Halloween: Spooky Poetics and Sweet Treats

For Halloween, I knew I wanted to do something special for the kids. I always think about how to decorate the classroom and what my students can do to help make the classroom more seasonal. After working with my third graders to write Cinquain poems, I thought it would be a good way to encourage my students to be more descriptive writers, review parts of speech, and have fun writing about Fall/Halloween.

I took my Facebook Introductions bulletin board down and purchased a candy corn border, after my students expressed a passion for sugar. Then I taught my students how to write Cinquain poems (the students said they learned these are diamond poems, but I'd rather teach them the appropriate title). We practiced using the writing process steps.

Prewriting/Brainstorming

We did some chalk board brainstorming of words associated with October.  The students came up to the board and wrote a word or idea. The words ranged from Halloween blood and gore to the smell of Fall and leaves changing color.  My students are obsessed with gummy bears and zombies, so there were many words involving the Gummy Bear Zombie Apocalypse. 

Students were then given a Cinquain template and we discussed what nouns, adjectives, and -ing words are. Then we reviewed synonyms and came up with some phrase examples. The students then went work.

Drafting/Editing/Conferencing

Students wrote their first draft on their template. Then they were to self-edit using a dictionary and/or thesaurus to help with finding more creative words. Once they were comfortable with their poem, they gave it to a peer to review and edit. Before they could get a publishing template, they had to have it approved by the teacher.

Publishing

Due to the shortness of the poems, quickly reading their poems was easy enough. Then they were given the chance to choose from several different templates. They were instructed to write their poem in pencil first, then go over it with marker. After they finished their poem, they could color in the template and make sure they put their name on the front.

 

These made for a great bulletin board display. It also looked great with the Halloween decorations the students put  up in the classroom, such as shrouds over the drapes, pumpkin lights, and a Happy Halloween banner.

For Halloween, I made the students candy bags. I found a baggie topper template and I edited it to include a special message from me on the back. I included goldfish crackers, stickers, a spider ring, tootsie roll pops, and smarties. The kids LOVED them, but forgot the cardinal rule of treats: DO NOT open them if your next class does not approve of snacks. It made for a sad situation with the other teachers when the students did not follow the rules. So just be careful and talk to the other teachers about stuff like that before you do it. Let them know your explicit guidelines for the students just so that they know what is going on.

Spicy Sausage, Cheese Tortellini, and Vegetable Soup

I've been finding it hard to come up with recipes to cook during the week, because by the time I've gotten home I am usually pretty exhausted. I was extremely happy, though, to have been inspired to create this recipe. Not only was it easy and delicious, but I had leftovers for the week at school. I was super excited to test out my brown-bagging soup container.

Lucky for me, even little Isabelle found something to like about the soup. We paired it with garlic bread and she dipped into the broth and picked out the pasta. So it was a win-win for everyone. A great opportunity and a quick fix.

Spicy Sausage, Cheese Tortellini, and Vegetable Soup
Serving: 8-10

 Ingredients

• 2 cans Del Monte Diced Tomatoes (Basil, Garlic & Oregano)
• 26 oz Swanson's Cooking Stock - Beef
• 1 lb spicy hot or medium Italian Sausage (de-case the sausages if ground is not available)
• 18 oz Progresso Recipe Starter - Fire Roasted Tomatoes
• 1 TBSP Minced Garlic
• 1 large Yellow Onion, diced
• 2 large carrots (peeled and cut 2-3mm wide)
• 2 medium zucchini (middle cut out, peeled, and cut into 2-3in fourths)
• 1 cup quartered baby button mushrooms
• 2 cups water
• 8 oz tomato sauce
• 2 bay leaves
• 9 oz Bella Luna "fresh" cheese tortellini (for frozen, put them in with the zuchinni and reduce the water by 1/2 a cup)
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
• salt, pepper

Instructions

1. Brown the sausage in a large pot. Drain off the grease and set the meat aside (on a paper towel to catch the excess grease).
2. Sweat the onions, carrots, and garlic. The onions should be slightly translucent, but still have crunch.
3. Add the sausage back into the pot. Then add in the beef stock, diced tomatoes, water, tomato sauce,  Progresso's Fire Roasted Tomatoes, bay leaf, and 1 TBSP pepper and 1 TBSP salt. 
4. Cover and turn on high to bring to a boil. Let boil for 15 minutes.
5. Turn the stove to medium or medium-low until you get a low simmer. Add in the baby button mushrooms and zucchini.
6. Let cook for 20-30 minutes, or until the zucchini is starting to become soft.
7. Add in the tortellini and continue cooking at medium of a low boil until the tortellini are cooked to your preferred level of doneness. 
8. Add in the Parmesan cheese. Let simmer for 5 more minutes.
9. Serve with garlic bread on the side. Additional Parmesan also adds a nice touch.