Every year, I find myself frantically searching for upper elementary Halloween activities that are suitable for the big kids. There are tons of adorable activities for the K-1 crowd, but finding activities that are both educational and engaging for older kids can be tricky. Here is a roundup of some great ideas to get you through the Halloween season with your sugar-hyped students! Note: many of these ideas are great for the entire season without mentioning “Halloween” so they work for a wider range of time.

Upper Elementary Halloween Math Ideas

Monster Mash!  Math Project for Bigger Kids

One of the things that I noticed was a lack of big kid math activities with a fall/Halloween theme.  So, I created this Mathematical Monster Math Project to keep your kids engaged in learning BEFORE and AFTER they have gone trick or treating. It’s great because although Halloween themes are used, the term “Halloween” is never used in the project. PLUS many of the pages have only a fall theme (Fall Festival, Apple Picking, etc.) so it can be used in the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving Break as well!

The Multiple Monster

These FREE multiple monster task cards pair perfectly with teaching the Multiple Monster and Factor Ninja! You can visit this blog post to learn more about introducing factors and multiples with these fun characters.

If your students area ready to move on to multi-digit multiplication, this task card set is a mix of Halloween and fall word problems.

Candy Conundrum Decimals Activity!

You may recognize this one from my blog last year.  We LOVED this comparing costs activity that helped us practice adding and subtracting decimals.  Start saving the ads, or have your students bring them in.  It’s So. Much. Fun. (And FREE!) Download the free candy conundrum activity in this blog post and learn more about teaching adding and subtracting decimals too!

Geometric Bat

The shapes included in the template for this geometric bat are fairly basic, but the questions take it to a “big kid” level. You could even let your students create their own geometric bat using more advanced shapes!

Tickle the Turkey Decimals Smart Board Game

Are you lucky enough to have a Smart Board in your classroom?  This fun and free game will help you review several decimal skills with an interactive touch.  This is another activity that will last you well beyond Halloween.

Upper Elementary Halloween Literacy Ideas

Free Figurative Language Practice

You can download a FREE bundle of seasonal figurative language task cards below. It includes a set for back to school, Halloween, and Christmas. The Halloween set reviews similes and metaphors.

Reading Task Cards

These Halloween Fluency Task Cards have varied sentence types to help your students practice their oral reading fluency during the month of October! They’re perfect small group, whole group, or independent center fluency activities. Students can also practice a variety of reading skills with these task cards that have a fun October theme and address important events in US history, doubling the educational value!

Spooky Story Writing

This would be a great one-day activity to get your students in the Halloween spirit!  The freebie includes Character Cubes, Setting Cubes, Obstacles Cubes, and more to get their creative juices flowing!

Plot in the Pumpkin Patch

Jennifer Runde’s ideas never disappoint, and this activity is no exception!  Practice story elements using this super fun pumpkin craftivity!

Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich

This book (Amazon affiliate link) is hilarious and one of the few Halloween books that will keep older kids engaged.  It’s a compilation of silly poems, which lend themselves well to activities, fluency practice, and being read aloud. Here is a FREE matching activity to go along with the book to practice summaries and main ideas from Pitner’s Potpurri!

Candy Perspective Writing Prompt

What a clever writing prompt this is, and so great for teaching perspective and point of view.  I would love to hear students share their stories and practice their fluency as well!

Free Halloween Close Reading

Not only do I love the author’s name, but this is a perfect close reading passage for Halloween from The Panicked Teacher.  Teach students about the history of Halloween while practicing their close reading skills.  It’s FREE, too!

Upper Elementary Halloween Science Ideas

Acid Candy Test

Candy?  Yes, please! Candy Science?  Even better!  Test the acid in certain candies with this engaging science activity from the Science Gal.

Scarecrow Crunch Science

This is a free science activity to teach science concepts like mixtures and solutions.  Bonus: The kids get to eat their experiment when they are done!

Pumpkin Predictions

This pumpkin predictions activity is perfect because you can use it before or after Halloween, and tie in some measurement math fun!  I love that it involved estimates because so often we focus on exact answers that we forget about teaching the crucial skill of estimation, too.

More Upper Elementary Halloween and Fall Ideas

What ideas do you have for fun upper elementary Halloween activities that even the bigger kids will love!?  Share them in the comments or in our FREE Inspired in Upper Elementary Facebook group.  If you are looking for even more Halloween activities, click the banner below to see all of the Halloween activities in my TpT store or check out this discounted Haloween Activities math and and literacy bundle!