Pumpkin Activities

Every October I do some F-U-N activities with the class using pumpkins! The activities cover various math and science skills, including estimation, measurement, predicting, experimenting, and the growth cycle of a pumpkin.
This pumpkin unit includes lots of literacy, math, and science activities for Kindergarten and First Grade. Perfect as a fall theme!
SCHEMA
I start by asking the class how they think a pumpkin grows: on a bush, under the ground, on a vine, or in a tree. I post their thoughts on a chart. This year the results were fairly split:
Lots of fall pumpkin activities and pumpkin learning ideas for Kindergarten! Includes anchor chart, measurement, pumpkin life cycle, and lots of fun activities. For Kindergarten and First Grade. #pumpkins #kindergarten #1stgrade #fall #pumpkinlifecycle

Then we headed to a pumpkin patch to find out for ourselves! As we took a wagon ride through the pumpkin patch, we looked closely at the pumpkins to see how they grow. No pumpkin trees in sight!
REAL LIFE APPLICATION
Tons of fun fall Pumpkin activities for Kindergarten!
 The tour guide showed us the flowers, vines, and how the pumpkins change and grow. She also gave us a class pumpkin to take back to school.

INQUIRY BASED SCIENCE
On the next day of school, I carried the very large and heavy pumpkin to the carpet and set it down. I asked my students what they thought would happen to the pumpkin if we put it in our large classroom sink--will the pumpkin sink or float in the water?
Lots of fall pumpkin activities and pumpkin learning ideas for Kindergarten! Includes anchor chart, measurement, pumpkin life cycle, and lots of fun activities. For Kindergarten and First Grade. #pumpkins #kindergarten #1stgrade #fall #pumpkinlifecycle
Again, the results were mixed, but most were convinced the heavy pumpkin would sink:
Lots of fall pumpkin activities and pumpkin learning ideas for Kindergarten! Includes anchor chart, measurement, pumpkin life cycle, and lots of fun activities. For Kindergarten and First Grade. #pumpkins #kindergarten #1stgrade #fall #pumpkinlifecycle
So, I carried the big and heavy pumpkin to our large classroom sink.
And...it didn't fit!
Lots of fall pumpkin activities and pumpkin learning ideas for Kindergarten! Includes anchor chart, measurement, pumpkin life cycle, and lots of fun activities. For Kindergarten and First Grade. #pumpkins #kindergarten #1stgrade #fall #pumpkinlifecycle
I explained to my students that it would actually float in the water.
But they didn't believe me! They thought it was too heavy. So I explained that big boats are heavy and they float on the water...which led to a student reminding me about the Titanic.

So the next school day I brought my students into the school's kitchen {where the sinks are wider} and we tried the experiment again. This put an end to their doubts.
Lots of fall pumpkin activities and pumpkin learning ideas for Kindergarten! Includes anchor chart, measurement, pumpkin life cycle, and lots of fun activities. For Kindergarten and First Grade. #pumpkins #kindergarten #1stgrade #fall #pumpkinlifecycle

MATH APPLICATIONS
Then we headed back to class to talk about the height of our class pumpkin. Using this chart, I asked them how many Unifix cubes high they think our pumpkin is.
Lots of fall pumpkin activities and pumpkin learning ideas for Kindergarten! Includes anchor chart, measurement, pumpkin life cycle, and lots of fun activities. For Kindergarten and First Grade. #pumpkins #kindergarten #1stgrade #fall #pumpkinlifecycle
Lots of fall pumpkin activities and pumpkin learning ideas for Kindergarten! Includes anchor chart, measurement, pumpkin life cycle, and lots of fun activities. For Kindergarten and First Grade. #pumpkins #kindergarten #1stgrade #fall #pumpkinlifecycle
I wrote down each student's estimate on the chart.
Lots of fall pumpkin activities and pumpkin learning ideas for Kindergarten! Includes anchor chart, measurement, pumpkin life cycle, and lots of fun activities. For Kindergarten and First Grade. #pumpkins #kindergarten #1stgrade #fall #pumpkinlifecycle
Then we stacked the Unifix cubes to find out its actual height. We discovered that our pumpkin is 18 cubes tall.
Lots of fall pumpkin activities and pumpkin learning ideas for Kindergarten! Includes anchor chart, measurement, pumpkin life cycle, and lots of fun activities. For Kindergarten and First Grade. #pumpkins #kindergarten #1stgrade #fall #pumpkinlifecycle
Lots of fall pumpkin activities and pumpkin learning ideas for Kindergarten! Includes anchor chart, measurement, pumpkin life cycle, and lots of fun activities. For Kindergarten and First Grade. #pumpkins #kindergarten #1stgrade #fall #pumpkinlifecycle
These activities {an so much more} are included here:
Lots of fall pumpkin activities and pumpkin learning ideas for Kindergarten! Includes anchor chart, measurement, pumpkin life cycle, and lots of fun activities. For Kindergarten and First Grade. #pumpkins #kindergarten #1stgrade #fall #pumpkinlifecycle

2 comments

  1. Great blog! That's hilarious that it didn't actually fit! I miss having a child in SK. Few more years!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Great ideas! Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete

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