Pumpkin Investigation - Making Predictions and Comparing Results

Happy Fall Y'all!

I don't know about you but I do enjoy the crisp air in the autumn morning and the way the sunshine warms me up through the day.  When I was a kid, we dressed up in our Halloween costumes and paraded around the school before our classroom parties. In my part of the U.S. that is a tradition of days gone by.  No more Halloween parties for us. If you find yourself in the same boat then you know how hard it is to hold the attention of the kids who are consumed with the eagerness of heading home, dressing up, and going out to Trick-or-Treat! 

Back in 2010 I found myself in just that predicament with a group of 3rd grade students.  That's when the a-ha moment happened. Third graders learn about the parts of a plant. The pumpkin investigation was my solution.  With a few plastic table cloths from Dollar Tree to contain the mess and a pumpkin for each student, we got to work. The idea was simple. First we will estimate weight, height, and number of seeds in our pumpkins. Then I shared a method for calculating a more accurate estimate for the number of seeds.  You can see the explanation here. We used a calculator for that part because it involves multiplying the number of lines on a pumpkin by 16.  Then we weighed the pumpkins by first weighing each student without their pumpkin and then weighing the student again while they held their pumpkin. We subtracted the two weights to find the weight of each pumpkin.  Each student also measured the height of their pumpkin. Next we cut the pumpkin open and pulled the pulp and seeds out onto paper plates on the table cloths.  It was a warm afternoon and we were able to do all the messy stuff outside. Students counted the actual number of seeds in their pumpkin and we made a graph.  Finally we came up with an average number of seeds for the whole class. We also checked the research by dividing the actual number of seeds found in each pumpkin by 16 to see if the answer matched the number of lines on the pumpkin.  

I made a 4 door foldable recording sheet to help guide students in the process of recording information.  Some of my students needed extra support, so I made a version that included statements they could circle rather than requiring these students to write their own statements.

If you are interested in trying this project, you can save some time by purchasing my file. I've done a few things to improve the idea over the years, including the creation of separate pages for each step of the project with clear directions. This is great for projecting on a whiteboard.

My plan is to create a Google Sheets file where student data can be entered, resulting in real-time graph creation. I'd like to create one that is editable for individual classroom use and another that is form driven for global collaboration among classrooms that are using my file.  If you are interested in either of those options, please leave a comment below so that I can determine whether or not this idea is worth pursuing.

If you want the file, head on over to my store.