Life Cycle of a Pumpkin

When I taught first grade, life cycles was a major science unit. One of the life cycles we studied while talking about plants was that of a pumpkin. As a first grade team, we compiled many printable books, Websites, activity sheets, and crafts to go along with this unit, and one of my favorite crafts to do with students was this paper plate spinner.

With my first grade students, I had them create the spinners themselves, from coloring to cutting and pasting. All I did was help poke through the brass fastener to help it spin. For Baby Bear, I did all these steps myself because the skill set and purpose were different. With the older children, this was a fun way to reinforce a concept. With my Baby Bear, this was mostly an introduction to basic vocabulary like seed and pumpkin, and it was an exposure to the idea of life cycles.

I cut a window into the plate with the title big enough to show one picture at a time. Then, I placed the title plate onto the plate with the pictures and secured them together in the middle with a brass fastener. This way, you can spin the top plate clockwise to reveal the next step in the cycle.

 This is an activity for Baby Bear and I to do together. If left on his own, he would most likely try to pull the plates apart. He would also probably have a hard time spinning only the top plate (I am looking for ways to create a sort of handle for the top plate, though, so he can help spin.) This is a simple, yet fun fall activity that is also educational. It also ties in nicely to other life cycle activities, like planting real seeds and watching them grow.