What’s inside a pumpkin? Opening a pumpkin and looking inside is a seasonal, hands-on learning experience that supports science, sensory, and language development as well as curiosity. Just presenting the question to preschoolers piques their interest and creates excitement to see what’s inside the pumpkin.
Our pumpkin has a stem. That’s where it was connected to the vine, in the field. Feel the outside of the pumpkin. It’s hard and cool. The texture is bumpy. The outside of the pumpkin is called the shell. Pumpkins are considered a fruit. What do you think is inside of the pumpkin?
We cut around the stem to create an opening. This stringy stuff is called pulp. There are lots of seeds inside the pumpkin! We use our hands and a spoon to scrape out the insides. It feels wet, sticky, and gooey.
We can save the pumpkin seeds to plant a new pumpkin or roast the seeds to eat for a snack!
The stem is like a handle and we can fit the top back on like a puzzle piece.
Feel inside. Look inside.
Let’s sort out the seeds so they can be washed.
It’s fun to see what’s inside a pumpkin!
More Pumpkin Discoveries
- Pumpkin Math Mats // Child Care Land
- Pumpkin Tangrams & Play Dough
- Spookley the Square Pumpkin Story & Craft
- Pumpkin Investigation // For the Love of First Grade
- Pumpkin Patch Party
- Painted Mini Pumpkins
- Pumpkin Sensory Bag // Pre-K Pages