Halloween Science: Spooky and Educational

We all know how limited our time is to teach concepts in the science classroom. Finding activities that keep the spirit of Halloween while staying aligned with the curriculum is the best way to go. Here are ten resources to spice up your Halloween science classroom!

1. Measurement Review Board Game

I recently introduced a Halloween-themed board game that’s all about reviewing measurement concepts. The game focuses on mass, volume, density, telling time, elapsed time, and length. Students solve measurement problems while playing a spooky game board. This works to keep their interest high during a distracting time of year.

The game is designed for two players, with a third student acting as the “answer checker.” Each player draws from 42 cards featuring measurement problems like calculating the volume of irregular objects or solving density equations. Some special cards add a twist by advancing or sending players back on the board without needing to answer a question. The competitive nature keeps everyone involved, and students really enjoy it!

2. Density Mystery Potions

Are you reviewing density during the fall near Halloween? This Magic Potion activity is perfect for practicing density concepts while introducing a fun, creepy theme. Students calculate the density of various “mystery potions” using the formula density = mass ÷ volume. They then match these potions to their correct labels based on their densities.

Students get to practice using the density triangle to solve for mass and volume.  They also analyze images of density towers with layering different liquids in a graduated cylinder. You can replicate the very cool density towers as a classroom demo or lab using water, food coloring, and sugar solutions. 

3. Zombie Speed Challenge

Take the kids outside! The Zombie Speed Challenge is a super fun activity that helps students understand the relationship between time, distance, and speed. Students get to run, walk backward, and even do their best “zombie walk” while measuring their speeds. 

This activity aligns well with NGSS standards focused on motion and speed. Students collect data on different types of movement and then calculate the average speed for each activity. The excitement escalates when they imagine walking through a park, spotting a zombie and running backwards, full out running and then becoming zombies themselves!  

Be sure to take videos because it will be funny! Reflection questions at the end of the challenge help students connect their data to the concept of average speed.

4. Halloween Motion Graphs

Teaching motion graphs can be challenging for some students, but adding a Halloween theme makes the topic more fun. This unit includes a variety of graphing activities and stories where students interpret motion segments and draw slope lines.

Students work with both distance-time and speed-time graphs, analyzing different motion scenarios. After practicing on six different graphs, students read Halloween-themed stories and create their own motion segments on distance-time and speed-time graphs. By the end of this unit, students really do have a solid understanding of how to interpret and create motion graphs.

5. Average Speed Calculation with Halloween Graphs

This activity focuses on helping students calculate average speed using Halloween-themed distance-time graphs. Students analyze three different graphs, each containing 10 segments, and calculate the average speed between two points on the graph. This activity helps with the skill of interpreting segments and finding average speed with fun Halloween graphics. 

As an extension you could have the students write spooky Halloween stories that follow the different segments on the graphs!

6. Spooky Motion Stories

Students read three spooky Halloween science motion stories that feature different types of motion—acceleration, deceleration, rest, and constant speed. The stories involve a haunted trail through the woods, a haunted house, and a spooky graveyard. 

As students track the motion described in the stories, they graph the segments on distance-time or speed-time graphs. This takes some serious critical thinking as they read through the stories. As you know, that part is always a win for me!

7. Monster Genetics Introducing Punnett Squares

For a fun twist on genetics, introduce Monster Genetics using Punnett squares. Students design their own Halloween monsters, choosing five traits such as horns, rleg color, or body texture. They use Punnett squares to predict the traits of their “baby”. They then color in the traits for the parent monsters and their baby. They cross again to create a second baby that then crosses with a newly introduced monster.

This fun activity stresses the genetic concepts like dominant and recessive traits, homozygous and heterozygous alleles, plus family trees. Students really enjoy predicting traits and creating long family trees for their monsters.

8. Goblin Genetics Dice Roll Game

Another super fun genetics activity involves rolling dice to determine the traits of Halloween goblins. Students use Punnett squares to predict the traits of goblin offspring. After determining the traits of the male and female goblins, students color in their drawings accordingly. They then use Punnett squares to predict the traits for Baby #1 and Baby #2. Then they color their features. 

Just like the previous activity, students love making future generations and creating family trees. This doubles as a great Hallowwen bulletin board decoration once the goblin families are completed!

9. Creepy and Scary Animal Adaptations Reading Passage

Not entirely Halloween related, but still really fun to use, is a four-page reading comprehension passage about creepy and scary adaptations that many animals have to survive. There are some seriously scary looking animals in this world, especially in the deep ocean! 

Students read the passage and then answer questions at the end to pull everything together. This is great for independent work or even a sub activity.

10. Halloween Science Clip Art and Writing Paper

To add a touch of Halloween science flair to your classroom materials, try using my handdrawn Halloween-themed science clipart and writing paper. The clipart features witches, bats, and other spooky images. You can use them to decorate assignments, presentations, or classroom displays. The Halloween-themed writing paper makes lab reports and creative writing assignments more fun for students.

These can help you create fun Halloween themed bulletin boards that incorporates student learning.

By using these Halloween-themed activities, you can keep your students engaged while staying aligned with your science curriculum. Enjoy the spooky season and have fun teaching! 

Looking for more science resources? I have hundreds in my Teachers Pay Teachers store called Science by Sinai. Also, don’t forget to check out my free resource library on this blog!.