Utilize pumpkins for a fun math project.
Veteran teachers know that from now until after the holidays, it will be a little more challenging to keep the students engaged in what’s going on in the classroom. A good strategy is to incorporate some of the themes that are surrounding them once they leave the campus.
Here are some fun, yet challenging lesson ideas for incorporating autumn into each subject area’s curriculum.
Science: Now’s the time for photosynthesis
Fall is the biggest time of year for photosynthesis. After all, if it wasn’t for the change in the ability of plants to create energy, their leaves wouldn’t fall in the first place. When studying photosynthesis, you can make the lesson as complicated as you want depending on the grade level you’re trying to reach, including various experiments with healthy plants. Age-appropriate explanations for why leaves change color can be found at Science Made Simple.
Math: Get out the pumpkins!
Pumpkins are a natural ally to math teachers everywhere. They come in a variety of weights and sizes, or circumferences and radiuses for geography teachers. Smaller children love to carve them up and use the seeds for various arithmetical exercises, while the older kids can start working on more complicated tasks including building their own pumpkin-chucking machine for studying trajectory and laws of motion. They make the room smell nice, too.
Social Science: Track the foliage
This works particularly well as a teaming activity with a science teacher studying photosynthesis (see above). A good place to start is the national foliage map from the Weather Channel. Using various data found online, students can start piecing together what is happening with the foliage around the country. See if they can make some friends on Skype in a place where the colors are quite different from home, especially if you’re teaching in an area where the leaves don’t change. Advanced students can create their own foliage map based on temperature data and other factors.
English/Language Arts: It’s Poe time!
Frankly, the work of Edgar Allan Poe seems out of place in any other season. The imagery is a bit cold and dark, just like fall. Aside from reading his poetry or short stories, take some time to introduce the concept of gothic horror to the students and ask them to create their own stories in the same tradition. Sharing is also important. When students create any writing, it should be written to be read by more than just their teacher. Find some works from other authors with unreliable narration or suspense and run a comparison.
The Next Level
Have you had success with any other fall-themed lesson units? Educate us in the comments below.
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