I absolutely love going to the Dollar Tree, and the fact that prices have gone up has NOT been a deterrent. I find so many cool trinkets and supplies that can be used to teach a variety of skills to students with visual impairments. Early in October, I couldn’t help myself when I saw these foam pumpkins, sparkly spiders, and plastic eyeballs that seemed perfect for a seasonal sorting activity.
Materials Needed
- Small foam pumpkins
- Sparkly spiders
- Plastic eyeballs
- Trick-or-Treat bag or other container to hold the items
- APH work/play tray with dividers or 3 containers for sorting
Procedure
- Place all of the items in a cool Halloween bag.
- Ask students to pull an item out one at a time and try to identify it.
- Sort the items into the tray or small containers.
- After all the items have been sorted, count each group and compare the quantities.
Adaptations and Extensions
- Use hand under hand to support a student in locating the bag and different places to sort the items.
- Pre-Teach the names of each item that will be in the bag.
- Reduce the number of items that will be sorted. This can be done by reducing the total number or by only sorting two items instead of three.
- Use the items to make a graph.
- Write the first letter of each item or the whole word on an index card to label the work/play tray.
- Write the first letter of each item or the whole word on an index card, and sort them instead of the objects.
- Write a story that includes the words “pumpkin,” “spider,” and “eyeball.”
- Write a story about the adventure of the Sparkly Spider.
- Write a story about the life cycle of a pumpkin.
- Research and tell about your eye condition.
