This week has been fun! We’ve thrown in a lot of pumpkin activities into our days. One of the things I’m grateful for right now is the flexibility to do some seasonal, hands-on activities. These are definitely taking me back to harvest party days and primary grade teaching!
Pumpkin Measurement
We took our jack-o-lanterns and used different measurement tools (blocks, mega-blocks, duplos, and tape measure) to measure how tall our pumpkins were. I had each child make an estimate first. Normally I would have typed up something for this, but this time I just quickly sketched out a chart we could follow. We then measured the circumference of our pumpkins using yarn.
Pumpkin Painting
Pumpkin painting is always a fun project; this year we also included some extra decorations. They turned out fun! I brought out my (gasp!) glitter, google eyes, feathers, and buttons and let the kids decorate to their heart’s content. Our porch pumpkin patch is getting quite full and somewhat eclectic!
Pumpkin Seed Art
I saved and dyed some of our pumpkin seeds (we of course roasted some too!). I followed this post as a guide. We had fun gluing the pumpkin seeds down on construction paper, naming our artwork as well.
Pumpkin Volcano
This one looked like too much fun – my husband even came out of his office to participate when he heard what we were going to do! I followed the directions from this post. We gutted the pumpkin, and put a jar filled with water, baking soda, some dish soap, and red food coloring. The reactions were priceless when we poured the vinegar in!
Pumpkin Recipes
I’ve been trying to make some delicious pumpkin recipes with the kids recently. This crustless pumpkin pie did not disappoint! The flavor was delicious. I might make it in ramekins next time instead of a round pan.
Another recipe that I make every fall is pumpkin pancakes. These are splurge worthy and my kids now look forward to it every fall (as do I!). I highly recommend toasting some crushed pecans in the oven to go on top. We use white whole wheat flour to make them a little healthier.
Kristen's Korner 