![]() Fine Motor Development during Pumpkin Playĭo you want your child to develop early writing skills so they are ready for kindergarten and beyond? Pass the pumpkins, please! Writing requires hard work in the early years, strengthening the muscles in the fingers, hands, and core, and practicing hand eye coordination through the use of tools. Pumpkins and gourds inspire elements of physical and natural scientific inquiry. What does this feel like? How does it taste? Does it make a sound if I bang it on something? Preschoolers start to investigate the scientific processes of testing a hypothesis (what will happen if I drop this pumpkin off the side of the climber?), their stages of growth (from seed, to vine, to flower, to fruit), and recipes for cooking and baking with them (Yum!). Infants and toddlers are masters of using their senses to explore the properties of the things around them. Their hard, textured exterior, their slimy fibrous innards, and the vines they grow on spark scientific inquiry in even our youngest learners. Pumpkins and gourds create a sense of wonder and curiosity in young children. 1… 2… 3… Let’s pumpkin! Scientific Thinking during Pumpkin Play ![]() Hey Mathletes, how many pumpkins have you got there? What shape are they? Which one is the heaviest? Can you put them in order from smallest to largest? Can you classify them into categories of bumpy and smooth? Let’s measure the circumference with measuring tape – that means all the way around! Pumpkins and gourds for the win of the perfect autumnal math homework! Counting, measuring, weighing, comparing, and classifying are all activities that develop our mathematical thinking muscles. Mathematical Thinking during Pumpkin Play Pumpkins and gourds provide opportunities to hear and practice wonderful adjectives like squishy, wet, slimy, bumpy, hard, rough, and smooth, action verbs like pinch, pull, cut, scrape, scoop, and collect, and scientific labeling of parts like seeds, stem, vine, pulp, and skin. Supporting your child’s exploration by making connections between their sensory input and rich descriptive vocabulary helps their language development soar in a meaningful way. Pumpkins and gourds provide a sensory experience from the inside out. Pumpkin carving is cool AND it strengthens fine motor muscles that lead to early writing skills. Pumpkin play is messy AND it promotes scientific inquiry for all ages through sensory input. ![]() It’s pumpkin season! Not only do these gourds make the best soups, muffins, pies, and lattes, but they also serve as an incredible tool for early brain development! Pumpkin play is cute, AND it creates an opportunity for language modeling and vocabulary development.
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