Pumpkin Carving Parties

We have been lucky enough to be a part of, not 1, but 2 pumpkin carving parties this year. Party number 1 is a service project, to carve pumpkins for the Ecotarium’s annual Pumpkin Festival, a children’s science museum. The second is a social for families of Little J’s school.

We give the kids sharpie markers to draw on the pumpkins while parents scrape down the insides. The more daring sensory kids help to scoop out the guts.

The kids help to carve too.

Siblings, parents and friends work shoulder to shoulder at this traditional fall time activity. The focus is on relationships and community, not so much about the final result, even though the kids’ carvings were fabulous!

We bring the insides of the pumpkins home in a large baggy and put them in the process table, inspired by Sun Hats and Wellie Boots’ pumpkin goop.

Friend H has the most fun with this, pretending to cook with the seeds and pulp.

We make a grid to help count the seeds too. Friend H is working with number grids at school right now. We were inspired by the grid at montessoritidbits.