Scaring Up Halloween
& Fall Reading
Evelyn Smith
Halloween
presents a special challenge for parents, educators, and librarians who strive
to select fantasy and suspense books and resources that don’t emotionally scar youngsters,
psychologically traumatize them, or glamorize the occult. While older elementary school children,
tweens, and teens sometimes turn to menacing novels and movies to come to grips
with adolescent angst, separation anxiety, and death, preschoolers and pupils
in the early elementary grades are easily frightened by intensely scary tales
and movies. Thus, well-meaning adults try
to balance the idea that some stories are simply too frightening for younger
children against the “right and need to be scared” as part of the growing-up process
(Jarrett, 2009, p. 999). Empirical research,
however, shows that below the age of six or seven, children are more likely to
believe in imaginary beings they have heard stories about, such as ghosts (Harris,
2006, p. 80). Hence, Halloween needs to
become a kinder, gentler day or else change to a fall harvest festival.
A
growing number of devout Christian, Jewish, and Muslim parents of older
elementary and middle school students balk at novels and films that make
witches, werewolves, or vampires the protagonists of novels. Thus, even though Halloween can be “a day to
celebrate the imagination”, adherents of these faiths might shun anything that
might tempt young readers to embrace occult beliefs and practices (Rearick,
2000, p. 79)—never mind the sins of gluttony and greed.
Going back to original sources, both the Old Testament,
or Torah, and the New Testament
condemn witchcraft (Exodus 22:17; Deuteronomy 18:9-12, Acts 13:9-11, and
Revelations 21:8 (Taylor, 2013, para. 1-7; Witchcraft & Judaism, 2013,
para.9), so observant Jewish and Christians parents might not want their
children reading novels where the heroes are witches, werewolves, or vampires. As for Muslims, both witchcraft and Halloween
are haram, or forbidden: “Avoid it, it's a night of evil. Shaytan (Satan) is our open enemy and we
do not play with evil” (Halloween Haram,
2011, para. 10).
While
admittedly good triumphs over evil in YA novels featuring supernatural
characters, Christian and Jewish texts also point out that witchcraft and
divination oppose God’s will and point to Genesis 6: 1-4 as a reason to keep tweens and teens from reading novels emphasizing
Nephilim, or the sons and
daughter of fallen angels, whose novels
have become the newest trend in YA literature:
"And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth,
and daughters were born unto them, That the sons of God saw the daughters of
men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose. . .There
were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of
God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same
became mighty men which were of old, men of renown".
Thus,
to answer the needs of a growing audience of faith-based readers, fantasy
novels featuring time travelers, Arthurian medieval-style romance, or mystery--provided
the protagonist isn’t supernatural--offer an alternative to novels featuring paranormal
characters just as Halloween parties are increasing morphing into fall
festivals. Since parents can’t necessarily
control what their older elementary school children and tweens read or watch, however, it’s
important that they keep up with their children’s leisure reading and Web
surfing and are able to freely discuss the novels their older children read and
the movies they see until that time they can rationally make
decisions for themselves.
References
Christian Halloween—all hocus pocus. (2013). All About God. Retrieved from http://www.allaboutgod.com/christian-halloween.htm
Halloween
Haram? Yes or no? (2011, November 10). Islam Newsroom. Retrieved from http://www.islamnewsroom.com/news-we-need/1046-halloween-haram
Harris,
Paul, et al. (2006, January). Germs and
angels: The role of testimony in younger children’s ontology. Developmental
science. 9(1), 76-96. doi:
1-.1111/j.1467-7687.2005.00465
Jarrett,
Christian. (2009, December). Forum. Web chat. Psychologist. 22(12), 999.
Jewish Halloween. (n. d.). Retrieved from http://www.beingjewish.com/faqs/halloween.html
Rearick,
Anderson M. (2000, October 2). Matters
of Opinion: Hallowing Halloween. Christianity Today. 44(11), 79.
Taylor,
Paul S. (2013). THE OCCULT—What does the
Bible say about it? Christian Answers.net. Retrieved from http://www.christiananswers.net/q-eden/edn-occult.html
Just WHO are these
giants in Genesis 6:4? (n. d.). Biblebeliever.org. Retrieved from http://www.biblebeliever.org/difficult/sonsofGod.htm
Counting Activities
for Halloween
& Fall
& Fall
Preschoolers will enjoy the following counting Websites and activity books that can be used either as part of a Halloween or fall theme:
Davis,
Rebecca F. (2006). Footballs and Falling Leaves: A
Fall Counting Book. North Mankato,
Minnesota: Capstone Press.
Photos
help children age three to five learn to count while also teaching them about
the fall season.
Fall
math topics. (2007). Mathwire.com. Retrieved from
This
Webpage introduces kindergarten and early elementary school pupils to several
math concepts using seasonal themes that depending on how to teacher treats
them don’t scream Halloween.
Five
Little Pumpkins. (2013). Things that go boo. Audie.com. Retrieved from http://www.thingsthatgoboo.com/scarypoems/dpfivelittlepumpkins.htm
The anonymous
poem “Five Little Pumpkins” just begs to be a flannel board counting
activity. Its Website also contains a
collection of other Halloween poems. Moreover,
the lyrics might allow it to be used for fall festival events instead of
Halloween activities.
Yaccarino,
Dan (Illustrator). (2008). Five Little Pumpkins. New York:
Harper Growing Tree.
Yaccarino
provides a board book of brightly colored pictures that should make this
finger-play, counting game easy for preschoolers to memorize.
Teaching Rhyming,
Come October
Come October
Halloween parties and fall festival time present a unique opportunity to teach kindergarteners and first graders about rhyming fun.
Halloween
rhymes. (2013). Education.com. Retrieved
from
While the chart pictured on the Website works well, children can match Halloween or fall-themed rhyming words printed on post it notes as well.
Rhyming activities for children. (2013, April 18). Fun-a-day.com. Retrieved from http://fun-a-day.com/rhyming-activities-for-children/
As a
variation of this rhyming theme, affix a different rhyming word to each child’s
shirt, so he or she can find a partner with a matching rhyming word; for
example, cat/hat, ghost/toast, witch/itch, fall/ball, pumpkin/bumpkin. Fun-a-day.com suggests a “rhyming race”, but
perhaps this is best left to the discretion of the adult supervising this
activity.
Memorizing Short Poems
for
Treats
Fear Not, Good Friend
We aren’t ghouls or spirits unseen
just kids disguised on Halloween.
Tis not our wish to trick or cheat
but instead to recite for a little treat.
When
Scottish and Irish immigrants brought trick or treating customs or “guising” with them across the Atlantic, the idea of having
children recite a poem or tell a joke or riddle in return for a sweet treat failed
to make the trip. However, children everywhere will enjoy
learning short poems and riddles to recite in return for wrapped candy, or if checked
for safety by mom or dad, a candied apple or popcorn ball.
Halloween
poems for kids. (n. d.). Family
Fun. Retrieved from
The
Family Fun Website brings to this day a host of not-too-scary Halloween poems that
children in the early elementary grades might enjoy reciting for grandparents,
neighbors, and family friends in return for a treat.
Halloween
witch poem. (2009). Poetry4kids. Retrieved from
“Thanks
a ton, skeleton”--If a child is wearing a skeleton costume for trick or
treating, this is the poem to learn.
Lewis,
J. Patrick. (1990). Snake song. Poetry Foundation. Retrieved from http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/242186
What kid
intrigue by spiders, amphibians, and snakes can resist learning this poem?
Prelutsky,
Jack. (1996). It’s Halloween. Hafner, Marylin (Illustrator). New York: Greenwillow
Books.
This
collection of 13 read-aloud poems should stick in the minds of its readers.
Reciting Poems That
Celebrate Fall
As an alternative to poems that celebrate Halloween, children might also learn to recite poetry that celebrates the natural beauty of the fall season:
Poems
about: Autumn. Poem Hunter. Retrieved from http://www.poemhunter.com/poems/autumn/page-4/
This
sampling of verses provides kids with poems that are both short and memorable.
Children’s
fall poems. (2013). Autumn poetry and recitals for kids. Apple4theteacher.
Retrieved from http://www.apples4theteacher.com/holidays/fall/kids-poems-rhymes/
This
collection of fall poetry focuses on the changing season.
Cocca-Loffler,
Maryann. (2010). Let it fall. New York: Cartwheel
Press (Scholastic, Inc.).
Rhyming
couplets and colored pictures add to a fun read for preschoolers.
Salas,
Laura Purdie. (2008). Shrinking Days,
Frosty Nights: Poems about the Fall. North Mankato, Minnesota: Capstone Press.
This
anthology of autumn-themed poetry encompasses a variety of poetic forms and
poetic devices.
Trading a Riddle or Joke for a
Treat
Telling
corny jokes and riddles can take the scary out of Halloween for kindergarten
and elementary-age children as well as add fun to the fall.
Grambs,
Alison. (2005). Hilarious Halloween Jokes.
Harpster, Steve (Illustrator). Giggle
Fit. New York: Sterling Publishing.
Elementary
school students will love repeating these goofy jokes.
Hall,
Kathy & Eisenberg, Lisa. (2000). Boo
Who? And Other Wicked Knock-Knock Jokes. Carpenter, Stephen (Illustrator). New York: Harper Festival.
This
lift-the-flap book follows trick-or-treaters through a haunted house where they
meet ghosts and goblins who share their knock-knock jokes.
Jokes
and riddles for kids. (2012). Enchanted
Learning. Retrieved from http://www.enchantedlearning.com/jokes/topics/knockknock.shtml
This
massive collection of clean and corny jokes includes knock, knock jokes and
jokes about Halloween and the fall.
Rib-tickling
Halloween jokes. (n. d.). Spoonful. Disney. Retrieved from
Most
kids enjoy telling jokes, and Spoonful obliges them with silly jokes like this
one:
Question: “What do ghosts serve for dessert?”
Answer: “Ice scream”
Spiritual Treats:
Reciting Scripture for Sweets
 |
| http://www.fredcrystal.com/clipart.htm |
Instead of reciting poems, children might also recite scriptures in return for treats; for example:
- Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from you own flesh and blood. Isaiah 58: 7 (NIV).
- Every good gift and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. James 1:17 (NIV).
- If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but I have not love, I gain nothing. I Corintihians 13:3 (NIV)
- I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Jesus Christ. I Corinthians 1: 4 (NIV).
Enchanting Readers with
Halloween & Fall Books
Discovering Halloween
Picture
Books
Bunting,
Eve. (1988). Scary, Scary Halloween. Brett, Jan (Illustrator). Boston: HMH Books
for Young Readers.
Pictures
of children in Halloween costumes combined with repeating rhymes provide just a
creepy enough, but not too frightening a tale, to treat preschool children to a
wickedly good read.
Murray,
Marjorie Dennis. (Rpt. 2013). Halloween Night. Dorman, Brandon
(Illustrator). New York: Greenwillow (Harper Collins Publishers).
Kindergarteners
and early elementary-school students will want to hear and see the transformation
of “The Night before Christmas” into a Halloween story.
O’Connor,
Jane. (2009). Fancy Nancy: Halloween or
Bust. Glasser, Preiss
(Illustrator). New York: Harper
Festival.
As
Fancy Nancy explains, “Halloween is so much fun . . . because it is all about
dressing up.” Not only can readers
dress Nancy in her sticker outfits at the end of the book, but a photocopied,
enlarged, and flannel-backed Nancy and her costumes can easily go on a story
board.
Rylant,
Cynthia. (2009). Sweet, Melissa (Illustrator). Moonlight: The Halloween Cat.
New York: Harper Collins.
Moonlight’s
night-time adventures, told in a rhyming text and illustrated by vibrant
pictures, will charm the nursery school and kindergarten audience.
Falling for Picture
Books
Ehlert,
Lois. (2005). The Leaf Man. Boston: HMH Books for Young Readers.
With a
body made of autumn leaves and acorns for eyes, the leaf man has to go where
the wind takes him in this imaginative ALA Notable Book.
Esbaum,
Jill. (2008). Seed, Sprout, Pumpkin Pie. Picture the Seasons. Des Moines, Iowa: National Geographic
Children’s Books.
Esbaum
conveys the sights and smells of the fall season.
Goldstone,
Bruce. (2012). Awesome Autumn. New York: Henry Holt and Company.
This
informative book is chocked full of fall facts, wonderful photographs, and
educational and fun ideas about how to celebrate the season.
Raczka,
Bob. Fall Mixed Up. (2011). Cameron, Chad (Illustrator).
Minneapolis, Minnesota: Carolrhoda Books.
Strange
things happen when a boy mixes up the months of September and October: "Every
Septober, Every Octember, Fall fills my senses with scenes to remember."
Selecting Suspense for Readers
Ages 8 to 12
Funston, Sylvia & Petricic, Duscan. (1996). Toronto: Maple Tree Press (Raincoast Press).
Funston
provides the history behind all those scary beings of myth and legend that go
bump in the night.
Jinks,
Catherine. (2013). The Bogler’s
Apprentice. Boston: HMH Books for Young Readers.
Birdie helps
her master hunt dreaded monsters in Victorian London. A do-gooder has launched
a campaign to use more scientific methods of catching them; but meanwhile,
orphans are disappearing. The New York Times notes that The Bogler’s Apprentice is “part Great Expectations, part Ghostbusters, and a little bit of The Rights of Women”.
Lewis,
C. S. (2004). The Lion, the Witch and the
Wardrobe. 13th picture
book ed. Adapted by Oram, Hiawyn. New York:
Harper Collins.
Based
on C. S. Lewis’ allegorical novel, this richly-illustrated picture book
summarizes his text, so it can be read aloud in a single session.
Loflin,
Nikki. (2012). The Sinister Sweetness of
Splendor Academy. New York: Penguin Young Readers Group.
This
contemporary retelling of “Hansel and Gretel” has every fairy tale cliché a reader
could possibly wish for—a heroine named Lorelei, an evil stepmother, and a
witch for a teacher.
Moriartry,
Chris. (2011). The Inquisitor’s Apprentice.
Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
When
the New York police discover that a 13-year-old Jewish boy can see witches,
they apprentice him to the NYPD since the Inquisitor squad is trying to find
out just who is trying to put a murderous spell on Thomas Edison. Aimed at boys in the upper-elementary grades,
Moriatry’s work perhaps is too ambitious, conjuring up a 19th-century
atmosphere while trying to introduce Jewish folklore. Readers, however, will enjoy the quirky
characters.
Schlitz,
Laura Amy. (2012). Splendor and Glooms. Somerville, Massachusetts: Candlewick Press.
Clara’s
parents hire a puppeteer to give a puppet show for her 12th birthday
party, and on that night, she disappears. Two orphans, who are the puppet
master’s assistants, must find the poor, little rich girl in this
suspense-filled novel set in Victorian London.
Opting for Alternative YA Fiction
Page-turning
fantasy novels don’t have to rely on main characters who are involved with the
occult and magic as these novels prove:
Alexander,
Ian. (2011). Once We Were Kings. Los Gatos, California: Dawn Treader Press
(Smashwords, Inc.).
Filled
with adventure and symbolism evocative of J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis, Once We Were Kings takes YA readers on
an epic journey.
Buckley-Archer,
Linda. (Rpt. 2007). The Time Travelers.
Originally published as Gideon the
Cutpurse. New York: Simon & Schuster.
A
time-traveling machine transports two present-day English 12-year-olds back to
1763, and when an arch villain, known as Tar Man, takes off with it, they must
trust in a reformed pickpocket named Gideon to help them navigate 18th-century
London and return home.
Harding,
Matthew Christian. (2009). Foundlings. The Peleg Chronicles. Gloucester, Virginia: Zoe
and Sozo Publishing.
____________
100 Great Children's Books/100 Years
100 Great Children's Books/ 100 Years. (2013, September 30). New York Public Library. Retrieved from http://www.nypl.org/childrens100?hspace=228116
The New York Public Library recently named the 100 great children's books of the last century. How many have you and your family read?
