There is just something about pumpkin season in the classroom! Pumpkins give us so many natural opportunities to bring reading, science, writing, and math together—and that is exactly what I wanted to do with my updated It’s Pumpkin Time! resource.
Rather than a collection of unrelated pumpkin worksheets, I organized this resource around two days of connected learning: first, students discover how a pumpkin grows, and then they become Pumpkin Investigators and explore a real pumpkin!
Day 1: Follow a Pumpkin’s Journey
Begin with the A Pumpkin’s Journey morning opener to find out what your students already know. Then use the colorful What Do Pumpkins Need to Grow? anchor chart to talk about sunlight, water, air, soil and space.
After reading It’s Pumpkin Time! by Zoe Hall, introduce the six stages of the pumpkin life cycle. Students can sequence the included pictures and then read their own From Seed to Pumpkin mini reader during guided reading.
I love when the science students see on an anchor chart shows up again in their reading—it helps all those new words and ideas stick!
Day 2: Become Pumpkin Investigators!
Now for the messy fun!
Bring in real pumpkins and let your students become scientists. They’ll observe, measure, predict, identify the parts of a pumpkin, peek inside, examine the pulp and seeds, and record what they discover.
The My Pumpkin Investigation page gives students a simple way to finish the experience by recording:
What I observed…
What surprised me…
Simple, meaningful, and just right for young learners!
And There’s Plenty More Pumpkin Fun!
I’ve included pumpkin vocabulary, poetry, writing, syllables, ABC order, making words, a class poll with differentiated data collection, partner math games, Pumpkin Tic-Tac-Toe, Five Little Pumpkins, and more.
Use the activities within the two-day lessons or move extras into your literacy and math centers throughout pumpkin week.
Why I Love This Resource
My favorite lessons have always been the ones where children don’t realize just how much they’re learning because they’re so busy reading, talking, touching, predicting, measuring, writing, and having fun.
That’s what It’s Pumpkin Time! is all about.
One little pumpkin can lead to a whole lot of learning! 🎃
Happy Pumpkin Season!
Michele
First Grade Hip Hip Hooray
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