Pumpkin Sponge Craft

As we discussed earlier, retention of information occurs best when repetition is used. If you are planning a trip to the pumpkin patch, prepare your child by reading the book mentioned in the last post. Any story about how pumpkins grow will do.

After you visit the pumpkin patch, complete an activity that reinforces what your child saw or participated in. An example of this type of activity is the Pumpkin Sponge Craft outlined below. Hang the artwork where your child will see it and talk about the experience every now and then.

Materials Needed:
1. Construction Paper or Art Paper in white or black
2. Tempera Paints or Craft Paints (washable preferred) in orange and green
3. Sponge

Cut the sponge into a rough pumpkin shape (shown below). Dip the sponge flat down in the orange paint. Sponge paint as many pumpkins as you like. Then take your pointer finger and dip it in the green paint. Create a stem on each pumpkin with your fingerprint. This activity is simple and beneficial. Sponging and pressing with the pointer finger practices good grasp techniques and finger isolation.




Create a pumpkin patch during the day using white paper (seen above) or a pumpkin patch at night using black paper (see below). Add additional details such as vines, jack-o-lantern faces, etc. depending on the attention span of your child.



Here are some other fun pumpkin activities:

Printable Pumpkin Dot-to-Dot with Clifford

Printable Pumpkin Maze with Clifford

Pick a Pumpkin Book and Virtual Jack-o-Lantern

Pumpkin Centerpiece