Pumpkins and Halloween

We've started working on simple craft projects while the kids listen to our read-aloud. They love to draw and paint and it is a great opportunity for them to do lots of simple projects. I can do the more complicated ones on our Art Day (Thurdays). They listen better and longer when their hands are busy too. :^)



So heading into Halloween week, here are some links I'm using this year:

1. abcteach has a pumpkin page full of fantastic stuff - I'm thinking about making Rose a new seasonal set of letters. ( I love that it has lower case letters to print for a fun matching game too.) I envision Anna's copywork this week being in the Bat and Pumpkin shapebook. Some simple projects for read-aloud time will include the cut and paste jack o lantern faces, the lacing card, and the paper bag puppet. We might even squeeze in the Paper Bag Pumpkin on Art Day. We may use the Experiment pages too, at least the one for describing their pumpkin - I really want to start nature notebooks and this would be perfect.
2. Crayola comes thru as always. This time I have my eye on the halloween message game to work on during read-aloud time - I think we're going to have to read a lot this week :^). Maybe Farmer Boy will get finished after all.
3. On Art Day we'll be using colored pencils to color in a picture of Van Gogh's Sunflowers. (He's our "artist of the month"). Then I'm planning to have them do a thumprint pumpkin patch and glass jar jack 'o lanterns (sorry, can't find links for either right now).
4. For Music Day we'll be using the fantastic Classics for Kids again. This time a program of spooky Halloween music complete with quiz and activity page.
5. Instead of memorizing a new poem this week, we'll be reviewing the ones we've learned and memorizing bones instead. Test your knowledge. I'll also be pulling out Rattle Your Bones: Skeleton Drawing Fun .

We were supposed to tackle Magnets and Electricity this week too, but I can't get to the library until tonight. We'll have to see if we can squeeze it in between the pumpkins. And did I mention that we have free tickets for a pony ride at the equestrian park that expire this week? And Anna has some extra reading to finish so that she can get her "Book-It" Pizza Hut voucher. We'd better get a lot done this week!