The Pedagogical Planner

CONNECTING READING, WRITING, GRAMMAR, MATH, AND SCIENCE

Pumpkin Jack by Will Hubbell is a fall favorite in many elementary classrooms, and for good reason! This book presents the perfect opportunity for integrated Reading, Writing, Grammar, Math, and Science enrichment activities all tied together with the autumn classic Pumpkin Jack.

Students can engage in reading skills, such as retelling and sequencing this fun story. Make it interactive by jotting down story events on post it notes and allowing students to put the events in order on an anchor chart! Students can also get creative by crafting a brochure of this fun Jack-o-lantern story or writing a glowing book review (pun intended).

Speaking of creativity, how about a pumpkin coloring craft that is also ALIGNED to state standards?! Pumpkin or Jack-O-Lantern color by code activities would be an excellent addition to the read aloud of Pumpkin Jack. There are many options for online math color by number sheets for your students to practice addition or subtraction skills. I also have a grammar color by code activity to review parts of speech. Students will determine nouns, verbs, and adjectives and then color a picture of an adorable Jack-O-Lantern.

Get your students moving by taping these task cards around the room for a class scavenger hunt! A fun way to test your students comprehension of the story is with my Pumpkin Jack Task Cards. This product includes 13 task cards that can be used in a variety of ways. Task cards are incredible versatile! Here are just a few ideas for easy engagement:

• Whole Class Scoot
• Literacy Centers
• Station Rotation
• Early Finishers
• Task Card Scavenger Hunt
• Kagan Quiz Quiz Trade
• Small Group
• Comprehension Assessment
• Journal/Discussion Prompts

My personal favorite is the task card scavenger hunt! Just print the task cards, cut, and laminate. Then, tape the cards around the classroom. Students get to grab a clip board and search the room to answer each question. It is easy to set up and fun for the kids to get up and move around while learning!

Printable assessments are also available in my store for a way to test your students comprehension without the prep.

Throughout this fantastic story, Will Hubbell shows the life cycle of pumpkin. This story illustrates the decomposition of pumpkin Jack during the fall and winter. In March, Tim finds the decomposed pumpkin with seeds, so he covers it with soil. Later in the spring, Tim sees sprout begin to grow from the seed. As he cares for it, vines begin to grow, and then flowers. Finally, little green pumpkins start to appear as summer comes to an end, which grow into large orange pumpkins as fall comes around. Why not extend this as a science lesson on the life cycle of a pumpkin?! Students can make posters to illustrate the life cycle of a pumpkin, or my cut & glue pumpkin life cycle activity is also included in the ultimate Pumpkin Jack Activity Pack.

Extend Pumpkin Jack into your Math block by having students collect data from Tim’s pumpkin garden. Students can use their data to create pictographs and bar graphs, then interpret their data through reflective questioning.

With Pumpkin Jack, there are so many possibilities to bring a little extra Halloween magic to your classroom this October!

NO PREP BUNDLE

Want to save time setting up your Pumpkin Jack Cross-Curricular Unit activities? My Pumpkin Jack Activity Pack is the perfect NO PREP book companion to engage your students this October.

All of the following are included in this product:

Life Cycle of a Pumpkin Cut & Glue

Story Map Brochure Craft

Sequencing

Vocabulary Page

Comprehension Task Cards

Recording Sheets

Answer Keys

Comprehension Worksheets

Multiple Choice

Short Answer

Writing Response

Grammar Activity Coloring Page

Color By Code Parts of Speech Pumpkin

Collecting Data from Tim’s Garden

Math Fall Pictograph

This product includes many of my favorite fall pumpkin-themed activities all in one at an AMAZING VALUE! Included are my Pumpkin Jack task cards, Pumpkin Jack comprehension printables, vocabulary and book companion activities from my exclusive mega bundle bonus, Parts of Speech Color by Code, Autumn Data, and more! This bundle now includes a BONUS presentation for the Life Cycle of a Pumpkin as told by Pumpkin Jack. It is available through PowerPoint and Google Slides.

MORE FANTASTIC FALL READ ALOUDS WITH OPPORTUNITIES FOR CROSS-CURRICULAR CONNECTIONS

Of course, I can’t write about Pumpkin Jack without at least mentioning some of my other fall favorite read alouds!

First up, Scarecrow by Cynthia Rylant is my go to for writing inspiration in the classroom. No fall read aloud will spark more imagination in your students than this one! This book also happens to be a great think aloud for introducing figurative language.

Speaking of writing inspiration, Hello Harvest Moon by Ralph Fletcher is a quick runner up. Bring in all the cozy fall vibes with this classic!

In Leaf Jumpers, Carole Gerber portrays the falling of leaves and autumn fun of jumping into piles of them beautifully, while providing a connection to the science of changes in the leaves.