their decision wisely.
Discussion topic #1: Are high school students too old for trick or treating?
Discussion topic #2: Should schools be allowed to celebrate Halloween?
Discussion topic #3: Are costumes necessary when trick or treating?
Discussion topic #4: Should trick or treating be an all-day event?
Discussion topic #5: Should non-sugary candy be mandatory on Halloween?
Looking for more ideas to bring the Halloween spirit into an ELA classroom? Check out these activities and posts from other Secondary English Coffee Shop bloggers!
- Edgar Allan Poe Unit The Superhero Teacher
- Creative Mystery Story Addie Williams
- Halloween Sentence Combining Bell Ringers The Daring English Teacher
- Masque of the Red Death Symbolism and Allegory Nouvelle ELA
- Halloween Crumpled Pumpkin Writing Presto Plans
- Halloween Creative Writing & Learning Stations Room 213
- Halloween Figurative Language Activities Stacey Lloyd
- October Writing Prompts Secondary Sara