Universität Koblenz-Landau
Campus Koblenz
FB 2: Institut für Anglistik / IFA
Seminar: Children’s Literature / Area Studies
Dozent: Carsten Simonis
Referentinnen: Lara Habenicht und Anne-Kathrin Meeth
Datum: 10.12.2004
Wintersemester 2004/05
HALLOWEEN
1. History and customs of Halloween
Halloween is an ancient festival with a long old history, nowadays it is an annual
celebration. But where do the roots come from? What makes children go out at night
and play trick or treat and dress up as ghosts or witches?
Today in the UK Halloween is celebrated on All Hallows Eve, the night of October 31,
the last night of October which was originally the eve of Samhain. Samhain was an
old Celtic (early inhabitants of Great Britain and northern France) festival, celebrated
in the fall just when the summer was over, it was the Celtic New year. For them this
festival was very special because they believed that those who had died throughout
the preceding year would come back now in search for living bodies to possess. It
was said that the people tried to placate them with offerings of nuts and berries.
Another story says that in order to be safe from the spirits the people dressed up in
costumes and turned of the fire in their home to make everything undesirable and
frighten always those spirits who tried to possess them.
When the Romans arrived in Great Britain, they combined their own festival
honouring the dead with the celebration of Samhain.
The custom was brought to America in the 1840`s by the Irish immigrants fleeing
their country’s potato famine. The Irish who also believed that spirits where present
on this night, lit candles to keep the spirits away. Not wanting to be alone that night,
they initiated the custom of going from house to house, gathering food for a
community feast. Some say that this is believed to be the origin for trick or treat, but it
is also said that the custom originated from a ninety-century European habit called
souling. On November 2nd, All Souls Day, early Christians would walk from village to
village begging for “soul cakes”, made out of square pieces of bread with currants.
The more soul cakes the beggars would receive, the more prayers they would
promise to say on behalf of the death relatives of the donors.
So the custom of trick or treat like we know it today is popular since the 1930s. Today
even churches have Halloween parties and pumpkin carving events for the children.
Jack o`Lanterns
Again, the Irish are responsible for this tradition, they brought it to America. But the
carving of Jack o`Lanterns goes back to the Irish legend of Jack, a lazy but shrewd
farmer who tricked the Devil into a tree, then refused to let the Devil down unless the
devil agreed to never let Jack into Hell. The story goes that the Devil agreed, but
when Jack died, he was too sinful to be allowed into Heaven, and the Devil would not
let him into Hell. So, Jack carved out one of his turnips, put a candle inside it, and
began endlessly wandering the Earth for a resting place. He was known as Jack of
the Lantern, or Jack`o Lantern.
Today Jack `o Lantern is a pumpkin whose top and stem have been carved off and
inner membranes and seeds scooped out to leave a hollow shell. Traditionally a
candle is placed inside. They are generally made for Halloween, and were originally
made from large turnips, before the introduction of the now more familiar pumpkin for
the Americans.
2. Festivities:
1. What makes Halloween an interesting topic in primary school?
- It has a mystic historical background with ghosts, witches, bats, Jack
o`Lantern,trick or treat etc
Children enjoy the celebration of a Halloween party immensely and can get very
excited
- Halloween lends children to games, dressing up and colourful activities
- Children get the possibility to use the foreign language in a playful way
2. What are important methods you can use for Halloween and why do you use
them?
-Rhymes, because they say something about the traditional background and
encourage the children to use the language
-Games, because they learn in a playful way and it enforces the class community
- Authentic food, because it focuses the attention of the children on all senses and it
brings the children closer to the foreign culture and their customs.
3. What must you keep in mind when you deal with the topic festivities in general?
- It is important for children to get in touch with other cultures, especially with their
habits.
- Therefore also in primary school, you deal with certain topics which are connected
with the other countries or cultures.
- Especially when it comes to “Halloween” the children get an inside into a habit
which is not familiar in their own world.
- Moreover the “Rahmenplan” for primary school tells us how important it is to
encourage intercultural learning in class.
3. Games:
Trick or Treat:
Organize the children into a circle. Give each child some sweets. Explain the rules of
the game.
“ Let’s play `trick or treat`, shall we? I’m going to give each of you some sweets.
That’s the treat. Now one of you goes around and asks another child `Trick or
Treat?`. If the answer is `treat`, you can play a trick on the other child. You can tickle
him (gesture), or take away his hat (gesture) or do something like that. But you must
not be too wild and hurt the other child, ok?”
Musical chairs:
Material: chairs (e.g. five chairs for six children); cassette recorder/cassette
Arrange the chairs in two rows with their backs to each other. Explain the rules:
“Let’s play a game. Move around the chairs while the music is playing. When the
music stops, sit down on a chair. But there are not enough chairs for everyone. So,
the one who won’t find a chair is out.”
Vampires:
1. Pupils walk around the classroom with their eyes closed. Ideally the classroom
should be completely darkened.
2. The teacher whisper to one pupil that he/she is a vampire.
3. The vampire, still with the eyes closed, now tries to find a “victim”.
4. When the vampire meets another pupil it takes his/her hand and gives it a
gentle squeeze. The victim utters a sharp cry and becomes a vampire, too.
5. Now the two vampires try to find new victims and so the number of vampires
increases.
6. If one vampire meets and touches another one both of them become “human
beings” again.
Apple bobbing:
Have an apple-bobbing competition in class. Ask each pupil to bring three apples
with them.
1. Float 6 apples in a bowl of water on the floor.
2. Two pupils kneel down on either side of the bowl with their hands behind their
backs.
3. When the teacher or another pupil says “go” the pupils try to get three apples out
of the water using their teeth only.
4. The first to get three apples out is the winner.
5. You could time the pupils and find the class champion!
4. Action Rhymes:
Hey-ho for Hallowe’en
Organize the children into a semi-circle. Introduce the rhyme.
“Hey-ho for Hallowe’en
All the witches can be seen
Some are black and some are green
Hey-ho for Hallowe’en
Hey-ho for Hallowe’en
All the ghosts can be seen
They’re all white and not green
Hey-ho for Hallowe’en”
Let the “witches” repeat their lines and the “ghosts” repeat their lines.
Ask the children to move around and whisper or shout the rhyme.
“Move around like witches or ghosts now. Shout the rhyme first and whisper it later.”
Jack O´Lanterns:
Ask the pupils to make up actions of their own to go with the text. Alternatively, tell
them to make the following actions:
Text
Actions
I am a pumpkin big and round.
Make a circle above the head with the
arms
Point to the ground
Touch mouth, eyes, and nose.
Once upon a time, I grew on the ground
Now I have a mouth, two eyes and a
nose
What are they for, do you suppose?
With a candle inside,
Shining bright,
I’ll be a jack-o’lantern on Hallowe’en
night.
Scratch head as if asking a question
Raise one arm.
Both arms make a circle in front of body.
Make a horrible face using the hands for
extra effect.
Dark
This can be read by the teacher and/or the pupils in a deep, low voice. All except the
last word (“ghost”), that is, which should be shouted out as a cry.
As a special effect you can bring a box with you, were you put a ghost inside. You “let
the ghost come out” of the box when you shout the last word.
In the dark, dark wood, there was a dark, dark house.
And in that dark, dark house, there was a dark, dark room.
And in that dark, dark room, there was a dark, dark shelf.
And on the dark, dark shelf, there was a dark, dark box.
And in that dark, dark box, there was a GHOST!
5.Story:
Rosie, the little witch:
Once a year all witches come together because it’s Halloween: big ones and small
ones, old ones and young ones, good ones and bad ones. And they’re all very happy
to see each other again and do all the things witches like to do. Did I say that all of
them were happy? Well, that is not quite right: There’s one little witch who is not
happy at all. In fact, she’s very sad. Her name is Rosie. Do you want to know why
she’s so sad? Well, she doesn’t like being a witch. Rosie wants to be a normal
person just like you and I. So of course, she doesn’t like doing the things witches
usually do.
Witches usually fly around on a broomstick. Not so our Rosie: She hates
broomsticks. But she loves her skateboard.
Witches make special drinks: They put toads and spiders, rats and bats in a big pot.
Then they dance around it and sing funny songs like:
Spiders and rats
Toads and bats
Black is black and green is green
We all love Ha-Halloween
Rosie doesn’t like these songs. She only likes rap songs. And she doesn’t like magic
drinks. She only likes ice-cold Coke.
All witches love cats, especially when they are as black as the night. Well, Rosie is
really frightened every time she sees a cat. The only animals she loves are her little
dog and her teddy bear, of course.
So every time the witches have their Halloween party, Rosie stays aside and does
the things she likes to do. This time other witches are getting very angry. They think
that Rosie is old enough to behave like a real witch and not like a little girl. “Rosie is
really horrible, “ they’re telling the chief witch, “She always rides around on a funny
thing called skateboard. She never uses her broomstick. Rosie always drinks that
horrible drink that she calls Coke. It’s cold and sweet and brown. We simply can’t see
why she never drinks our lovely magic drinks. And she never sings along with us,
because she only likes those horrible songs they play on the radio. And every time
she sees one of our beautiful black cats, she runs away. Isn’t that shocking?” And the
chief witch can only agree that Rosie’s behaviour is very shocking indeed. But she
knows an answer to the problem, “Don’t worry, dear sisters,” she says,“ I know tricks
to make Rosie do the things that proper little witches do. “ And raising her hands she
starts to sing:
Rich is poor and poor is rich
Turn into a normal witch...
But before she can finish her song Rosie starts to sing:
One, two, I count to three
You become a witch like me
And, look, Rosie’s trick is working: The witches are throwing away their broomsticks,
cats and drinks. And guess what they are doing this Halloween? They’re having a
party at Rosie’s favourite disco. They’re dancing and drinking ice-cold Coke while the
DJ is playing the hottest music in town. And here’s their brand new Halloween rap:
On and off and up and down
This is the hottest place in town
Black is black and green is green
We love Coke and Halloween.
6. Recipes
Halloween Bread:
Ingredients:
500 g flavour
1 cup of milk
1 package of yeast
1 egg
2 spoons of butter
100 g of sugar
Mix up all the ingredients to one dough and let him grow for 20 minutes. Mix it with
250g raisons, 125g dried currants, 50g dried orange pieces, ½ teaspoon of
cinnamon and ½ teaspoon of nutmeg.
Very important:
You have to put a golden ring into the dough,so that who has got the ring in the end
in his piece of bread will or has to marry next year.
Bake the whole mixture at 220°C for 30 minutes and sprinkle some hot sugar over it.
Pumpkin soup:
Integrants:
750g Pumpkin
1 L chicken broth
a spoonful butter
a spoonful flavour
2 spoons of brown sugar
salt
pepper
ground ginger
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
150g low fat cooked bacon
200 ml cream (30% fat)
First you peal and take the pipes out of the pumpkin. Then you cut it in big pieces
and boil it for 15 minutes. Now you put the boiled pumpkin in a sieve and in the hot
chicken broth. Mix the butter with the flavour and stir it with a little bit of chicken
broth. Now you put it into the pumpkin soup and let it cook for a short while. During
this you have to mix everything well up.
Now you add some brown sugar, salt and pepper and the ginger and taste the
flavour. Cut the bacon in pieces, too and mix it up with the soup. Short before eating
you mix up the soup with the cream and heathen everything again for a short period
of time.
Time: 25 minutes
7. Halloween Crafts:
Footprint ghosts:
Materials needed:
- 1 sheet of black construction paper
- glow in the dark star stickers or white crayon
- white tempera paint
- a pair of feet
- 1 fat child's paintbrush
Paint the bottom of a child's feet with white tempera paint (do not get it to thick or it
will not be defined between the toes.) The heel is the head of the ghost and the toes
are the bottom. Have the child step onto the black construction paper with their toes
spread apart. Let dry. When dry, stick on glow in the dark star stickers or draw stars
using a white crayon. The child can add fences, haunted houses, etc. Also, put
wiggle eyes on the ghost or draw them on. Becky and Jennifer both sent in this neat
art idea! Thanks!!
**Use washable paint for easier cleaning!
Pumpkin Lantern
Materials needed:
- 12" x 18" orange construction paper
- ruler
- scissors
- paste
- stapler
- 9" x 12" green construction paper
- red, yellow, and black construction paper scraps
- black marker
1) Demonstrate to your child how to fold the orange paper in half to make a 6" x 18"
rectangle. With a ruler, measure 2" in from the open edge and draw an 18" line
across the paper. Then draw lines 1" apart between the fold of the paper and the 18"
line.
2) Cut on the shorter lines, starting at the fold.
3) Unfold the paper, bend it into a cylinder, and paste the side edges together.
4) To make a handle for the lantern, cut 1 1/2" x 12" strip of green construction paper,
staple the strip in an arc to the top edge of the lantern.
5) Make eyes, nose and mouth for the lantern, using scraps of red, yellow and black
construction paper, a black marker and your child's imagination!!
8. Halloween Carols:
GREAT PUMPKIN IS COMING TO TOWN
(Tune: Santa Claus is Coming to Town)
Oh, you better not shriek,
You better not groan,
You better not howl,
You better not moan,
Great Pumpkin is coming to town!
He's going to find out
From folks that he meets
Who deserves tricks
And who deserves treats;
Great Pumpkin is coming to town.
He'll search in every pumpkin patch,
Haunted houses far and near,
To see if you've been spreading gloom,
Or bringing lots of cheer.
So, you better not shriek,
You better not groan,
You better not howl,
You better not moan,
Great Pumpkin is coming to town!
IN THE GRAVEYARD
(Tune: Darling Clementine)
In the graveyard, in the graveyard,
When the moon begins to shine
There's a doctor, crazy doctor
And his monster Frankenstein.
Oh, my monster, oh, my monster,
Oh, my monster Frankenstein,
You are looking very scary,
Sweet old monster Frankenstein.
9. Poems:
HALLOWEEN MAGIC
A bald-headed ghost
Drank some witches' brew
And on top of his head
A strange thing grew.
It was pointed and tall
And black as a bat
With stringy long hair
Where his head was flat.
The sad little ghost
Didn't want any hair
Or a black pointed hat
So he said, "Witch beware!"
Then he chanted some words
With a spell-casting switch
And gave Halloween Night
A bald-headed witch!!
~Barbara M. Hales~
10. Literature:
-
www.alphabet-soup.de ( 03.12.04)
www.wilstar.net/hallown ( 12.11.04)
www.learnerenglish.de/Temp/October/halloween (12.11.04)
www.parentsplace.com (12.11.04)
www.ghostvillage.com (12.11.04)
-
Activity Book 3
Friederike Schöning und Henning Schöttke
2000 Studienkreis, Bochum 2003
-
Around the year 2
Brigitte Schanz-Hering
Ernst Klett Verlag GmbH, Stuttgart 2000
-
Englisch in der Grundschule
Friederike Klippel
Scriptor, Berlin 2000.