Jack-o'-lanterns can express a wonderful range of emotions beyond their usual "scary face." Use them to teach kindergarten students about different emotions, such as happy, sad, angry, surprised, grumpy, nervous. As a class, discuss what each emotion looks like; call out emotions one by one and have students respond by demonstrating them with facial expressions. Have student decorate paper cutouts of pumpkins with an expressive jack-o'-lantern face of their choice. Sort the jack-o'-lanterns into groups by emotion and use them to decorate the room.
Use a pumpkin to introduce kindergarten students to the basics of the scientific method. Bring a pumpkin, top cut off, into class and ask students to observe and describe its color, shape, texture, weight and size. Track the words on chart paper or a blackboard. Have students estimate the number of seeds inside the pumpkin and add their answer to a paper chart that lists the estimations in numerical order. That night, hollow the pumpkin and count the seeds. Add the official count to the chart the next morning and see which student's estimation was the closest.
Bring out each student's green thumb by planting a class pumpkin patch. Start by discussing a plant's needs: light, water, air and soil. Give each student a miniature peat pot and one pumpkin seed. Set up a station where students can add a scoop of light potting soil to their pot and plant the seed. Set up another station with craft sticks that students can personalize and stick in the soil to mark their container. Place the plants near a window sill in the classroom and have students take turns watering the seedling pumpkins every second day.
Teach students the notion of grouping like objects by playing a jack-o'-lantern matching game. Make a deck of flash cards using pairs of pumpkins with jack-o'-lantern faces. Set up a station in the classroom where students can work in a small group with the teacher. The game starts with the cards lying spread out face down on the table. Each student flips over two cards at a time trying to find matching jack-o'-lantern faces. Students hold on to each matching pair until the cards run out.