Outdoor Hour Challenge Autumn Series-Pumpkins

Outdoor Hour Challenge
Autumn Series #5 Pumpkins
(See Also Crop Plants Challenge #6)

Inside Preparation Work
Read in the Handbook of Nature Study pages 611-617. Make sure to highlight or underline some facts about pumpkins and also a few ideas for completing your nature study during your pumpkin time.

Outdoor Time
You can either plan a field trip to a pumpkin field to observe pumpkin plants and pumpkins or you can purchase a pumpkin at the grocery and bring it home and complete this study with a real pumpkin. You could also plan on doing both!

Follow-Up Activities
If you have a real pumpkin to observe, use the suggestions on pages 616 and 617 in the Handbook of Nature Study. Pull out your nature journals and make a colorful pumpkin entry. There is also a free notebook page in my Autumn 2009 Notebook Page download.

Here are some additional observation suggestions for you to try with your children.
Thump your pumpkin and describe the sound.
Observe the creases on the outside of the pumpkin.
Can you tell which way your pumpkin sat on the ground when it was growing?
Cut your pumpkin open and view the seeds. Sketch the arrangement in your journal.
Are pumpkins mostly full or empty?
Observe the thickness of the pumpkin shell. Is it the same all over the pumpkin?
Carefully sketch a pumpkin seed into your journal.
Describe the feel of the pumpkin both inside and out. What is the stringy stuff for?
Describe the smell of the pumpkin inside.
Describe the taste of cooked pumpkin or the pumpkin seed after roasting.

Also try these links:
Pumpkin life cycle: http://www.atozteacherstuff.com/pdf.htm?pumpkin_lesson.pdf
Pumpkin poem for your nature journal:
http://www.dltk-holidays.com/fall/pumpkinpoem1.htm


If you purchased my Crop Plants Notebook Pages, there is a pumpkin notebook page included in that set or the one listed in the sidebar of my blog in the free downloads section.