Sure, everyone loves a Jack-o-lantern, but carving a face into a pumpkin is not the only thing that you can do with one. The kids pounded golf tees, and I removed them. Then they used the Mr. Potato Head features to create their own Jack-O-lantern (multiple personality) as you can see.
Then I gave the children colored discs and tees and let them pound away. They giggled so hard whenever they'd say, "Again! Again!" and I'd say, "Oh my, you are making me coo-coo saying 'again-again'." They pounded tees and discs into practically every inch of this pumpkin. The best part is, tomorrow we will remove them and they will do it all over again. This is a great hand-eye coordination activity.
Oh sure, other people paint features,and produce a "product", but we simply enjoyed the "process" of painting a pumpkin, and let me tell you, by the time we went indoors, this pumpkin had layers of paint.
What a beautiful fall day to go outdoors to jump in a pile of dried leaves, roll in them, toss them up and crunch them in our hands. One child said, "This was my best day all year!" I'd have to agree.
6 comments:
Such cool ideas. When my son was in 5th grade they had a pumpkin project and had to create a character with their pumpkin and then write a biography. The kids came up with some really creative ideas. Who knew a pumpkin was such a versatile learning tool?
Great job, Linda! Wow, those little ones had a blast. Loved the non-traditional pumpkin, too. After all, I'm a little non-traditional myself. ha ha ha Thanks so much for sharing. Susan
I wish we all dived into our day with the same joyous enthusiasm of kids!
Pat
www.critteralley.blogspot.com
Oh my gosh those looked like so much fun and what great ideas. Sandie
Love it!
My daughter, Ella, is in Pre-K, and earlier this week she proudly showed me how she and her classmates pounded golf tees into their classroom pumpkin. I loved it - and so did she! Love the idea of using Mr. Potato Head, too - I think we will have to put a Mr. Pumpkin Head on our front porch this year to welcome Trick-or-Treaters!
Miss you!
How fun! You've obviously met your calling as a teacher.
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