Halloween Lesson Plan #1 (using "Go Away, Ghoulie Goblin!")

Halloween can be a fun, but sometimes scary time for young children. "Go Away, Ghoulie Goblin" from Super Simple Halloween Songs and "Go Away!" from Super Simple Songs 1 introduce some of the characters kids may encounter on Halloween, but with a sense of playfulness to help them deal with some of the fear they may experience.

Here is a simple lesson plan you can use with young learners built around the song "Go Away, Ghoulie Goblin."

Stickers/Stamps - Our students all have "Passports". At the beginning of class we collect the passports and let each student choose a sticker. This is a great time to call each student by name and practice/review very simple language like "Hello!" "How are you!" and "What color?" (when choosing a sticker.)

Hello Song - "Hello, My Friends (Let's Go Trick-or-Treating)" from Super Simple Halloween Songs is great for the weeks leading up to Halloween. For learners 4 years old and under, you'll want to use the same hello song each week to reassure them at the start of class. For older students, try mixing it up a little. Use "Hello, My Friends (Let's Go Trick-or-Treating)" for a couple of weeks, then use the sing-along version and change some of the lyrics, adding new costumes and Halloween terms.

Make a Circle - Make a circle with everyone in the class. Make a big circle! Make a small circle. Go up! Go down. Walk around in a circle. Next, sing "Make a Circle" from Super Simple Songs 1. The students will love it and at the end of the song everyone will be seated in a circle, ready for the next activity.

Picture cards - Introduce some of the Halloween vocabulary students will be using when you sing "Go Away, Ghoulie Goblin". Picture cards are in included in the Super Simple Halloween Songs Teacher's Kit. Insert the cards into a large envelope. (If possible, decorate the envelope with question marks and other fun designs.) In class, "notice" the envelope sitting on the shelf and go examine it. Look inside the envelope and then look back at the students excitedly. Look back in the envelope and then back at the students. Build excitement and anticipation about what is inside the envelope. When the students start asking to see what's inside, (encourage them to say, in English, "Show me!"), put the envelope back and say playfully, "No, no, no." When the students keep asking to see what's in the envelope, say, "Okay! Let's look!".

Slowly pull out the first picture card so that it is revealed little by little. When using picture cards with young learners, always try to build anticipation and excitement! When the card is fully revealed, say "Look! A goblin/spider/skeleton/etc.!" Encourage the children to name the card. Pass the card around the circle so each child can say the name. Repeat with all the cards.

When you are finished, place the picture cards on the whiteboard or lean them up against the wall.

Fun Song - Choose your favorite active song to get the kids up and moving. This helps children with a lot of energy calm down a little bit, and children with low energy perk up a little bit. Some favorites from Super Simple Halloween Songs are "Knock Knock, Trick or Treat?", and "The Skeleton Dance". A well placed active song helps keep young learners focused and energized.

Simple Craft - Try making a spider using the "Make a Spider" worksheet on the worksheets page. Be sure to count the legs!

Clean Up Song - Sing your favorite clean up song as you clean up all the craft materials.. Try "Clean Up" song from Super Simple Songs 1. Always remember not to rush clean up time! It's a great opportunity to use natural English and young children really enjoy helping to clean up.

Run and Get! - Gather the students in a circle. Ask the students to bring you the different picture cards. Say, "Mari, can you bring me the skeleton?" To make it more fun, give them a 5 second countdown to bring you the card. Do the same with all of the cards. After you have collected all the cards, review them and teach gestures for each one. Set the cards back on the whiteboard or against the wall when you are finished.

"Go Away!" - Sing "Go Away, Ghoulie Goblin" from Super Simple Halloween Songs. Before each verse, point to the picture card of the next Halloween character so students know which one will be next.

Storytime! - Play some gentle music to indicate it is story time. "Please Sit Down and Storytime Music" from Super Simple Songs 1 works well. Choose one of your favorite Halloween-themed story books. Some of our favorites are "Spot's Halloween", "Halloween Countdown", "Eek-A-Boo!", and "Pumpkin Faces".

Stickers/Stamps - We like to end class with stamps in the students' passports to give them a sense of accomplishment.

Goodbye Song - "Goodbye, My Friends (Happy Halloween)" from Super Simple Halloween Songs is a simple and warm goodbye song that makes a great bookend to "Hello, My Friends (Let's Go Trick-or-Treating)".

Halloween Lesson Plan #2 (using "Knock Knock, Trick or Treat?")

Halloween is such a wonderful time of the year for learning new phrases and vocabulary. Children are naturally excited by the costumes and treats, so their interest level is VERY high. That always makes learning simpler. At Halloween, there are some common expressions and vocabulary that are helpful for young children to have a command of. "Knock Knock, Trick or Treat?" teaches children the language needed for trick-or-treating, and helps them talk about their costumes.

Stickers and stamps - If possible, try to find some Halloween themed stickers!

Hello Song - We love singing "Hello, My Friends (Let's Go Trick-or-Treating)" throughout the 4 weeks leading up to Halloween. Try splitting the class in two and having one half of the class sing the first part, while the other half of the class responds.

Fun Song - If you've already learned "Go Away, Ghoulie Goblin", now is a great time sing it as a quick and active review song. Before singing the song, review the characters with the picture cards and/or gestures.

Circle Time - Gather the students in a circle and sing "Make A Circle" from Super Simple Songs 1.

Picture Cards - Prepare your "Knock Knock, Trick or Treat?" picture cards (available in the Super Simple Halloween Songs Teacher's Kit). Before class, take a large envelope and draw a door on the front. Cut around the door so that you can "open" the door. Place all of the character picture cards (ghost, pirate, ballerina, cowboy, witch, monster) in the envelope. Look inside the envelope at the character picture cards without letting the students see. Try to build excitement and anticipation for seeing the picture cards. Call on one student to "knock" on the door. When the student knocks, say "Hello! Who are you?" Encourage the student to answer, "I'm Ken/Lisa/etc." Say "Come in!" and open the door to reveal the top card. "Oooh! A ghost!" Close the door and then take out the ghost card and pass it around the circle so each child can say the name.

Continue with the rest of the picture cards, letting a new student "knock" on the door each time.

Simple Craft - Tissue ghosts. For this craft, you'll need 3-4 tissues per student, white thread, and a small black marker. Give each student two tissues and show them how to roll them up into a ball. Take a third tissue and wrap it over and around the small ball of tissues. Tie some white thread around the neck of the ghost to keep the ball of tissues in place. Help each student draw a face on the ghosts with a small black marker, and then hang the ghosts various places in the classroom. Students can take the ghosts home, or you can keep them as decorations for your school Halloween party. Or, since they are so easy to make, each student can make several ghosts and keep one.

Clean Up - Sing your favorite clean up song and put away all of the craft materials. Always remember...clean up time is an activity and a great opportunity to use real, practical language. Don't rush it!

What's missing? - Place all of the "Knock Knock, Trick or Treat?" picture cards on the whiteboard or somewhere in front of the class. Quickly point to each card and elicit the names from the students. For each card, teach the appropriate gesture. After reviewing all the cards, tell the students, "Close your eyes!" While the students' eyes are closed, take away one of the cards. Tell the students, "Open your eyes," and then ask, "What's missing?" Try to elicit the name of the missing card from the students. Repeat several times. If it is easy for your students, try removing 2 or 3 cards at a time!

"Knock Knock Trick or Treat?" - Sing "Knock Knock, Trick or Treat?". Before each verse, point to the picture card of the next Halloween character so students know which one will be next. If your students are already familiar with "Knock Knock, Trick or Treat?", give them something new with "Knock Knock, Trick or Treat? (Part II)", or use the sing-along version and create your own song!

Storytime - Play your favorite storytime music and read one of your favorite Halloween-themed picture books. Using gentle music to signal storytime will help your students relax and pay attention.

Stickers/Stamps - Give each student a sticker or stamp to reward them for a job well done.

Goodbye Song - Sing "Goodbye, My Friends (Happy Halloween)" from Super Simple Halloween Songs.

Halloween Lesson Plan #3 (using "Can You Make a Happy Face, Jack-o'-lantern?")

Halloween is a great time to talk about emotions. When the Halloween season approaches, you'll see jack-o'-lanterns everywhere. Happy jack-o'-lanterns. Sad jack-o'-lanterns. Angry jack-o'-lanterns. So when we plan our classes for the school year, we always focus on emotions around Halloween. "Can You Make a Happy Face, Jack-o'-lantern?" is a great song for introducing emotions and behavior associated with them, all in a Halloween theme.

Welcome Activity - Mystery Box! We often like to use simple activities to capture childrens' senses of wonder right from the start of class. These activities are designed to draw kids into the class and relax them. The Mystery Box is a great way to get kids excited and intrigued right away. Find a box with a removable lid and decorate it with a lot of interesting colors and designs. Or you can write the alphabet all over the box to help young learners become more comfortable and familiar with the ABCs. This will be your "Mystery Box". You can use this box to introduce and review new vocabulary items anytime.

For this lesson, before class, place 4 mini-pumpkins in the mystery box. On each pumpkin draw a face with a black marker. Draw a happy face, an angry face, a sad face, and a scared face. If you can't get any mini-pumpkins in your area, you can make pumpkins with orange construction paper and a black marker, or use the jack-o'-lantern picture cards from the Super Simple Halloween Songs Teacher's Kit.

Play "Mystery Box" from Super Simple Songs 2. As you sing, all the students can tap on the top of the box. After singing the song, peek into the box without letting the students see. Build excitement over what is in the box. Take out one of the pumpkins. "Look! A jack-o'-lantern!" Pass the pumpkin around the room. "Look, it's a happy jack-o'-lantern!". Continue with the remaining pumpkins in the mystery box. As the students pass the pumpkins around, they can describe them. "It's a happy jack-o'-lantern!" "It's a sad jack-o'-lantern." Etc.

Stickers and stamps - Call each student by name and welcome them to class with stickers or stamps.

Hello Song - Elicit some of the costumes the children will be wearing for Halloween (or are wearing if you are singing this at a Halloween party). Decide on some gestures for those costumes, and then sing the sing-along version of "Hello, My Friends (Let's Go Trick-or-Treating)", adding those costumes to the song.

Fun Song - Sing your favorite active song. Try "Knock Knock, Trick or Treat?". Before singing the song, review the characters with the picture cards and/or with gestures.

Worksheet - Try the Five Little Pumpkins worksheet on the worksheet page. Or try one of the other super simple worksheets!

Clean Up Song - Sing your favorite clean up song as you put away all of the worksheet materials.

Five Little Pumpkins - Sing "Can You Make a Happy Face, Jack-o'-lantern?" from Super Simple Halloween Songs. Before singing, review the pumpkins you introduced in the Mystery Box activity.

Storytime - Play your favorite storytime music and read one of your favorite Halloween-themed picture books.

Stickers/Stamps - Thank your students for participating by giving them stickers or stamps!

Goodbye Song - Sing "Goodbye, My Friends (Happy Halloween)". Try the sing-along version!