Minions And Tons of Halloween Fun with the First Graders and Kindergartners

You might have guessed... I wore overalls, a yellow shirt, black clogs, black gloves, and an amazing hat that my sister knitted for me. I was a minion! There were lots of teacher minions at our school, and we had a blast!



Somehow I ended up in the shadows in this picture, but I'm there! Our parade was first thing in the morning, and the weather was perfect. It was probably the most fun I've ever had at a school Halloween parade!

And the fun just kept coming!

I took the kindergartners and first graders back to our classroom after the parade and they had some healthy snacks. A team of fabulous parents set up the room while we were parading. They set up placemats, napkins, juice boxes and plates of delicious, healthy foods: mini muffins, strawberries, grapes, sliced apples, cheese cubes, and orange wedges. My little darlings ate, chatted, and worked on a packet of Halloween activities like dot-to-dots and word searches and coloring pages. Soon after, it was time for lunch. What a quick morning! After lunch, we watched "It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown," which the students thoroughly enjoyed. We did a little work on our "Spider Unit," and then it was time for recess. After recess, we had Group Time, which we always have on Thursday afternoons. We were short one parent volunteer, but it all worked out.

We have Group Time on Monday and Thursday afternoons. My class is divided into five groups, and students rotate through five activities over the course of the two days. When possible, all five activities are parent-led (or teacher-led!) But today, there were just two parens and me. Yikes!

The first group worked without an adult. They did number order puzzles on the rug. I made eight different number puzzles, which are included in my Pumpkins! unit. Good times!

The second group worked with me. We played Grab the Candy Corn. I got the game from Mathwire.com and I've been using it with my students for several years. I especially like the pumpkin variation!



The third group made little, mini, teeny, tiny jack-o-lantern lanterns. They turned out so cute, and some students had time to make more than one.



The fourth group played "Make a Monster." Students rolled a dice to determine what kind of body, eyes, nose, mouth, and ears to make in their monster drawings. It is a very engaging activity, and my students went home planning to make monster books! They were inspired!



And the fifth group worked with a parent to play "Boo!" It is a 4 by 4 matrix Bingo game that I made. Each square has a Halloween or Fall picture. Students took turns rolling a letter dice and then everyone had to find a picture with that beginning sound. "C" was easy with cat and candy and candle! Students used candy corn to mark their boards!

And now, on to tomorrow... I'll be getting to school early to get everything ready for November to start. We will need lots of new things for the calendar, a new monthly poem, student calendars to make, etc. Thank Goodness It's Friday. I don't think I could handle more than one more day before the weekend! I can only imagine how tired those little kiddos will be in the morning!

Goodnight, Friends! Hope you got lots of treats!