Kids love to explore and discover and we can use that enjoyment to build one of the very most important kindergarten readiness factors–being excited to learn. For the whole month of October kids have been seeing pumpkins all over. Now, it’s time for some hands-on science. More accurately, that would be hands-in.
Grown-ups need to do the careful cutting of a lid in the pumpkin. But kids can help do the scooping out of the seeds and the strings. Some kids dislike the slippery feel and do not want to touch “that yucky stuff.” A big spoon can help them scoop without touching. Save the pumpkin seeds to roast and eat. To lock in the learning, talk with your child about the discovery. Is the pumpkin the same inside as outside? What’s different about the inside? What kind of seeds are these? Remember, little ones don’t know that pumpkin seeds will grow only pumpkins. Some discoveries take only minutes, some take a very long time but readiness for kindergarten can happen anytime. What kind of discoveries and science learning happened with this pumpkin activity?
