With Halloween just around the corner, our house has become full of pumpkins, gobblins and ghosts. Okay, maybe only a quarter of that sentence is true. Pumpkins are everywhere. I just love them! PS Didn’t you know homeschooling is about Mama’s fun too? Come on! 🙂
Last weekend we went camping, KOA style. Which is pretty much in a cabin with set plans for kids. We went camping on the “Not-So-Scary” week. One of the activities was a pumpkin contest so we entered.
Although I thought we had the best pumpkins, we did not win. 🙁 So I took the pumpkins home and displayed them on our porch. As I was creating this scientific pumpkin experiment (which was on a whim) I pulled out their pumpkins to make them even more special.
On to the project!
First I gave each little scientist an observation sheet.
I know, it’s not the best but it worked! The categories included were: Color, Number of Ribs, Texture, Height, Circumference and Weight. They studied their own pumpkins as we discovered the answers. I wish I was able to take photos of this process but it’s kind of hard when there’s one of me and two eager learners! First, we discussed the color and counted the number of ribs on each pumpkin. Then rubbed our hands over each pumpkin for texture. I also brought out a measuring tape to see what the height and circumference of each pumpkin was. (They love to measure!) For the weight, I used our scale. Unfortunately our pumpkins are so light that the scale didn’t register any numbers, so hubby put his hand down and we ended up with 23lb pumpkins!
Then I remembered the camera and my son pointed out that his has been eaten!
He asked why his sisters doesn’t have any bite marks. I said because whatever was nibbling probably got full off of his!
Then the fun really got spootacular (get it? Okay then!) We cut the tops off each pumpkin to discover the surprise inside!
He was not happy to look at the pumpkin guts inside. Matter-a-fact, he decided it was “GROSS!”
We talked about the pumpkin seeds and how they can be baked. He was adamant that he was not going to try them! (We shall see soon!)
My daughter loved putting the tops back on the pumpkin as if it was a puzzle piece. She squished, scooped and enjoyed playing with the guts!
By this time, my husband was really into the project as well. He decided to make our pumpkins into Jack-O-Lanterns. The most amazing part of the night, was watching the kids faces when the pumpkins lit up.
We did take the pumpkin seeds out for a project later this week that you shall soon see!
What’s your favorite pumpkin activity?