Halloween Math & Reading — Answer Key
Part A: Fill in the Blank
Write the missing word or number on each line.
1. A costume shop sells 9 wigs at $15 each. Total sales are $135.
9 × $15 = $135. Split into (9 × 10) + (9 × 5) = 90 + 45 = 135.
2. When an author writes "the house groaned," the figurative language used is personification.
Houses cannot actually groan — that is a sound people make. Giving human actions to things is personification.
3. Seven trick-or-treat bags hold 24 candies each. There are 168 candies total.
7 × 24 = 168. Split as (7 × 20) + (7 × 4) = 140 + 28 = 168.
4. A story set in a dark haunted castle has an eerie mood.
Mood is the feeling a story gives the reader. A dark haunted castle creates an eerie, scary mood.
5. A spider wraps 156 bugs equally over 12 days. It wraps 13 bugs per day.
156 ÷ 12 = 13. Check: 12 × 13 = 156, from (12 × 10) + (12 × 3) = 120 + 36 = 156.
6. Hints in a story about what will happen later are called foreshadowing.
Foreshadowing is when an author drops small hints that warn what might happen. The prefix 'fore-' means 'before'.
7. Eight carved pumpkins cost $25 each. The total is $200.
8 × $25 = $200. A fast way: 4 × $25 = $100, so 8 × $25 = $200.
8. The main lesson a Halloween story teaches the reader is its theme.
Theme is the big idea or life lesson an author wants the reader to take away. It is different from the plot, which is what happens.
9. A ghost hides 225 candies in 9 equal piles. Each pile has 25 candies.
225 ÷ 9 = 25. Check: 9 × 25 = 225, from (9 × 20) + (9 × 5) = 180 + 45 = 225.
Part B: Matching
Match each item on the left to the correct answer on the right.
1. Match each item to its correct answer.
simile
→ comparing using like or as
repeating the same beginning sound
metaphor
→ saying something is something else
giving human traits to non-human things
personification
→ giving human traits to non-human things
comparing using like or as
alliteration
→ repeating the same beginning sound
saying something is something else
Each figurative language device has a unique signal: similes need 'like' or 'as', metaphors make direct comparisons, personification gives human traits to things, and alliteration repeats starting sounds.