5 Favorite October Fingerplays and Counting Songs for Elementary Music

Five students hiding under scarves, one waiting to turn off the lights, and another ready to make the wind blow with an instrument…this is October in my elementary music classroom! 🎃

If you’re looking for counting activities that get your youngest musicians chanting, singing, acting, and playing instruments, here are two of my classroom favorites.

Last week, I highlighted Stephanie Leavell’s Five Perfect Pumpkins, a newly discovered favorite. This week, my countdown continues with #4 and #3!

#4: Three Ghosts

This is a simple counting song to the tune of London Bridge. Each time one of the ghosts leaves, you take out a boo.

Do you hear a Ghostly Sound?

Stand real still, look around.

Do you think three ghosts are near?

Boo, boo, BOO!

Prop: add a scarf or a parachute and the students throw it on the last boo.

#3: Five Little Pumpkins Sitting on a Gate 🎃

This is one of my youngest students’ most requested October activities. We turn it into a little performance, complete with scarves, instruments, and a very enthusiastic lighting crew!

Here’s how we bring it to life:

• Five pumpkins: Five students each take a pumpkin’s line. They hide under scarves and pop up when it’s their turn to sing.

• The light keeper: One student turns off the classroom lights on “Out went the lights!”

• The sound effect: Another student plays the whip crack on that same line.

• The wind: One student plays wind chimes, a gong, or a triangle on “Ooo went the wind!”

We repeat the song and switch roles so everyone gets a turn.

My tip for managing those much-wanted instrument parts: Before we begin, I give every student a chance to try the special instruments. Since these only come out at certain times of the year, everyone is eager to play them! Trying them first helps when students are assigned a different role during the song.

We also practice being flexible when our first-choice part goes to someone else: “Every part helps us tell the story!”

Prefer a fall-themed version? Replace the line about witches with “The second one said, ‘There’s a chill in the air!’”

Two simple counting activities, plenty of student participation, and lots of reasons to repeat them!

Which would your students choose first—the black cats or the pumpkins?

Stay tuned for #2 and #1! 🍂