Project PumpkinProject Pumpkin - extension activities
The activities, lessons and resources below are meant to extend student learning during this project. Please note that several of the activities may overlap subject areas.
LANGUAGE ARTS
Students create their own pumpkin. (See the Paper mache Pumpkins activity in The Arts section below.) Display the pumpkins in a “Classroom Pumpkin Patch” and assign a number to each pumpkin. Students then write a descriptive paragraph about their own pumpkin. From here you have a couple of choices: you can read each paragraph aloud and have the students guess which pumpkin is being described, or you can have students swap paragraphs. Students can create a journal of their pumpkin seeds. (See growing activity in the Science section below.) Students write step-by-step directions on how to carve a pumpkin.
Have students write pumpkin poems. (These could be displayed on a bulletin board.) Students can write captions for the photos you take during the project. Students create a pumpkin postcard. Depending on the age of your students you can have them create their postcards from a variety of point of views. There are several different options you can use to create the postcards: Students write an adventure story. The story may have to do with a pumpkin or some other fall-related or Halloween-related character. Consider having students publish their work at KidPub. http://www.kidpub.com/ Students use a shape book for writing about fall – shapes related to the activity: apple and barn. http://www.eduplace.com/rdg/hme/k_5/shapebook/toc.html Graphic Organizers – Use in a variety of ways before, during, or after reading. I Like Pumpkins by Jerry Smath (a picture book) -
Find lessons for reading, social studies, science, and art lessons. Creative Writing Halloween Theme -
Students create their own pumpkin story. My Pumpkin Story -
Students use an online tool to "carve" a pumpkin. Then they write a story about their pumpkin. Pumpkin, Pumpkin! -
This lesson goes with the book of the same title by Jeanne Titherington. Storyboard of "The Biggest Pumpkin Ever" -
Students read the story and work on comprehension skills. Build your classroom library during this project. Here are some suggested titles that you may want to check out. Big Pumpkin Pumpkin Circle: The Story of a Garden Pumpkin Soup The Pumpkin Book The Biggest Pumpkin Ever Five Little Pumpkins (Harper Growing Tree) From Seed to Pumpkin (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science, Stage 1) (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science 1) Duck & Goose Find a Pumpkin Runaway Pumpkin Too Many Pumpkins The Pumpkin Patch Parable: Special Edition (Parable Series) The Legend of Spookley the Square Pumpkin with CD Pumpkins It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (Peanuts) Biscuit Visits the Pumpkin Patch Pumpkins: A Story for a Field Seed, Sprout, Pumpkin, Pie (Picture the Seasons) Great Pumpkins: Crafty Carvings for Halloween
MATH Have students count the lines on each of the three pumpkins. After recording these numbers, students can also find the average number of lines per pumpkin. Challenge: Students take the total circumference of all three pumpkins together to calculate how many pumpkins they would need to travel around the Earth. To help students practice their measuring skills, they can measure the distance between lines on the pumpkin. While looking at your data, discuss odd/even numbers, along with divisibility rules, factors, etc. Create a graph of the pumpkin data collected. (See the activity suggestions in the Technology section below.) Students can practice their geometry skills. After students have completed their cleaning and counting, have them make suggestions of specific geometric shapes for the eyes, nose and mouth. You, or the students, can then draw those shapes on the pumpkin. Students create a Venn Diagram comparing two, or all three, of the pumpkins. Have students convert measurements between the standard system and the metric system. Provide students with a variety of objects that they can use to practice finding the circumference. BIG Pumpkins! -
Read a chart and solve word problems about big pumpkins. Pumpkin Puzzler -
Students put their math thinking in writing with this pumpkin puzzler. Jack-o-Lantern Glyph -
The glyph can be simply colored on the handout, using the legend, or students may cut construction paper shapes to create jack-o-lanterns. (PDF) Pumpkin Math -
Each of these activities capitalize on students' love of pumpkins. Pumpkin Glyphs -
it uses pictures to tell a story about the data collected. This is a fun way for elementary students to compare information about themselves and their classmates. Positive/Negative Math -
This is a great way to teach symmetry and positive/ negative at the same time!
SOCIAL STUDIES Using reference books, the Internet, and/or magazines, students can learn about the history and/or the uses of pumpkins. Pumpkin Globe -
Help students identify longitude and latitude on maps and globes to create a globe using a pumpkin.
SCIENCE Students research the life cycle of a pumpkin. Pumpkin Science - This lesson gives English language learners a background in how plants grow. It also provides them with practice in estimating and in predicting outcomes. Leftover Pumpkin Experiments -
Use this experiment to see how a pumpkin rots. Pumpkin Science -
A lesson for parts of a seed and a plant book.
TECHNOLOGY Students use Timeliner software to create a timeline of a pumpkin’s life cycle. The Great Pumpkin Detectives -
A WebQuest for Kindergarten students. Here are a few different online carving sites. Pumpkin Multiples -
You know your multiplication facts and you've been step counting for years. This game tests that knowledge by challenging you to choose multiples from a series of falling numbers. Use the arrow keys to move the ghost left and right. Students complete a Wacky Web Tale online (like a MadLib) that is related to fall and Halloween:
THE ARTS Hang a Jack-O'-Lantern Mobile -
Create unique pumpkin mobiles to hang from the ceiling. Harvest/pumpkin Poems and Songs -
This is a great collection of songs and they don’t mention Halloween. Pumpkin Crafts -
Basic and fun crafts that are pumpkin-themed. Pumpkin Seed Mosaic -
An artistic way to use the pumpkin seeds you have counted. Pumpkin Sewing Card -
Cute sewing card for little hands. Print on tagboard and laminate for longer use. (PDF) Silly Pumpkins: Just for Fun (Or Fund-Raising) -
Have fun -- and raise funds -- with pumpkins. Get decorating ideas too!
BULLETIN BOARDS
Post completed glyphs from the math section on a bulletin board.
Here are a few recipes that you may want to use for the pumpkin seeds after you get done counting them. Pumpkins at Enchanted Learning -
An incredible collection of activities and resources. Pump Up the Curriculum With Pumpkins -
Jump into pumpkin facts and pumpkin lore. Try pumpkin science, pumpkin math, pumpkin writing. Kindergarten Kapers Pumpkin Unit -
A fun Kindergarten unit that includes songs, recipes and activities. Pumpkin Unit -
A great collection of lessons geared toward 2nd grade. Pumpkins and More! -
Learn the history of pumpkins, how they grow, fun, and more. Pumpkins Theme -
This is a Kindergarten theme that includes activities across the curriculum. Contact us: |
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