Kids' Pumpkin Projects: Planting & Harvest Fun (Williamson Good Times Books) [Paperback]

Deanna F. Cook (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up | Series: Williamson Good Times Books

City and country kids will have fun all year long with Deanna Cook's indoor and outdoor pumpkin adventures, from planning the garden and planting the seeds to baking pumpkin pie and making pumpkin crafts. More than 50 indoor/outdoor pumpkin activities for year round fun.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 4-Everything readers ever wanted to know (and more) about pumpkins and related projects is cheerfully described and illustrated here. Organized around the seasons, the book includes basic gardening skills and encourages the use of a journal. Throughout, suggestions for recording data, drawing pictures, writing poems and observations, and pasting pictures in the journal are given. Many of the activities are standard fare-carving jack-o'-lanterns and making pie-but there are plenty of surprises: how to grow a silly-shaped pumpkin, create unique scarecrows and T-shirts, and make pumpkin-seed soap. Tucked throughout are bits of lore (mostly Native American) and traditional stories. The author gives suggestions for a carnival with directions for games and cites passages from several of Laura Ingalls Wilder's books that refer to a pumpkin tea party and drying this fruit for food. Ample black-and-white line drawings feature children involved in each project. The pages are pleasantly arranged and bordered with vine details. Recipes and other directions are clearly presented, and, in general, the projects are manageable for school-age children or younger with supervision. Although it is unlikely that a single child will tackle all or even most of the projects, there is much that will be valuable to parents and teachers who are looking for both traditional and fresh ideas.
Lee Bock, Glenbrook Elementary School, Pulaski, WI
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 3^-6, younger for reading aloud. A whole book on pumpkin projects? Yes, if it's as well organized and full of good ideas as this one. When Cook learned that the children in her neighborhood thought that pumpkin pie came from a can, she decided to start a pumpkin garden. Her book, organized by season, has at its core the planting, care, and harvesting of pumpkins, but it also offers all sorts of auxiliary crafts and cooking ideas. Beginning in the spring with addresses of seed sources and planting ideas, Cook then offers ideas for keeping a plant journal, decorating pumpkins, saving seeds, and making such treats as pumpkin pie, ice cream, and trail mix. Of course, there's some stretching here, too (sponge print a pumpkin T-shirt), but this mix of gardening, lore, cookery, and crafts should find a welcome home in both school and public libraries. Green line illustrations are inviting, but a touch of orange might have been nice. Ilene Cooper

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Paperback: 104 pages
• Publisher: Williamson Publishing Company (June 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 188559321X
• ISBN-13: 978-1885593214
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 8.1 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #653,481 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #65 in Books > Children's Books > Science, Nature & How It Works > Nature > Gardening

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pure Pumpkin Pleasure, May 30, 2010

By 

LAUNA STOUT- AmericanRegionalCuisine.BellaOnl... (California, USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Kids' Pumpkin Projects: Planting & Harvest Fun (Williamson Good Times Books) (Paperback)

After checking this book out from the library and renewing it several times I knew I just had to own it. There are so many different pumpkin activities that can actually keep children entertained for a season. They start by planning their garden,and keeping a pumpkin journal. Through the book the illustrations are engaging and the activities are very doable. It helps a child see the planting and harvesting in a completely different light. There were several good recipes to make some pumpkin treats and even a recipe to make pumpkin soap that we will definitely try after pumpkin harvest. Many of the activities in this book could help prepare a child for a science fair project with a pumpkin related activity.