After reading the rhythmic read-aloud book Pick a Pumpkin by author Patricia Toht and illustrator Jarvis which captures all the excitement from picking out the pumpkin @ the patch to scooping out the insides and carving a jack-o’-lantern we set out explore pumpkins and then make pumpkin oobleck!
Part one consisted of letting the children scoop out the seeds and strings from the pumpkin and explore the insides with their senses. When children use all their senses through exploring something new it helps them to better understand the components of a pumpkin as well as retain new information.
Part two consisted of using the insides of the pumpkin to make OOBLECK. We mixed the seeds, strings, corn starch, orange colored water and some cinnamon.
Oobleck is a fun mixture that is a great sensory activity that has scientific elements. The really cool thing about oobleck is that it’s neither a liquid nor a solid. It’s actually a suspension (known as a non-Newtonian Fluid) and will behave like either, depending on the amount of pressure you apply. When the children squeeze it in their hands it will feel like a solid, but when they open their hand, it will flow over and between the fingers like a liquid. Exploring this exciting sensory material is also an extension of the children's exposure to states of matter.
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