Pumpkin Patch October 17, 27, 28, and 31

It's that time of year again- time for a visit to the pumpkin patch!

Our sensory table was filled with pumpkin seeds. We had fun playing in them- we scooped them, shoveled them, picked them up with tweezers and put them in little buckets and pumpkin shaped baskets.

 We played with big pumpkins and little pumpkins, real pumpkins and pretend ones. We used tongs to transfer them from bucket to bowl. We weighed them and measured them. We used the words big and little and heavy and light to compare sizes.

We played a game called "Pass the Pumpkin". One of us started with the pumpkin and chose a song to sing. We sang that song while we passed the pumpkin. When the song was over, whoever had the pumpkin got to choose a different song to sing.

We cut some of our little pumpkins in half and scooped out the seeds. We weren't real sure about touching the insides.

We used the pumpkins for printing. We dipped them in a variety of colors and printed them on paper.

Some of us grew pumpkins in our gardens at home but nobody claimed growing a pumpkin as big as the one in Big Pumpkin by Erica Silverman

or as many pumpkins as in Too Many Pumpkins by Linda Williams.

 We loved acting out the parts in The Little Old Lady Who Wasn't Afraid of Anything, by the same author. 

"Emoti-Pumpkins" were placed on the floor. Each had a face which showed a particular emotion- angry, sad, happy, surprised, scared, etc. We jumped on them as different emotions were called out.

 “Hocus Pocus” was a favorite game of the week. We had a magic wand (a wooden spoon) and we turned the others into Halloween creatures. We chanted:
"Hocus Pocus Alakazam, turn into a _____________ if you can! POOF!"
We had to dramatize that creature and then when we were done, we chanted: "Hocus Pocus Alakazoo, now turn back into you! POOF! "

We chanted a finger play about five little pumpkins:
Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate(hold up five fingers)
The first one said, “Oh my it’s getting late (point to wrist)
The second one said, “ There’s magic in the air! (point upwards)
The third one said, “I don’t care.” (shrug shoulders)
The fourth one said, “Let’s run and run and run.” (move legs as in running)
The fifth one said, “Let’s go have some fun! (wave)
Wooooo! Went the wind, out went the light! (clap hands)
Five little pumpkins rolled out of sight! (roll arms)

To the tune of "Ten Little Indians", we sang"
One little, two little, three little witches,
Flying over haystacks, flying over ditches.
Riding on moonbeams without any hitches,
Hi ho, Halloween's here!

We listened to a story about a farmer who went to sell his pumpkins in town. Along the way, his truck hit a bump and his pumpkins rolled out. We had to go on a pumpkin hunt to find his missing pumpkins.

 Pumpkin Spice playdough provided a super sensory experience. We used Halloween cookie cutters and our all-time favorites- knives, forks, rolling pins, buttons and more to squish, cut, roll and shape the dough.

The Berenstain Bears and the Spooky Old Tree by Jan and Stan Berenstain provided us with a simple, spooky tale. We read it so many times, we had it memorized after just a couple of days.

Triangles, circles and rectangles in Halloween colors, were glued onto pumpkin shapes for some great looking jack-o-lantern collages.  

We had loads of fun on the Trick or Treat Trail.

The animals of the forest were so kind to us and gave us plenty of treats.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!