Students analyze three Halloween reading passages to identify literary devices, theme, and figurative language comparisons. Part B has five fill-in-the-blank problems about author's purpose, theme, and how word choice creates mood.
Analyzing Halloween passages for literary devices, author's purpose, and mood — using the same evidence-based reasoning required in any Grade 5 ELA analysis — keeps seasonal engagement rigorous and academically meaningful.
Style:
Halloween Math & Reading
Part A: Multiple Choice
Circle the best answer for each question.
1. Read: "The jack-o-lanterns grinned from every porch, their flickering eyes watching the parade of tiny ghosts and superheroes." What literary device is used?
A) Simile
B) Personification
C) Alliteration
D) Hyperbole
2. An author writes a story where a child overcomes fear of a haunted house by learning it was just old plumbing making noises. What is the theme?
A) Haunted houses are always fake
B) Things are not always as scary as they seem
C) Plumbing should be repaired quickly
D) Children should avoid old houses
3. Read: "Cobwebs draped like silver curtains across the ancient doorway." What two things are being compared in this simile?
A) Cobwebs and silver
B) Doorway and curtains
C) Cobwebs and curtains
D) Silver and ancient
4. A newspaper article explains the history of trick-or-treating in America. What is the author's primary purpose?
A) To entertain with a spooky story
B) To persuade readers to go trick-or-treating
C) To inform readers about a Halloween tradition
D) To describe a personal Halloween memory
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the correct answer on each line.
1. When an author writes to teach the reader facts, the purpose is to inform.
2. The lesson or message the author wants you to take away from a story is the theme.
3. Words like "creepy," "dark," and "howling" help create a spooky mood.
4. Comparing two unlike things WITHOUT using "like" or "as" is a metaphor.
5. The person telling the story is called the narrator.
Halloween Math & Reading
★ Part A: Multiple Choice
Circle the best answer for each question.
1. Read: "The jack-o-lanterns grinned from every porch, their flickering eyes watching the parade of tiny ghosts and superheroes." What literary device is used?
A) Simile
B) Personification
C) Alliteration
D) Hyperbole
2. An author writes a story where a child overcomes fear of a haunted house by learning it was just old plumbing making noises. What is the theme?
A) Haunted houses are always fake
B) Things are not always as scary as they seem
C) Plumbing should be repaired quickly
D) Children should avoid old houses
3. Read: "Cobwebs draped like silver curtains across the ancient doorway." What two things are being compared in this simile?
A) Cobwebs and silver
B) Doorway and curtains
C) Cobwebs and curtains
D) Silver and ancient
4. A newspaper article explains the history of trick-or-treating in America. What is the author's primary purpose?
A) To entertain with a spooky story
B) To persuade readers to go trick-or-treating
C) To inform readers about a Halloween tradition
D) To describe a personal Halloween memory
★ Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the correct answer on each line.
1) When an author writes to teach the reader facts, the purpose is to inform.
2) The lesson or message the author wants you to take away from a story is the theme.
3) Words like "creepy," "dark," and "howling" help create a spooky mood.
4) Comparing two unlike things WITHOUT using "like" or "as" is a metaphor.
5) The person telling the story is called the narrator.
Ready to Practice?
Complete each section carefully.
9 Questions
12-18 minutes
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