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STEAM and Halloween. These are two things that my students are over the moon excited about. Do your students get excited when they get to do a STEAM activity? What is not to love about a STEAM activity?
You get excited students, and you tons of learning. My students are always over-the-top thrilled when Halloween rolls around, I knew that I wanted to funnel this excitement in a STEAM activity.
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What supplies do I need?
I always ask my classroom parents the week before for the supplies. I send out a Sign-Up Genius asking for three boxes of toothpicks and six bags of Mall-Creme Pumpkins. I break up the Mall-Creme Pumpkins though into 1 bag each. Parents are more likely to sign up for one bag than six! I would rather have too many Mallo-Creme Pumpkins for the kids than too few.
How do I do the lesson?
Firstly, I showed this awesome Crash Course for Kids video about engineering. Have you heard of Crash Course Kids? If not, check it out! My kids love the Crash Course for Kids videos even more than BrainPop (and they REALLY love BrainPop!). It is a perfect way to help embody the overall idea of STEAM, and my kids often exclaim throughout the year how they hope to one day be an engineer.
Next, I read Iggy Peck: Architect. Have you read this book before? This book is so cute and rhymes- the kids were hanging on every word. It is also perfect to tie into character education. The kids and I discussed character education after reading the book, and looked for spots in the book that the characters demonstrated cooperation, assertion, responsibility, empathy, and self-control.
Finally, we do our STEAM activity! For this activity, you need toothpicks and a few bags of Mallo-Creme Pumpkins. The pumpkins and toothpicks serve as the building materials. The mission? I tell the kids that we are creating structures – whoever can create the tallest structure that can withstand a Halloween windstorm is the winner. I give them 15 minutes and they get to work in groups of three. Before they start, we go over the idea of teammate and listening to others… this helps avoid any third-grade frustration or tears!
After 15 minutes, I say HANDS OFF! First, we survey the room and see which structure is the tallest. If the structures are close, I pull out a ruler. A team thinks they are declared the winner – until I remind them that their structure must withstand the Halloween windstorm! I bring in a hair dryer to class. I flip to the cool setting, and then turn on to see if any of their structures knock down. Many of them do because there is not enough stability and support. Finally, we have a winner!
We talk about WHY the winning group won. Why was their structure more stable? What did they do differently than other groups? How can we relate these Mallo-Creme Pumpkin structures to actual buildings? What buildings are most likely to survive and stay safe in a windstorm? What methods should engineers use to build strong buildings?
Looking for more fun Halloween activities for your elementary classroom?
My 3rd Grade Halloween Math & Reading Bundle includes printable and digital activities covering multiplication, division, reading comprehension, context clues, and more!
With Halloween color-by-number worksheets, digital pixel art, and a context clues review game, you’ll have plenty of activities for math and literacy centers, independent practice, and Halloween week.
Make Halloween learning fun with this 3rd Grade Math & Reading Bundle! Includes worksheets, digital pixel art, and a Jeopardy game to practice multiplication, division, reading comprehension, and context clues.
Want another easy Halloween activity?
These FREE Halloween Multiplication Color-by-Number Worksheets are perfect for math centers, morning work, or early finishers!
Students practice multiplication facts while coloring fun Halloween-themed pictures.
FREE Halloween Color-By-Number Multiplication Worksheets
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Looking for more ways to celebrate Halloween while keeping students learning? Check out these other posts!
This Halloween pumpkin tower STEAM challenge is a fun way to get students collaborating, problem-solving, and thinking like engineers. With just a few simple supplies, you can turn an ordinary October lesson into a memorable hands-on learning experience!
