Are you looking for engaging Halloween music activities to spice up your lessons this year?
Keep reading for 5 of my favorite engaging activities to add to your music lessons this October.
Music Symbol Jack-o’-lanterns
I did this activity with a group of my teenage students one year using real mini-pumpkins, and they were so creative! I keep kicking myself for not taking photos of their pumpkins. I’ve also done this activity with elementary ages, and with paper pumpkins instead of the real thing.
To make these cute pumpkins, you need either real mini-pumpkins (you will need to use permanent markers on them, so this option is really only for teenagers), or papers with the outline of a pumpkin. If you’re doing this with elementary I’d definitely opt for the paper version (cheaper, plus much easier!)
Give students options of various musical symbols they know (great review of everything they’ve learned so far). For example, quarter notes, whole notes, sharps, flats, crescendo, fermata, etc. You can draw options on the board, or give them a print-out of various musical symbols (this is what I did).
Ask them to use only the musical symbols to give their jack-o’-lantern a face.
This activity is lots of fun, and you’ll be amazed at the creativity of some of your students! Can they add ears, hair, etc. to their jack-o’-lantern just using music symbols?
These make a lovely display of your students’ work.
Music Escape Room
Nothing will get your students attention back faster than introducing an escape room for your Halloween-week music lessons!
This activity is best for upper elementary through junior high, depending on where your particular group of students is at. It also works with a mixed-age group quite well.
Students work in small groups (or individually if you are using in homeschool) to escape a haunted house. They have been locked in by a (friendly) ghost, and cannot leave until they help the ghost remember his missing music! (Hint: it’s a famous classical piece we often hear around Halloween).
Students will work together and race against the clock to complete 4 music puzzles and 2 musical decoders to escape!
Everything is included in 2 different mix-and-match levels, so you can tailor it to what your group of students have learned.
If you have a hard to engage group, or a special Halloween class coming up, definitely check out my printable Halloween escape room.
Poison Rhythm
The poison rhythm game Is a go-to rhythm review activity any time of year, but is also a great spooky-season activity without being outright Halloween-themed.
If you’d like the full instructions on playing ‘poison rhythm’ you can find them here.
Halloween Listening Glyphs
Listening glyphs are just the ticket when you need a calm, quiet activity that reviews music concepts, while still engaging your students and being spooky. These can be a good choice for the day after Halloween when your students are bouncing off the walls on a sugar high, and you need to introduce some calm into your class.
Plus, listening to new music is a great chance to broaden your students’ musical horizons and to expose them to some ‘spooky’ classical music.
Listening glyphs are coloring activities that ask your students to show their understanding of the music through their coloring.
For example, they could color the witch’s hat black if the music is forte, but purple if the music is piano. This type of activity can be used with any piece of music, but a few Halloween favorites are In the Hall of the Mountain King, Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, and Danse Macabre.
Check out my print-and-go Halloween listening glyph collection here (in multiple levels) .
Halloween Music Bingo
Bingo is a go-to game for any time of year. But, you can make it extra spooky by playing Halloween music bingo. Call from a collection of ‘spooky’ songs, and play a bit of each as your students complete their bingo cards.
You students will hear some familiar Halloween music, and be introduced to a variety of new spooky music from different genres!
