Warm Up Halloween Mime

Equipment Required

Purpose

The purpose of this lesson is for children to be active. Preschool children should accumulate at least 60 minutes of structured physical activity and 60 minutes of unstructured physical activity every day.

Overview

In this lesson children will learn how different Halloween characters move. Children will also improve their locomotor skills and coordination.

How to Play

Talk to children about different characters that can be represented at Halloween. Instruct them to move around the room like black cats, bats, spiders and super heroes. Use pictures of the characters to help children visualize what they look like and how they move.

Black Cats: Start on your hands and knees. Curl your back towards the roof – this is what an angry black cat looks like. Now sag your back with your tummy towards the floor – this is what a happy black cat looks like! Black cats are very quiet and move softly. Can you crawl softly and quietly like a cat around the room without bumping into the other cats?

Bats: Spread your wings and fly about the room! Remember to watch out for the other bats! When I give the signal (use a whistle, tambourine, or call out), fold your wings and crouch down low.

Spiders: Spiders scamper across the floor very quickly. Hold yourself up on your hands and feet, push your bottom in the air, and scamper in every direction. Be careful not to get stepped on!

Activity 1 Boiling Cauldron

Equipment Required

Purpose

The purpose of this lesson is for children to be active. Preschool children should accumulate at least 60 minutes of structured physical activity and 60 minutes of unstructured physical activity every day.

Overview

In this activity, children will improve their locomotor skills.

How to play

Instruct children to sit in a circle. Scatter a variety of objects around the room. Tell them a story about a witch boiling a mysterious brew.

While you tell the story, instruct children to make the action of stirring the cauldron. As you tell the story, name an ingredient (an object) that she needs to make her witch’s brew extra tasty.

On your cue, instruct one child to move around the room to find the object. The rest of the children should be stirring. Once he or she has found it, instruct him or her to bring it back and place it in the cauldron.

Remind children not to touch the cauldron because it is boiling hot! Once all the objects have been placed in the cauldron instruct the children to move around the room while you place all the objects around the room.

On your cue, e.g., “Witch’s Brew” children will pick up the nearest object (only one) and bring it back to the cauldron. Continue the game, instructing children to move like different Halloween characters.

Activity 2 Puzzle Pieces

Equipment Required

Before the Lesson

Create a puzzle picture or pictures that will have at least twice as many pieces as children in the group. This assures that each child has two turns. If possible, laminate all the pieces of the picture. Put duct tape on the back of each picture in a ring and tape to the wall.

Purpose

The purpose of this lesson is for children to be active. Preschool children should accumulate at least 60 minutes of structured physical activity and 60 minutes of unstructured physical activity every day.

Overview

In this activity, children will learn how to put a puzzle picture together.

How to play

Instruct children to stand in a line at least 20 feet from the puzzle taped to the wall. The farther the children are from the puzzle, the more practice they get to move.

Show the assembled picture to the children and instruct each child to take one or two pieces off the wall. Ask them to gallop, hop, jump, run to the wall and back again, disassembling the picture as they go.

Next, instruct one child at a time to place their piece of the puzzle back on to the wall, instructing them on how to move.

Allow the children to recreate the picture however they please, with the aim to put it back on the wall as they found it. It may take a few turns before they get it right, but that’s ok! Remember, that the emphasis should be on creativity, rather than perfection. Their picture puzzle will be a favorite no matter how it turns out.

Cool-Down/Wrap-Up Trick-or-Treat

How to play

Gather children into circle and talk to them about Trick-or-Treat safety:

  • Always go trick-or-treating with an adult.
  • Never go into someone’s house.
  • Only Trick-or-Treat at houses that are lit.
  • Never run ahead of your parents or grown-ups.

Enrichment

Read Norma Jean, Jumping Bean, by Joanna Cole. Discuss with children how each of us has different talents and that we should use our talents, especially when they help us do things we enjoy! Also, have children act out some of the actions described in the book.

Attention Teachers!

Following this activity, please fill out the teacher’s weekly log form for this lesson.

Weekly Log

Attention Teachers!

Following this activity, please fill out the teacher’s weekly log form for this lesson.