Jack-O-Lantern from Seeds

Materials

• orange, green, and brown construction paper
• contact paper – 2 pieces per child
• assorted seeds – You can get donations from a garden store, or buy a bag of seeds in a soup mix. You can also collect seeds from the playground or school garden.
• scissors

Background Information

As part of a fall study, focus on fall seeds. Teach that spring and summer are the seasons of seed production. In the fall many plants are dispersing their seeds. Many plants produce seed packages that carry the seed away from the mother tree. The new plant will then have its own space to grow. Some plants put a helicopter or parachute on the seed (dandelions). Others protect the seed with a hard cover and will need an animal to plant it. (example: acorn/squirrel) Some plants package their seeds in soft fruits (apple). The seed uses the fruit as its first food.

Activity

Take your class on a walk to collect seeds. (Small lunch bags work well as collectors.)
Each child draws a pumpkin onto the orange construction paper and cuts it out.
They then draw an outline of their pumpkin about 1⁄2” in from the circumference.
The children should check with an adult to make sure they have gone wide enough.
Then they need to cut on this new line.
*You may need to help younger children with the above step. Place the pumpkin outline onto sticky contact paper.
Use the seeds to create jack-o-lantern features.
The seeds will stick fairly easily.
Cover the jack-o-lantern with the second piece of contact paper and trim.
Add a stem using the brown paper and leaves using the green paper.
Hang in your classroom windows as a nice fall display.